Production of enzymes and antimicrobial compounds by halophilic Antarctic Nocardioides sp. grown on different carbon sources.

This study demonstrated the potential of microbial isolates from Antarctic soils to produce hydrolytic enzymes by using specific substrates. The results revealed potential of the strains to produce a broad spectrum of hydrolytic enzymes. Strain A-1 isolated from soil samples in Casey Station, Wilkes Land, was identified as Nocardioides sp. on the basis of morphological, biochemical, physiological observations and also chemotaxonomy analysis. Enzymatic and antimicrobial activities of the cell-free supernatants were explored after growth of strain A-1 in mineral salts medium supplemented with different carbon sources. It was found that the carbon sources favored the production of a broad spectrum of enzymes as well as compounds with antimicrobial activity against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria, especially Staphylococcus aureus and Xanthomonas oryzae. Preliminary analysis showed that the compounds with antimicrobial activity produced by the strain A-1 are mainly glycolipids and/or lipopeptides depending on the used carbon source. The results revealed a great potential of the Antarctic Nocardioides sp. strain A-1 for biotechnological, biopharmaceutical and biocontrol applications as a source of industrially important enzymes and antimicrobial/antifungal compounds.