DIVERSITY OF CULTURABLE BACTERIAL MICROBIOTA OF THE Eisenia foetida DIGESTIVE TRACT

Abstract

Bacteria are an unavoidable component of the natural earthworm diet; thus, bacterial diversity in the earthworm gut is directly linked to decomposition of organic matter and development of the surrounding plants. The aim of this research was to isolate and to identify biochemically and molecularly the culturable bacterial microbiota of the digestive tract of Eisenia foetida. Earthworms were sourced from Instituto de Reconversión Productiva y Bioenergética (IRBIO) and Colegio de Postgraduados (COLPOS), México. Bacterial isolation was carried out on plates of Brain Heart Infusion (BHI) culture medium. Fifty six and 44 bacterial isolates were obtained from IRBIO and COLPOS, respectively. The population was composed of 44 Gram-negative and 56 Gram-positive isolates. Over 50 % of the bacterial isolates were rod-shaped cells. The 16S rRNA gene was sequenced and nine genera were identified in worms from IRBIO (Bacillus, Paenibacillus, Solibacillus, Staphylococcus, Arthrobacter, Pantoea, Stenotrophomonas, Acinetobacter and Aeromonas) and six in worms from COLPOS (Bacillus, Paenibacillus, Stenotrophomonas, Staphylococcus, Acinetobacter and Aeromonas). Bacillus was the predominant genus, with eight and six species in the oligochaetes from IRBIO and COLPOS, respectively. The most represented bacteria in the worms from both sites were Bacillus sp. and B. subtilis. The predominance of Bacillus was probably due to spore formation, a reproductive strategy that ensures survival and dispersion in the soil and oligochaetes digestive tract. The gut of E. foetida not only harbored bacterial species of agronomic importance but also species potentially pathogenic for humans (Staphylococcus warneri, Pantoea agglomerans and Stentrophomonas sp.). The larger bacterial diversity in worms from IRBIO could be due to their feeding on cattle manure, which is a rich source of bacteria.