The aim of this project is to isolate hitherto unknown particle-associated marine bacteria in the Wadden Sea which produce secondary metabolites which may be of interest to medical or biotechnological applications. We are particularly interested in the ecological significance of these metabolites. It is embedded into a state-wide research priority program of Lower Saxonia and a joint project with the Institute of Organic Chemistry at the University of Göttingen (Prof. Axel Zeeck).

Individuals working in the project:

Thorsten Brinkhoff, Torben Martens, Heike Stevens, Meinhard Simon.

Stevens, H., Simon, M., Brinkhoff, T. 2009. Cultivable bacteria from bulk water, aggregates, and surface sediments of a tidal flat ecosystem. Ocean Dyn. 59/2: 291-309.

Martens T, Gram L, Grossart HP, Kessler D, Müller, R, Simon M, Wenzel SC, Brinkhoff T. 2007. Bacteria of the Roseobacter clade show potential for secondary metabolite production. Microb Ecol. 54: 31-42.

Radjasa, O.K., Martens, T., Grossart, H.P., Brinkhoff, T., Sabdono, A., Simon, M. 2007. Antagonistic activity of a marine bacterium Pseudoalteromonas luteoviolacea TAB 4.2 associated with coral Acropora sp. J. Biol. Sci. 7: 239-246.

Stevens, H., Brinkhoff, T., Rink, B, Vollmers, J., Simon, M. 2007. Diversity and abundance of gram-positive bacteria in a tidal flat ecosystem. Environ. Microb. 9(7): 1810–1822.

Martens T, Heidorn T, Pukall R, Simon M, Tindall BJ, Brinkhoff T. 2006. Reclassification of Roseobacter gallaeciensis Ruiz-Ponte et al. 1998 as Phaeobacter gallaeciensis gen. nov., comb. nov., description of Phaeobacter inhibens sp. nov., antibiotic-producing members of the Roseobacter clade, reclassification of Ruegeria algicola (Lafay et al. 1995) Uchino et al. 1998 as Marinovum algicola gen. nov., comb. nov., and consequences for the circumscription of the genera Roseobacter, Ruegeria, and Leisingera. J. System. Evol. Microbiol. 56: 1293-1304.

Wang, L., Große, T., Stevens, H., Brinkhoff, T., Simon, M., Liang, L., Bitzer, J., Bach, G., Zeeck, A., Tokuda, H., Lang, S. 2006. Bioactive hydroxyphenylpyrrole-dicarboxylic acids from a new marine Halomonas sp.: production and structure elucidation. Appl. Microbiol. Biotechnol. 72: 816-822.

Dickschat, J. S., Martens, T., Brinkhoff, T., Simon, M., Schulz. S. 2005. Volatiles released by a Streptomyces species isolated from the North Sea. Chemistry and Biodiversity 2: 837-865.

Stevens, H., Stuebner, M., Simon, M., Brinkhoff, T. 2005. Phylogeny of Proteobacteria and Bacteroidetes from oxic habitats of a tidal flat ecosystem. FEMS Microbiol. Ecol. 54: 351-365.

Stevens, H., Brinkhoff, T., Simon, M. 2005. Composition and seasonal dynamics of free-living, aggregate- and sediment surface-associated bacterial communities in the German Wadden Sea. Aquat. Microb. Ecol. 38: 15-30.

Brinkhoff, T., Bach, G., Heidorn, T., Liang, L., Schlingloff, A., Simon, M. 2004. Antibiotic production by a Roseobacter clade affiliated species from the German Wadden Sea and its antagonistic effects on indigenous isolates. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 70: 2560-2565.

Grossart, H.P., Schlingloff, A., Bernhard, M., Simon, M., Brinkhoff, T. 2004. Antagonistic activity of bacteria isolated from organic aggregates of the German Wadden Sea. FEMS Microbiol. Ecol. 47: 387-396.