Soil-derived cellulose-degrading bacteria: screening, identification, the optimization of fermentation conditions, and their whole genome sequencing

Straw cellulose is an abundant renewable resource in nature. In recent years, the conversion of cellulose from waste straw into biofuel by specific microorganisms' fragmentation has attracted extensive attention. Although many bacteria with the ability to degrade cellulose have been identified, comprehensive bioinformatics analyses of these bacteria remain limited, and research exploring optimal fragmentation conditions is scarce. Our study involved the isolation and screening of bacteria from various locations in Yangzhou using carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) media. Then, the cellulose-degrading bacteria were identified using 16S rRNA and seven candidate bacterial strains with cellulose degrading ability were identified in Yangzhou city for the first time. The cellulase activity was determined by the 3,5-dinitrosalicylic acid (DNS) method in different fragmentation conditions, and finally two bacteria strains with the strongest cellulose degradation ability were selected for whole genome sequencing analysis. Sequencing results revealed that the genome sizes of YZ02 and YZ03 were 8.51 Mb and 6.66 Mb, containing 8,466 and 5,745 genes, respectively. A large number of cellulose degradation-related genes were identified and annotated using KEGG, GO and COG analyses. In addition, genomic CAZyme analysis indicated that both YZ02 and YZ03 harbor a series of glycoside hydrolase family (GH) genes and other genes related to cellulose degradation. Our finding provides new options for the development of cellulose-degrading bacteria and a theoretical basis for improving the cellulose utilization of straw.