Bioactivity, chemical profiling, and 16S rRNA-based phylogeny of haloalkaliphilic Nocardiopsis sp. GhM-HA-6 isolated from the Gulf of Khambhat

Abstract Objectives Actinomycetes are well known sources of antibiotics, however; recently the focus of antimicrobial research has been turning towards actinomycetes of extreme environments. Therefore, present work would highlight the isolation, identification and characterization of antimicrobial metabolites produced by marine haloalkaliphilic actinomycetes. Methods Saline soil sample was collected from Ghogha coast (Gulf of Khambhat), Bhavnagar, Western India. Isolation was carried out using selective media while identification was done based on morphological, cultural and molecular characterization. The antimicrobial potential was checked by spot inoculation method. Optimization was carried out by the one variable at a time (OVAT) method. The antimicrobial compounds were extracted using ethyl acetate and characterized by GC-MS. Results The haloalkaliphilic actinomycetes Nocardiopsis sp. GhM-HA-6 was isolated from saline soil of Ghogha coast using starch agar with 10% w/v NaCl and pH 9 and was identified as Nocardiopsis sp. based on morphology, cultural characteristics and 16S rRNA phylogenetic analysis (NCBI Genbank Accession number: KF384492 ). The organism showed antimicrobial activity against five Gram positive and three Gram negative bacteria while the isolate didn’t show any antifungal activity. Results of optimization showed that the highest production of antimicrobial compounds was obtained using starch broth with 0.5% w/v starch, 1% w/v yeast extract, 10% w/v NaCl and pH 9. GC-MS analysis of ethyl acetate extract of the isolate showed presence of total 18 compounds including various antimicrobial compounds like 2, 4-bis (1, 1-dimethylethyl)-Phenol, various types of alkanes and their derivatives. Conclusion Haloalkaliphilic actinomycete Nocardiopsis sp. GhM-HA-6, from a rarely explored marine habitat, can be a source of antimicrobial compounds with the novel biotechnological applications.