Isolation and molecular characterization of Shewanella sp. G5, a producer of cold‐active β ‐D‐glucosidases

β ‐Glucosidase is a highly desired glycosidase, especially for hydrolysis of glycoconjugated precursors in musts and wines for the release of active aromatic compounds. A Shewanella sp. G5 strain was isolated from the intestinal content of benthonic organism ( Munida subrrugosa ) from different coastal areas of the Beagle Channel, Tierra del Fuego (Argentina). This marine bacterium was able to grow at a temperature range between 4 to 20 °C using different β ‐glycoside substrates, such as cellobiose, as carbon source. In this work, the Shewanella sp. G5 strain exhibited high β ‐glucosidase activity on plate at low temperature (4 and 20 °C). Two genes encoding different cold‐active β ‐glucosidases were amplified and sequenced and the nucleotide sequences were submitted to the GenBank. 16S rDNA and gyrB gene sequences were used for the molecular characterization of Shewanella sp. G5. (© 2008 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)