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HARBOR BRANCH MARINE MICROBE DATABASE (HBMMD)

The oceans contain a vast diversity of macro and microorganisms that are largely undiscovered. The Division of Biomedical Marine Research (DBMR) at Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institution (HBOI) has one of the most comprehensive collections of deep-water sponges in the world, having led numerous expeditions and submersible collections at more than 400 sites over nearly two decades. Through accumulation of new species and site records, long-term surveys are effectively being conducted and biodiversity inventories and catalogs (in the form of cruise reports) are a significant by-product of our primary mission of drug discovery.

Mostly derived from marine sponge samples (>50 different taxa), (as well as marine plants, deep sea cnidarians, echinoids, bryozoans, sediments and seawater samples) the HBOI Marine Microbial Culture Collection (HBMMCC) consists of over 16,000 total marine bacteria and fungi (9000 derived specifically from marine invertebrates). This collection is maintained as a source of microbes for DBMR’s Fermentation Program which systematically cultures the isolates for novel bioactive product discovery. However, except for an initial Gram-stain and a description of basic cellular and colonial morphology, few of the strains in this collection have been taxonomically classified.

The Division of Environmental Biology at the National Science Foundation (NSF) awarded Dr. Jose Lopez (PI) and Dr. Peter McCarthy (Co-PI) of DBMR a "Biotic Surveys and Inventory" (BSI) grant to more thoroughly characterize a portion of the Collection. Using techniques such as microscopy, restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP), and DNA sequence analyses of the small subunit rRNAs (16S and 18S-like), the primary aim of the BSI is to provide fundamental taxonomic data to enhance our knowledge of microbial diversity. The data generated will be of utility to the wider marine microbiology research community. This study will be performed through 2005 with results posted as the data is analyzed. Please note that microbial taxonomies on HBMMD may be continually revised with new data.

For further information, contact:

Jose V. Lopez, Ph.D. - lopez@hboi.edu - Assistant Scientist
Division of Biomedical Marine Research - Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institution
(772) 465 2400 ext. 478

Peter J. McCarthy, Ph.D. - pmccarthy@hboi.edu - Associate Division Director / Head of Microbiology
Division of Biomedical Marine Research - Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institution
(772) 465 2400 ext. 632
For further reading on sponge associated microbes:

Gunasekera, A., Sfanos, K.A, McCarthy, P.J., Lopez, J.V. HBMMD: an enhanced database of the microorganisms associated with deeper water marine invertebrates. Applied Microbiol. Biotechnol. 2005 Jan;66(4):373-376. Epub 2004 Nov 16.

Fieseler L, Horn M, Wagner M, Hentschel U. Discovery of the novel candidate phylum "Poribacteria" in marine sponges. Appl Environ Microbiol. 2004 Jun;70(6):3724-32.

Hentschel, U. et al 2003 Microbial diversity of marine sponges, p. 60-88. In: W.E.G. Müller (ed.), Molecular Marine Biology of Sponges. Springer Verlag, Heidelberg.

Sandell, K.A., Peterson, C.L., Harmody, D.K., McCarthy, P.J., Pomponi, S.A., Lopez, J.V. 2004 Molecular systematic survey of sponge - derived marine microbes. 6th International Sponge Conference Proceedings. Boll. Mus Ist. Univ. Genova. 68:579-585.

Sfanos, K.A.S., Harmody, D.K., McCarthy, P.J., Dang, P., Pomponi, S.A. and Lopez, J.V. - A Molecular Systematic Survey of Cultured Microbial Associates of Deep Water Marine Invertebrates. System Appl Microbiol. Vol 28: 242- 264

Burja, A.M., Webster, N., Murphy, P. and Hill, R.T. 1999. Microbial symbionts of Great Barrier Reef sponges. Mem. Qld. Mus. 44:63-75.

Delong, E.F. 1998. Molecular phylogenetics: new perspective on the ecology, evolution and biodiversity of marine organisms. In Cooksey, K.E. 1998. Molecular approaches to the Study of the Ocean. Chapman and Hall, London. Pp 1 -28.

Friedrich, A.B, Merkert, H., Fendert, T., Hacker, J., Proksch, P., Hentschel, U. 1999. Microbial diversity in the marine sponge Aplysina cavernicola (formerly Verongia cavernicola) analyzed by fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH). Mar. Biol. 134:461-470.

Giovannoni, S., Rappe, M. 2000 Evolution, diversity and molecular ecology of marine prokaryotes. In Kirchman, D.L (Ed.) 2000 Microbial Ecology of the Oceans. Wiley Liss, New York. Pp 47 -84.

Gunasekera, A., Sfanos, K.S, McCarthy, P.J., Lopez, J.V. HBMMD: an enhanced database of the microorganisms associated with deeper water marine invertebrates. In Preparation.

Hentschel, U., Schmid, M., Wagner, M., Fieseler, L., Gernert, C., Hacker, J. 2001 Isolation and phylogenetic analysis of bacteria with antimicrobial activities from the Mediterranean sponges Aplysina aerophoba and Aplsyina caernicola. FEMS Micro Ecol 35:305-312.

Lopez, J.V. McCarthy, P.J., Janda, K.E.,Willoughby, R., Pomponi, S.A. (1999) Molecular techniques reveal wide phyletic diversity of heterotrophic microbes associated with the sponge genus Discodermia (Porifera:Demospongiae). Proceedings of the 5th International Sponge Symposium. Memoirs of the Queensland Museum. 44: 329-341. Brisbane ISSN 0079-8835.

Olson, J. B., C.C. Lord and P. McCarthy. 2000. Improved recoverability of microbial colonies from marine environmental samples. Microb. Ecol. 40(2) 139-147.

Olson, J.B., D.K. Harmody, and P.J. McCarthy. 2002. Alpha-proteobacteria cultivated from marine sponges display branching rod morphology. FEMS Microbiol. Lett. 211:169-173.

Sandell, K.A., C.L. Peterson, D.K. Harmody, P.J. McCarthy, S.A. Pomponi, and J.V. Lopez. Molecular systematic survey of spongeĞderived marine microbes. 6th International Sponge Conference Proceedings. Boll. Mus Ist. Univ. Genova. In Press.

Sfanos, K.A.S., Harmody, D.K., McCarthy, P.J., Dang, P., Pomponi, S.A. and J.V. Lopez. A Molecular Systematic Survey of Cultured Microbial Associates of Deep Water Marine Invertebrates. In Preparation.

Santavy, D.L., Willenz, P., and Colwell, R.R. 1990. Phenotypic study of bacteria associated with the Caribbean Sclerosponge, Ceratoporella nicholsoni. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 56:1750-1762.

Webster NS, Wilson KJ, Blackall LL, Hill RT. 2001. Phylogenetic diversity of bacteria associated with the marine sponge Rhopaloeides odorabile. Appl Environ Microbiol. 67(1):434-44.

Wilkinson, C.R. 1978. Microbial associations in sponges. III. Ultrastructure of the in situ associations in coral reef sponges. Mar. Biol. 49:177-185.

Wilkinson, C.R. 1984. Marine sponges discriminate between food bacteria and bacterial symbionts: electron microscope radioautography and in situ evidence. Proc Royal Soc. London. B. 220:519-528.

Wilkinson, C.R. 1987. Significance of microbial symbionts in sponge evolution and ecology. Symbiosis 4:135-146.

Wilkinson, C.R., M. Nowak, B. Austin and R.R. Colwell. 1981. Specificity of bacterial symbionts in Mediterranean And Great Barrier Reef sponges. Microb. Ecol. 7:13-21.
This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. DEB-0103668. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.
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