Microbes involved in gelatin degradation in substrate

Gelatin is an animal-based protein hydrolysate derived from collagen, with extensive industrial applications, including in food production, pharmaceuticals and as a biostimulant for agriculture. Despite its industrial relevance, there are limited studies on the microbes involved in gelatin biodegradation, most relying on cultivation-dependent methods. Understanding the biodegradation process and rate of gelatin is important for its ecological use and agricultural applications. This study investigates the degradation of gelatin granules in a seedling substrate over 50 days using high-throughput sequencing of microbial 16S rRNA gene and ITS regions to track the microbial community during degradation. We hypothesized that gelatin amendment would enrich the microbial community with gelatin degraders, altering its structure and dynamics. Results indicated that gelatin granules degraded rapidly, significantly impacting the microbial community structure. Bacterial communities were more affected by gelatin presence than fungal communities. Taxonomic analysis revealed unique genera at different time points, with some known gelatin degraders like Mortierella and Burkholderia showing increased abundance correlated with gelatin weight loss. This study enhances our understanding of gelatin biodegradation, highlighting the microbial community dynamics and microbial genera involved in the process.