Distinct microbial communities associated with health-relevant wild berries

Area of Science:

• Microbiology
• Food Science
• Plant Science

Background:

• Wild berries (lingonberries, rowanberries, rosehips) possess health benefits due to bioactive compounds.
• Unprocessed wild berry consumption is encouraged, necessitating microbiological safety assessments.
• Understanding berry-associated microbial communities is crucial for food safety and potential applications.

Purpose of the Study:

• To characterize the bacterial and fungal communities on lingonberries, rowanberries, and rosehips using high-throughput sequencing.
• To compare the microbiota composition across different wild berry species.
• To identify potentially pathogenic, beneficial, and biocontrol microorganisms associated with these berries.

Main Methods:

• High-throughput sequencing (metagenomics) for bacterial and fungal community analysis.
• Cultivation-based methods for profiling yeast populations.
• Comparative analysis of microbial taxonomic composition based on berry type.

Main Results:

• Significant plant-defined differences were observed in prokaryotic and eukaryotic microbiota composition.
• Specific bacterial families (Enterobacteriaceae, Methylobacteriaceae, Sphingomonadaceae) predominated on rosehips, lingonberries, and rowanberries, respectively.
• Fungal communities varied, with Dothioraceae on rosehips, Exobasidiaceae on lingonberries, and a broad spectrum on rowanberries. Lingonberries had distinct, low-abundance yeast populations.
• Potentially pathogenic, beneficial, and biocontrol microorganisms were identified.

Conclusions:

• Metagenomics combined with cultivation provides a comprehensive view of wild berry-associated microbial communities.
• Microbiota composition is species-specific for these wild berries.
• Findings contribute to understanding the role of these microbes in plant health, food safety, and human well-being.