Identification of vitamin B12 producing bacteria based on the presence of bluB/cobT2 homologues

Objectives

The objective of the study was to develop a strategy for the identification of new vitamin B₁₂-producing species and to characterize their production capability using a fast and sensitive LC–MS/MS method developed in this study.

Results

Searching for homologues of the bluB/cobT2 fusion gene known to be responsible for the production of the active vitamin B₁₂ form in P. freudenreichii was shown to be a successful strategy for the identification of new vitamin B₁₂-producing strains. The analysis of the identified strains via LC–MS/MS showed the ability of Terrabacter sp. DSM102553, Yimella lutea DSM19828 and Calidifontibacter indicus DSM22967 to produce the active form of vitamin B₁₂. Further analysis of vitamin B₁₂ production capability of Terrabacter sp. DSM102553 in M9 minimal medium and peptone-based media revealed that the highest yield of 2.65 µg of vitamin B₁₂ per g dry cell weight was obtained in M9 medium.

Conclusions

The proposed strategy enabled identification of Terrabacter sp. DSM102553, whose relatively high yields obtained in the minimal medium open new perspectives for the possible application of the strain for biotechnological vitamin B₁₂ production.