Trichormus sp.

History of Receipt and Isolation

• Country of origin: Republic of Kazakhstan
• Place of isolation: village of Bakanas, Balkhash District, Almaty Region
• Habitat: rice field.
• Isolator(s): researchers of the Research Institute for Biological and Biotechnology Problems at Al-Farabi Kazakh National University, under the supervision of F.K. Sarsekeyeva.
• Year of entry into the collection: 2025.
• Method of obtainment: isolated from an enrichment culture obtained from a natural sample by sequential microbiological streaking
• Genetic features: Wild type (WT)
• Culture state: axenic.

Morphology and Structure

A multicellular, filamentous, heterocyst-forming cyanobacterium. Trichomes are unbranched, straight or slightly curved. Cells are predominantly cylindrical or barrel-shaped, blue-green in color, and surrounded by a mucilaginous sheath. The strain forms both heterocysts and akinetes. Vegetative cells are 4.0–8.0 μm in diameter.

Cultivation

• nutrient media: BG-11, BG-11₀ (nitrogen-free), Tamiya, Zarrouk (liquid and agarized)
• temperature: 25 ± 2 °C
• light intensity: 30–40 µmol photons/m²/s
• photoperiod: 16:8 h (light/dark)
• pH: 7.0–7.5.

Physiological Characteristics

Mesophilic, photoautotrophic, heterocyst-forming nitrogen-fixing cyanobacterial strain. It is capable of growth under nitrogen-depleted conditions by forming heterocysts and fixing atmospheric nitrogen.

Long-term Preservation Conditions

The strain is maintained on agar-solidified BG-11 medium at 4–12 °C under low light intensity (10–20 µmol photons/m²/s). Subculturing is performed every 2–3 months. For long-term preservation, cryopreservation at −80 °C or in liquid nitrogen using appropriate cryoprotectants is recommended.

Field of Application

The culture has potential for the production of biofertilizers and plant growth biostimulants, biological nitrogen fixation, improvement of soil fertility, restoration of degraded agroecosystems, and fundamental research in the physiology, ecology, and biotechnology of cyanobacteria during the implementation of the scientific project AP26101745 "Application of cyanobacterial strains for the production of organic fertilizers and biostimulants in agriculture".