Taisui

Also known as TS-2007S

Origin

Taisui, shaped and touched like meat or jelly, was named because of its morphological characteristics that are similar to the description of “Taisui” in ancient China. Firstly, Taisui being discovered in Shaanxi Province in 1992, China. Until 2013, Taisui had been reported 228 times. Among them, 98.57% of Taisui were accidentally discovered.

Study

In this study, Taisui TS-2007S, a previously unidentified biological object discovered in soil in China, was identified. TS-2007S was shown to contain abundant carbohydrates but a scarcity of protein, fat, and minerals. The exopolymers of TS-2007S showed FT-IR spectra that were similar to those of xanthan gum (XG) but that were dissimilar to those of polyvinyl alcohol (PVA). The NMR spectra of TS-2007S exopolymers in D2O were similar to those of PVA but differed from those of xanthan gum. Unlike PVA, TS-2007S exopolymers and xanthan gum were not soluble in dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO). Furthermore, the exopolymers contained many monosaccharide components, including fucose, rhamnose, mannose, and glucuronic acid in a molar ratio of 87.90:7.49:4.45:0.15. The exopolymers also included traces of glucuronic acid, galactose, and xylose. Taken together, these results suggest that the exopolymers are microbial extracellular polymeric substances (EPSs). The microbial community structure in TS-2007S showed that the predominant bacterial, archaeal, and fungal phyla were Proteobacteria, Euryarchaeota, and Ascomycota at high relative abundances of 90.77, 97.15, and 87.43%, respectively, different from those observed in water and soil environments. Based on these results, we strongly propose that TS-2007S should be defined as a microbial mat formed in soil.

Pyrroloquinoline-quinone

What is Taisui

Taisui is considered as a complex of bacteria, fungi, and myxomycete. Yet, the dominant microbes in Taisui from various sources differ. For example, Klebsiella oxytoca and Ralstonia eutropha were both found by the plate‐culturing and nonculturing methods, whereas Pseudomonas flulorescens and Brevundimonas mediterranea were only detected from another Taisui sample. Of fungi, Candida and Rhodotorula mucilaginosa were identified by 18S rDNA sequencing method, whereas Acremonium and Trichoderma were the dominant fungi of another type of Taisui. In terms of myxomycete, Didymium verrucosporum and Diderma deplanatum have been successfully isolated using either corn meal ‐agar or oat meal‐ agar method. Moreover, archaea have also been found in Taisui and the dominant archaea were Methanobacterium, Methanobrevibacter, Methanosphaera. In addition, studies have investigated Taisui from the perspective of its chemical composition. Polyvinyl alcohol has been found as the main component of meat‐like Taisui, whereas polyacrylic acid or polyvinyl alcohol was the main component of jelly‐like Taisui. Some researchers believe that Taisui may have healthy benefits such as regulating immunity, inhibiting tumors, delaying aging, and eliminating fatigue. Within Taisui, PQQ (pyrroloquinoline quinone), nucleic acids, trace elements etc., have also been found as effective ingredients. In order to obtain the functional substances secreted from Taisui, Taisui has now been successfully artificially cultured, some of which are already on the market. For example, commercial Taisui is usually consumed with water or Chinese liquor, or the mixture of brown sugar and herbs (e.g., wolfberry, astragalus, and jujube). Taisui can also be used in food industry. For example, Lactobacillus and Aspergillus, isolated from Taisui , can be potentially used in the brewing and soy sauce industry.

Some effects

In addition, studies have investigated Taisui from the perspective of its chemical composition. Polyvinyl alcohol has been found as the main component of meat‐like Taisui, whereas polyacrylic acid or polyvinyl alcohol was the main component of jelly‐like Taisui (Li et al., 2020; Zheng & Dong, 2010). Some researchers believe that Taisui may have healthy benefits such as regulating immunity, inhibiting tumors, delaying aging, and eliminating fatigue. Within Taisui, PQQ (pyrroloquinoline quinone), nucleic acids, trace elements etc., have also been found as effective ingredients (Wang, 2018). In order to obtain the functional substances secreted from Taisui, Taisui has now been successfully artificially cultured, some of which are already on the market. For example, commercial Taisui is usually consumed with water or Chinese liquor, or the mixture of brown sugar and herbs (e.g., wolfberry, astragalus, and jujube). Taisui can also be used in food industry. For example, Lactobacillus and Aspergillus, isolated from Taisui (Dai, 2007; Han et al., 2018), can be potentially used in the brewing and soy sauce industry (Fang et al., 2006).

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Reference