基于拉曼光谱“先筛后养”策略在功能微生物资源挖掘中的应用与展望

doi:10.13560/j.cnki.biotech.bull.1985.2025-0480

摘要/Abstract

摘要：

随着微生物研究的深入，传统的“先养后筛”策略在应对复杂环境样本和挖掘功能微生物时暴露出显著的局限性。以肠道和自然环境样本为例，由于99%以上的原核生物无法在实验室条件下培养，大量具有重要功能的微生物尚未被发现和研究。针对这一挑战，提出了基于单细胞拉曼光谱（SCRS）结合重水（D₂O）代谢标记的“先筛后养”策略。该策略采用原位无标记的单细胞拉曼光谱分析，可快速筛选出具有特定代谢活性的微生物细胞，随后对这些细胞进行精准培养与鉴定。通过SCRS检测细胞对D₂O的同化速率，可高效筛选具备特定功能（如溶磷、降解污染物等）的微生物个体。本文综述了该策略的关键技术及应用实例，并详细分析其在微生物功能挖掘方面的优势，指出该策略在提高筛选通量、灵敏度和活性保持率等方面具有显著潜力。同时，探讨了自动化、AI辅助识别、多组学融合以及基因组驱动培养基设计等发展趋势。最后，展望了该策略在微生物资源库构建、抗药性监测等领域的应用前景。本文旨在为微生物功能筛选与高通量分选技术提供系统性参考，以推动单细胞拉曼技术在微生物学研究与应用中的广泛应用。

关键词: 单细胞拉曼光谱, 拉曼激活细胞分选, 单细胞高通量分选, 单细胞培养, 重水代谢标记, “先筛后养”策略, 功能筛选, 微生物资源

Abstract:

With the deepening of microbial research, the traditional "Culture-First, Screen-Second" strategy has shown pronounced limitations when confronted with complex environmental samples and in the quest for functionally significant microbes. Taking gut and natural-environment samples as examples, more than 99% of prokaryotes remain uncultivable under standard laboratory conditions, leaving myriad microorganisms with crucial functions undiscovered and uncharacterised. To address this challenge, a "Screen-First, Culture-Second" workflow based on single-cell Raman spectroscopy (SCRS) combined with heavy-water (D₂O) metabolic labelling has been proposed. This approach employs in situ, label-free SCRS to rapidly pinpoint individual cells exhibiting specific metabolic activities, followed by precise cultivation and taxonomic identification of those cells. By measuring the assimilation rate of D₂O in single cells, SCRS enables the efficient isolation of microbes endowed with targeted functions—for instance, phosphate solubilisation or pollutant degradation.This review summarises the core techniques underpinning this strategy and showcases representative applications. Then it analyses in detail its advantages for functional-microbe discovery, highlighting its considerable potential to enhance screening throughput, sensitivity and activity retention. Meanwhile, the review also discusses the trends, including automation, AI-assisted spectral recognition, multi-omics integration and genome-informed medium design. Finally, the review envisions broad prospects for this strategy in building microbial resource libraries, monitoring antimicrobial resistance and other emerging fields. Overall, the "Screen-First, Culture-Second" platform offers a systematic reference framework for high-throughput functional screening and sorting and is aimed to accelerate the widespread adoption of single-cell Raman technologies in microbiological research and application.

Key words: single-cell Raman spectroscopy, Raman-activated cell sorting, single-cell high-throughput sorting, single-cell cultivation, deuterium oxide metabolic labeling, "Screen-First, Culture-Second" strategy, functional screening, microbial resource

刘佳, 任义尚, 荆晓艳, 许拉. 基于拉曼光谱“先筛后养”策略在功能微生物资源挖掘中的应用与展望[J]. 生物技术通报, 2026, 42(5): 1-13.

LIU Jia, REN Yi-shang, JING Xiao-yan, XU La. Applications and Prospects of Raman Spectroscopy-based “Screen-First， Culture-Second” Strategy in Functional Microbial Resource Exploration[J]. Biotechnology Bulletin, 2026, 42(5): 1-13.

图/表 3

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指标 Parameter	“先养后筛”传统培养法 "Culture-First， Screen-Second" traditional culture method	“先筛后养”单细胞培养策略 "Screen-First， Culture-Second" single-cell culture strategy
通量	低（实验繁琐，效率低下）	高（可达数百个至数千单细胞/h）
培养周期	长（需数周至数月）	短（约3-14 d）
培养偏倚	严重（细胞群体成分失真）	低（直接靶向原位分选）
假阳性率	较高（易引发非特异反应）	低（拉曼光谱可直接表征功能）
活性保持率	高（部分细胞在纯化时可能进入VBNC状态）	高（拉曼分选对活性几乎不造成影响）
假阴性率	高（细胞生长时漏检）	低（通过采取措施减少假阴性）

指标 Parameter	“先养后筛”传统培养法 "Culture-First， Screen-Second" traditional culture method	“先筛后养”单细胞培养策略 "Screen-First， Culture-Second" single-cell culture strategy
通量	低（实验繁琐，效率低下）	高（可达数百个至数千单细胞/h）
培养周期	长（需数周至数月）	短（约3-14 d）
培养偏倚	严重（细胞群体成分失真）	低（直接靶向原位分选）
假阳性率	较高（易引发非特异反应）	低（拉曼光谱可直接表征功能）
活性保持率	高（部分细胞在纯化时可能进入VBNC状态）	高（拉曼分选对活性几乎不造成影响）
假阴性率	高（细胞生长时漏检）	低（通过采取措施减少假阴性）

技术指标 Performance metrics	单细胞拉曼技术 Single-cell Raman technologya	荧光激活细胞分选 Fluorescence-activated cell sorting	磁性激活细胞分选 Magnetic-activated cell sorting	微流控液滴技术 Droplet-based microfluidics	活细胞荧光原位杂交 Live cell fluorescence in situ hybridization
可培养率	~17%	~7.3%	—	~3.3%	~2.5%
筛选准确率	100%	—	~79%	~32.2%	100%
培养周期	~14 d	数天至数周	数天至数周	~8-10 d	数天至数周
标记需求	无须荧光/磁性探针	需荧光标记（抗体或探针）	需抗体+磁珠标记	通常需荧光或化学底物作为功能报告	需荧光寡核苷酸探针标记
功能识别机制	代谢功能（D₂O吸收速率）	荧光标记抗原/报告基因	细胞表面抗原	代谢产物或酶活性（荧光/化学底物）	核酸序列（16S rRNA序列）
功能活性定量	可定量（C-D峰强度）	可半定量荧光强度	不可定量	可半定量荧光或底物产物	可半定量荧光强度
功能识别	可识别	可识别	可识别	可识别	可识别
分选通量	高（10²-10³细胞/分钟）	极高（10⁴-10⁶细胞/秒）	高（批量并行处理）	极高（10⁴-10⁶细胞/时）	高（结合FACS，受限于低活性）
活性保持率	无损	较高（>83%）	高（>90%）	高	低（＞1%）

技术指标 Performance metrics	单细胞拉曼技术 Single-cell Raman technologya	荧光激活细胞分选 Fluorescence-activated cell sorting	磁性激活细胞分选 Magnetic-activated cell sorting	微流控液滴技术 Droplet-based microfluidics	活细胞荧光原位杂交 Live cell fluorescence in situ hybridization
可培养率	~17%	~7.3%	—	~3.3%	~2.5%
筛选准确率	100%	—	~79%	~32.2%	100%
培养周期	~14 d	数天至数周	数天至数周	~8-10 d	数天至数周
标记需求	无须荧光/磁性探针	需荧光标记（抗体或探针）	需抗体+磁珠标记	通常需荧光或化学底物作为功能报告	需荧光寡核苷酸探针标记
功能识别机制	代谢功能（D₂O吸收速率）	荧光标记抗原/报告基因	细胞表面抗原	代谢产物或酶活性（荧光/化学底物）	核酸序列（16S rRNA序列）
功能活性定量	可定量（C-D峰强度）	可半定量荧光强度	不可定量	可半定量荧光或底物产物	可半定量荧光强度
功能识别	可识别	可识别	可识别	可识别	可识别
分选通量	高（10²-10³细胞/分钟）	极高（10⁴-10⁶细胞/秒）	高（批量并行处理）	极高（10⁴-10⁶细胞/时）	高（结合FACS，受限于低活性）
活性保持率	无损	较高（>83%）	高（>90%）	高	低（＞1%）