Microbial diversity in biodeteriorated monuments as studied by denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis

Studies of the microorganisms living on cultural assets and their potential damaging effects begin with an understanding of the microbial diversity present in such samples. Recently, molecular techniques have started to attract considerable interest since they do not require the culture of microorganisms in order to detect their presence. The basic protocol followed during microbial diversity analysis on cultural heritage assets utilizes electrophoretic techniques for separating highly homologous sequences. At present, Denaturing Gradient Gel Electrophoresis (DGGE) is the most frequently reported technique for separating DNA fragments during microbial diversity studies of art objects. In this report, we describe DGGE profiling techniques, show the most common applications, and present some examples of their use in microbial diversity studies on cultural heritage.