Structural characterization of amphiphilic siderophores produced by a soda lake isolate, Halomonas sp. SL01, reveals cysteine-, phenylalanine- and proline-containing head groups

Soap Lake, located in Washington State, is a naturally occurring saline and alkaline lake. Several organisms inhabiting this lake have been identified as producers of siderophores that are unique in structure. Bacterial isolates, enriched from Soap Lake sediment and water samples, were screened for siderophore production using both the chrome azurol S (CAS) agar plate and liquid methods. Bacterial isolate Halomonas sp. SL01 was found to produce relatively high concentrations of siderophores in liquid medium (up to 40 µM). Siderophores from the isolate were separated from the culture supernatant using solid phase extraction and purified by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Siderophore structure was determined using LC/MS/MS (liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry/mass spectrometry) and fatty acid methyl ester (FAME) GC. Two distinct new families of amphiphilic siderophores were produced by isolate SL01. All siderophores ranged in size from 989 to 1096 atomic mass units and consisted of a conserved peptidic head group (per family), which coordinates iron, coupled to fatty acid moieties. The fatty acyl moieties were C10–C14 in length and some with hydroxyl substitutions at the third α position. These siderophores resembled amphiphilic aquachelin siderophores produced by Halomonas aquamarina strain DS40M3, a marine bacterium as well as siderophores from isolate Halomonas sp. SL28 that was found to produce amphiphilic siderophores. Bacteria thriving under saline and alkaline conditions are capable of producing unique siderophores resembling those produced by microbes inhabiting marine environments.