Dataset Information

Insights Into the Cultivable Microbial Ecology of "Manna" Ash Products Extracted From Fraxinus angustifolia (Oleaceae) Trees in Sicily, Italy.

ABSTRACT: Microbial communities characterizing a specific food matrix, generally, strongly contribute to both its composition, and properties for food applications. To our knowledge, this is the first study to investigate the cultivable microbial ecology of Sicilian "Manna" ash products in order to acquire new information on the hygienic quality, shelf-life and potential application of this traditional food. To this purpose, several manna samples belonging to different commercial categories were collected and subjected to the analysis of bacteria, yeasts, and filamentous fungi. Furthermore, an investigation of the sugar content and physicochemical parameters was performed. The results of our study followed the trend generally reported for other sugary foods. Conversely, as regards microbiological analyses, in the present study, the presence of microorganisms at high levels confirmed their survival in stressing conditions characterizing this food matrix in a viable and cultivable form. Most species were osmophilic, endophytic bacteria, antagonistic of fungi pathogen of plants. Yeasts were the most abundant microbial populations and a total of six species were identified: Candida aaseri, Candida lactis-condensi, Citeromyces matritensis, Lachancea thermotolerans, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, and Zygosaccharomyces bailii. Filamentous fungi included five genera, which were considered common contaminants of honey and of other foods due to their xerophilic characteristics. Interestingly, our results suggest that the strains of L. thermotolerans isolated in this study might be evaluated for their potential to act as starters either singly or in multi-combination for food applications.

SUBMITTER: Guarcello R

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6536662 | biostudies-literature | 2019

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Insights Into the Cultivable Microbial Ecology of "Manna" Ash Products Extracted From <i>Fraxinus angustifolia</i> (<i>Oleaceae</i>) Trees in Sicily, Italy.

Guarcello Rosa R Gaglio Raimondo R Todaro Aldo A Alfonzo Antonio A Schicchi Rosario R Cirlincione Fortunato F Moschetti Giancarlo G Francesca Nicola N

Frontiers in microbiology 20190521

Microbial communities characterizing a specific food matrix, generally, strongly contribute to both its composition, and properties for food applications. To our knowledge, this is the first study to investigate the cultivable microbial ecology of Sicilian "Manna" ash products in order to acquire new information on the hygienic quality, shelf-life and potential application of this traditional food. To this purpose, several manna samples belonging to different commercial categories were collected ...[more]

PMID: 31164870

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Project description:BackgroundAsh (Fraxinus spp.) is a dominant tree species throughout urban and forested landscapes of North America (NA). The rapid invasion of NA by emerald ash borer (Agrilus planipennis), a wood-boring beetle endemic to Eastern Asia, has resulted in the death of millions of ash trees and threatens billions more. Larvae feed primarily on phloem tissue, which girdles and kills the tree. While NA ash species including black (F. nigra), green (F. pennsylvannica) and white (F. americana) are highly susceptible, the Asian species Manchurian ash (F. mandshurica) is resistant to A. planipennis perhaps due to their co-evolutionary history. Little is known about the molecular genetics of ash. Hence, we undertook a functional genomics approach to identify the repertoire of genes expressed in ash phloem.Methodology and principal findingsUsing 454 pyrosequencing we obtained 58,673 high quality ash sequences from pooled phloem samples of green, white, black, blue and Manchurian ash. Intriguingly, 45% of the deduced proteins were not significantly similar to any sequences in the GenBank non-redundant database. KEGG analysis of the ash sequences revealed a high occurrence of defense related genes. Expression analysis of early regulators potentially involved in plant defense (i.e. transcription factors, calcium dependent protein kinases and a lipoxygenase 3) revealed higher mRNA levels in resistant ash compared to susceptible ash species. Lastly, we predicted a total of 1,272 single nucleotide polymorphisms and 980 microsatellite loci, among which seven microsatellite loci showed polymorphism between different ash species.Conclusions and significanceThe current transcriptomic data provide an invaluable resource for understanding the genetic make-up of ash phloem, the target tissue of A. planipennis. These data along with future functional studies could lead to the identification/characterization of defense genes involved in resistance of ash to A. planipennis, and in future ash breeding programs for marker development.

Project description:The cosmopolitan genus Fraxinus, which comprises about 40 species of temperate trees and shrubs occupying various habitats in the Northern Hemisphere, represents a useful model to study speciation in long-lived angiosperms. We used nuclear external transcribed spacers (nETS), phantastica gene sequences, and two chloroplast loci (trnH-psbA and rpl32-trnL) in combination with previously published and newly obtained nITS sequences to produce a time-calibrated multi-locus phylogeny of the genus. We then inferred the biogeographic history and evolution of floral morphology. An early dispersal event could be inferred from North America to Asia during the Oligocene, leading to the diversification of the section Melioides sensus lato. Another intercontinental dispersal originating from the Eurasian section of Fraxinus could be dated from the Miocene and resulted in the speciation of F. nigra in North America. In addition, vicariance was inferred to account for the distribution of the other Old World species (sections Sciadanthus, Fraxinus and Ornus). Geographic speciation likely involving dispersal and vicariance could also be inferred from the phylogenetic grouping of geographically close taxa. Molecular dating suggested that the initial divergence of the taxonomical sections occurred during the middle and late Eocene and Oligocene periods, whereas diversification within sections occurred mostly during the late Oligocene and Miocene, which is consistent with the climate warming and accompanying large distributional changes observed during these periods. These various results underline the importance of dispersal and vicariance in promoting geographic speciation and diversification in Fraxinus. Similarities in life history, reproductive and demographic attributes as well as geographical distribution patterns suggest that many other temperate trees should exhibit similar speciation patterns. On the other hand, the observed parallel evolution and reversions in floral morphology would imply a major influence of environmental pressure. The phylogeny obtained and its biogeographical implications should facilitate future studies on the evolution of complex adaptive characters, such as habitat preference, and their possible roles in promoting divergent evolution in trees.

Project description:Gene flow dynamics of common ash (Fraxinus excelsior L.) is affected by several human activities in Central Europe, including habitat fragmentation, agroforestry expansion, controlled and uncontrolled transfer of reproductive material, and a recently introduced emerging infectious disease, ash dieback, caused by Hymenoscyphus fraxineus. Habitat fragmentation may alter genetic connectivity and effective population size, leading to loss of genetic diversity and increased inbreeding in ash populations. Gene flow from cultivated trees in landscapes close to their native counterparts may also influence the adaptability of future generations. The devastating effects of ash dieback have already been observed in both natural and managed populations in continental Europe. However, potential long-term effects of genetic bottlenecks depend on gene flow across fragmented landscapes. For this reason, we studied the genetic connectivity of ash trees in an isolated forest patch of a fragmented landscape in Rösenbeck, Germany. We applied two approaches to parentage analysis to estimate gene flow patterns at the study site. We specifically investigated the presence of background pollination at the landscape level and the degree of genetic isolation between native and cultivated trees. Local meteorological data was utilized to understand the effect of wind on the pollen and seed dispersal patterns. Gender information of the adult trees was considered for calculating the dispersal distances. We found that the majority of the studied seeds (55-64%) and seedlings (75-98%) in the forest patch were fathered and mothered by the trees within the same patch. However, we determined a considerable amount of pollen flow (26-45%) from outside of the study site, representing background pollination at the landscape level. Limited pollen flow was observed from neighbouring cultivated trees (2%). Both pollen and seeds were dispersed in all directions in accordance with the local wind directions. Whereas there was no positive correlation between pollen dispersal distance and wind speed, the correlation between seed dispersal distance and wind speed was significant (0.71, p < 0.001), indicating that strong wind favours long-distance dispersal of ash seeds. Finally, we discussed the implications of establishing gene conservation stands and the use of enrichment planting in the face of ash dieback.

Dataset Information

Insights Into the Cultivable Microbial Ecology of "Manna" Ash Products Extracted From Fraxinus angustifolia (Oleaceae) Trees in Sicily, Italy.

Publications

Insights Into the Cultivable Microbial Ecology of "Manna" Ash Products Extracted From <i>Fraxinus angustifolia</i> (<i>Oleaceae</i>) Trees in Sicily, Italy.

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