A synthetic filamentous coculture pairing the cellulolytic fungus Trichoderma reesei RUT-C30 with the noncellulolytic bacterium Streptomyces coelicolor A3(2). The coculture was designed to use cellulose as the carbon source, making S. coelicolor dependent on hydrolysate sugars released by T. reesei cellulases. The system is DOE-relevant as a controllable model for lignocellulose-oriented coculture bioprocessing, where population dynamics, cellulase formation, and secondary-metabolite/pigment production can be tuned through inoculation ratio and abiotic process parameters.
Taxonomy
| Taxon | Ontology ID | Functional Roles | Abundance |
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| Trichoderma reesei RUT-C30 — ontology label: Trichoderma reesei RUT C-30 | NCBITaxon:1344414 · TaxonMech · TraitMech |
PRIMARY_DEGRADER
CROSS_FEEDER
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ABUNDANT |
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| Streptomyces coelicolor A3(2) | NCBITaxon:100226 · TaxonMech · TraitMech |
CROSS_FEEDER
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ABUNDANT |
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Ecological Interactions
The graph shows only explicitly linked interaction participants. Community members without an asserted participant link are omitted; membership alone does not imply an interaction.
Cellulase-Driven Hydrolysate Cross-Feeding
CROSS_FEEDINGT. reesei cellulases release cellulose hydrolysate sugars that support S. coelicolor growth after the initially supplied glucose is consumed. Both partners can first grow on glucose. S. coelicolor does not effectively grow on cellulose in the tested medium; this is not a claim that its genome lacks cellulase genes or that it is incapable in every condition.
Source Taxon: Trichoderma reesei RUT-C30
Target Taxon: Streptomyces coelicolor A3(2)
Metabolites: cellulose (CHEBI:18246 · MediaIngredientMech · CMMMech)
Biological Processes:
- cellulose catabolic process (GO:0030245 · PathwayMech)
- carbohydrate metabolic process (GO:0005975 · PathwayMech)
After initial glucose-supported growth, fungal cellulase activity supplies hydrolysate sugars that enable continued S. coelicolor growth on the cellulose-containing medium. This resource dependence is phase-specific, not the sole cause of inoculum or abiotic treatment responses.
Evidence
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PMID:36314761 - SUPPORT (IN_VITRO)"cellulose as a carbon source"
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PMID:36314761 - SUPPORT (IN_VITRO)"hydrolysate sugars released by T. reesei cellulases"
Streptomyces Growth on Fungal Hydrolysate
S. coelicolor growth during the cellulose-fed phase depends on hydrolysate released by T. reesei. This is a recipient growth outcome, distinct from the initial glucose-supported phase. The authors interpret some later conditions as commensalism following early nutrient competition; the outcome does not imply a neutral fungal fitness effect in every treatment.
Participating Taxa: Streptomyces coelicolor A3(2)
Metabolites: cellulose (CHEBI:18246 · MediaIngredientMech · CMMMech)
Biological Processes:
- carbohydrate metabolic process (GO:0005975 · PathwayMech)
Evidence
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PMID:36314761 - SUPPORT (IN_VITRO)"dependency of S. coelicolor on hydrolysate sugars"
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PMID:36314761 - SUPPORT (IN_VITRO)"noncellulolytic bacterium Streptomyces coelicolor A3(2)"
Tunable Filamentous Population Dynamics
COMPETITIONInoculation advantage, osmolality and shaking frequency alter relative growth and competition in the filamentous coculture. Spore storage in water versus PBS changes viability and growth order; matched tagged and wild-type controls do not attribute that reversal to the tag. Higher osmolality relatively favors S. coelicolor through stronger fungal inhibition, not absolute bacterial growth stimulation. Fluorescence requires autofluorescence correction and remains a growth proxy, not exact cell counts in every condition. Pigment and cellulase formation vary with population balance, but their causal mediation by hydrolysate dependence is unresolved.
Participating Taxa: Trichoderma reesei RUT-C30, Streptomyces coelicolor A3(2)
Biological Processes:
- secondary metabolite biosynthetic process (GO:0044550 · PathwayMech)
Evidence
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PMID:36314761 - SUPPORT (IN_VITRO)"both partners outcompete the other when given a high inoculation advantage"
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PMID:36314761 - SUPPORT (IN_VITRO)"simultaneous growth of both partners, cellulase, and pigment production could be determined"
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PMID:36314761 - SUPPORT (IN_VITRO)"population dynamics were also tuned by modulating abiotic factors"
Associated Datasets
| Dataset | Type | Repository | Accession |
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Trichoderma-Streptomyces filamentous coculture publication
PubMed and PMC-indexed MicrobiologyOpen study reporting respiration, fluorescence, inoculation-ratio, osmolality, shaking-frequency, cellulase, and pigment-production phenotypes for the T. reesei RUT-C30 and S. coelicolor A3(2) coculture. |
PHENOTYPE | OTHER | PMID:36314761 |
Knowledge gaps & discussions (1)
KNOWLEDGE_GAP OPEN Which mechanisms connect hydrolysate availability, viability and abiotic conditions to population and pigment responses?
The imposed inoculum and abiotic perturbations change outcomes, but they do not isolate hydrolysate dependence as the mediator. Early competition and conditional late commensalism are retained. Fluorescence unmixing is validated in selected comparisons, not a universal cell-count calibration. Carbon-source and vessel metadata remain issue #1905.
Attaches to: ecological_interactions#Cellulase-Driven Hydrolysate Cross-Feeding, ecological_interactions#Streptomyces Growth on Fungal Hydrolysate, ecological_interactions#Tunable Filamentous Population Dynamics
1 evidence item(s)
population dynamics were also tuned by modulating abiotic factors
Supports abiotic tuning of the coculture.
Environmental Factors
| Factor | Value | Unit |
|---|---|---|
| Cellulose carbon source | cellulose | N/A |
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| Inoculation ratio | varied | N/A |
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| Osmolality | increased osmolality favored S. coelicolor | N/A |
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| Shaking frequency | increased shaking frequency reduced S. coelicolor biomass formation | N/A |
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Growth Media
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