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Identification of Cellulolytic Bacteria from Guts of Microcerotermes diversus Silvestri (Isoptera: Termitidae) in Southern Iran

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Abstract

Termites are a large and important group of insects in terrestrial ecosystems that decompose lignocelluloses. Among these, Microcerotermes diversus Silvestri (Termitidae) is a destructive invasive pest in many tropical and subtropical regions. In the present study, M. diversus specimens were collected from traps in Ahvaz, Bandar Abbas, Kish, and Khark Islands. Sample suspensions were prepared in 5-ml DH2O and cultured on nutrient agar (NA) medium. All 47 representative bacterial isolates were evaluated for cellulolytic activity by growing them on cellulose Congo-red agar medium. Based on some key phenotypic characteristics, the isolates were tentatively identified at the genus level. These were confirmed by 16S rRNA analysis using a universal primer pair (P1/P6). Sequence alignments revealed that most of the isolates are novel species so far found in the termite guts. Results showed that some of the isolates are common for all surveyed areas. However, there were significant differences in their numbers and degree of cellulolytic activity. The species reported here for the first time for termites of Iran are Bacillus wiedmanii, B. paramycoides, Elizabethkingia anophelis, Lysinibacillus pakestanensis, Pseudomonas hibiscicola, Actinetobacter pitti, A. venetianus, and Ochrobactrum anthropi.

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Acknowledgements

We gratefully acknowledge the Science and Research Branch, I. Azad University, for providing laboratory facilities. This work is part of the Ph.D. dissertation of Zeinab Fathollahi. We thank Prof. Bard Kard (Oklahoma State University, USA) for reviewing earlier drafts of this paper.

Funding

This study is funded by Science and Research Branch I. Azad University.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Plant Protection, Faculty of Agricultural Sciences and Food Industries, Science and Research Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran

    Zeinab Fathollahi, Sohrab Imani & Nader Hassanzadeh

  2. Department of Plant Protection, College of Agriculture, Shahid Chamran University of Ahvaz, Ahvaz, Iran

    Behzad Habibpour

  3. Department of Parasitology, Razi Vaccine and Serum Research Institute, Agricultural Research, Education and Extension Organization (AREEO), Tehran, Iran

    Mohammad Abdigoudarzi

Authors
  1. Zeinab Fathollahi
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  2. Behzad Habibpour
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  4. Nader Hassanzadeh
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  5. Mohammad Abdigoudarzi
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Contributions

The study was designed by ZF, BH, SI, NH, and MA. Experiments were performed and evaluated by ZF.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Behzad Habibpour.

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Fathollahi, Z., Habibpour, B., Imani, S. et al. Identification of Cellulolytic Bacteria from Guts of Microcerotermes diversus Silvestri (Isoptera: Termitidae) in Southern Iran. Curr Microbiol 78, 1305–1316 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00284-021-02369-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00284-021-02369-0

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