Abstract
The unique and untapped microbiological diversity of the Cuatro Cienegas Basin needs to be saved from the overexploitation of the aquifer by unsustainable agricultural practices. Considering the great value of the biodiversity enclosed in this valley, as a group we decided to change the future of the area, to start evolving from a poor agricultural site, to a future biotech hub, where high school students would be the “first to open the treasure box” of the biotechnological potential. By following the Nagoya treaty, we can create value for their biodiversity and return to their community the necessary resources for education and sustainable development to alleviate poverty. But before setting students into the search, we needed to see if the dream was possible. We all knew that Actinobacteria were the obvious first suspect due to the large diversity of secondary metabolites that this lineage of bacteria has been reported to produce. Through our research, we have found an enormous “hidden potential,” solutions that range from new antibiotics, antifungals, cancer antagonists, energy potential by degrading cellulose, and sustainable agriculture possibilities with probiotics plus a series of untapped possibilities in methanogens and halophilic Archaea. This is just the beginning of a children-driven revolution. We hope that this potential is channeled to a better society, to a university in the local town where the biotech potential is directly explored and exploited by the owners of the land.
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Acknowledgments
This chapter was written during a sabbatical leave of VS in the Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior, University of Minnesota, in Dr. Michael Travisano’s laboratory supported by the program PASPA-DGAPA, UNAM.
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Arocha-Garza, H., Avilés-Arnaut, H., Medina-Chávez, N.O., Figueroa, M., Souza, V., De la Torre-Zavala, S. (2018). Bioprospecting in Cuatro Cienegas: A Set of Open Possibilities to Save the Ecosystem. In: Souza, V., Olmedo-Álvarez, G., Eguiarte, L. (eds) Cuatro Ciénegas Ecology, Natural History and Microbiology. Cuatro Ciénegas Basin: An Endangered Hyperdiverse Oasis. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-93423-5_9
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