The Bad and the Good—Microorganisms in Cultural Heritage Environments—An Update on Biodeterioration and Biotreatment Approaches

Abstract

Cultural heritage objects constitute a very diverse environment, inhabited by various bacteria and fungi. The impact of these microorganisms on the degradation of artworks is undeniable, but at the same time, some of them may be applied for the efficient biotreatment of cultural heritage assets. Interventions with microorganisms have been proven to be useful in restoration of artworks, when classical chemical and mechanical methods fail or produce poor or short-term effects. The path to understanding the impact of microbes on historical objects relies mostly on multidisciplinary approaches, combining novel meta-omic technologies with classical cultivation experiments, and physico-chemical characterization of artworks. In particular, the development of metabolomic- and metatranscriptomic-based analyses associated with metagenomic studies may significantly increase our understanding of the microbial processes occurring on different materials and under various environmental conditions. Moreover, the progress in environmental microbiology and biotechnology may enable more effective application of microorganisms in the biotreatment of historical objects, creating an alternative to highly invasive chemical and mechanical methods.