1
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Angulo-Cánovas E, Bartual A, López-Igual R, Luque I, Radzinski NP, Shilova I, Anjur-Dietrich M, García-Jurado G, Úbeda B, González-Reyes JA, Díez J, Chisholm SW, García-Fernández JM, del Carmen Muñoz-Marín M. Direct interaction between marine cyanobacteria mediated by nanotubes. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2024; 10:eadj1539. [PMID: 38781331 PMCID: PMC11114229 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.adj1539] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/09/2023] [Accepted: 04/16/2024] [Indexed: 05/25/2024]
Abstract
Microbial associations and interactions drive and regulate nutrient fluxes in the ocean. However, physical contact between cells of marine cyanobacteria has not been studied thus far. Here, we show a mechanism of direct interaction between the marine cyanobacteria Prochlorococcus and Synechococcus, the intercellular membrane nanotubes. We present evidence of inter- and intra-genus exchange of cytoplasmic material between neighboring and distant cells of cyanobacteria mediated by nanotubes. We visualized and measured these structures in xenic and axenic cultures and in natural samples. We show that nanotubes are produced between living cells, suggesting that this is a relevant system of exchange material in vivo. The discovery of nanotubes acting as exchange bridges in the most abundant photosynthetic organisms in the ocean may have important implications for their interactions with other organisms and their population dynamics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elisa Angulo-Cánovas
- Departamento de Bioquímica y Biología Molecular, Campus de Excelencia Internacional Agroalimentario, Universidad de Córdoba, Córdoba 14014, Spain
| | - Ana Bartual
- Instituto Universitario de Investigaciones Marinas (INMAR), Campus de Excelencia Internacional del Mar (CEI·MAR), Universidad de Cádiz, 11510 Puerto Real, Cádiz, Spain
| | - Rocío López-Igual
- Instituto de Bioquímica Vegetal y Fotosíntesis, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas and Universidad de Sevilla, 41092 Sevilla, Spain
| | - Ignacio Luque
- Instituto de Bioquímica Vegetal y Fotosíntesis, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas and Universidad de Sevilla, 41092 Sevilla, Spain
| | - Nikolai P. Radzinski
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | | | - Maya Anjur-Dietrich
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Gema García-Jurado
- Instituto Maimónides de Investigación Biomédica de Córdoba (IMIBIC), Córdoba, Spain
| | - Bárbara Úbeda
- Instituto Universitario de Investigaciones Marinas (INMAR), Campus de Excelencia Internacional del Mar (CEI·MAR), Universidad de Cádiz, 11510 Puerto Real, Cádiz, Spain
| | - José Antonio González-Reyes
- Departamento de Biología Celular, Fisiología e Inmunología, Campus de Excelencia Internacional Agroalimentario, Universidad de Córdoba, Córdoba 14014, Spain
| | - Jesús Díez
- Departamento de Bioquímica y Biología Molecular, Campus de Excelencia Internacional Agroalimentario, Universidad de Córdoba, Córdoba 14014, Spain
| | - Sallie W. Chisholm
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - José Manuel García-Fernández
- Departamento de Bioquímica y Biología Molecular, Campus de Excelencia Internacional Agroalimentario, Universidad de Córdoba, Córdoba 14014, Spain
| | - María del Carmen Muñoz-Marín
- Departamento de Bioquímica y Biología Molecular, Campus de Excelencia Internacional Agroalimentario, Universidad de Córdoba, Córdoba 14014, Spain
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2
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Kim W, Park Y, Kim M, Cha Y, Jung J, Jeon CO, Park W. Sustainable control of Microcystis aeruginosa, a harmful cyanobacterium, using Selaginella tamariscina extracts. ECOTOXICOLOGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL SAFETY 2024; 277:116375. [PMID: 38677071 DOI: 10.1016/j.ecoenv.2024.116375] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/13/2024] [Revised: 04/02/2024] [Accepted: 04/20/2024] [Indexed: 04/29/2024]
Abstract
Eco-friendly reagents derived from plants represent a promising strategy to mitigate the occurrence of toxic cyanobacterial blooms. The use of an amentoflavone-containing Selaginella tamariscina extract (STE) markedly decreased the number of Microcystis aeruginosa cells, thus demonstrating significant anti-cyanobacterial activity. In particular, the Microcystis-killing fraction obtained from pulverized S. tamariscina using hot-water-based extraction at temperatures of 40 °C induced cell disruption in both axenic and xenic M. aeruginosa. Liquid chromatographic analysis was also conducted to measure the concentration of amentoflavone in the STE, thus supporting the potential M. aeruginosa-specific killing effects of STE. Bacterial community analysis revealed that STE treatment led to a reduction in the relative abundance of Microcystis species while also increasing the 16S rRNA gene copy number in both xenic M. aeruginosa NIBR18 and cyanobacterial bloom samples isolated from a freshwater environment. Subsequent testing on bacteria, cyanobacteria, and algae isolated from freshwater revealed that STE was not toxic for other taxa. Furthermore, ecotoxicology assessment involving Aliivibrio fischeri, Daphnia magna, and Danio rerio found that high STE doses immobilized D. magna but did not impact the other organisms, while there was no change in the water quality. Overall, due to its effective Microcystis-killing capability and low ecotoxicity, aqueous STE represents a promising practical alternative for the management of Microcystis blooms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wonjae Kim
- Laboratory of Molecular Environmental Microbiology, Department of Environmental Science and Ecological Engineering, Korea University, Seoul 02841, South Korea
| | - Yerim Park
- Laboratory of Molecular Environmental Microbiology, Department of Environmental Science and Ecological Engineering, Korea University, Seoul 02841, South Korea
| | - Minkyung Kim
- Laboratory of Molecular Environmental Microbiology, Department of Environmental Science and Ecological Engineering, Korea University, Seoul 02841, South Korea
| | - Yeji Cha
- Laboratory of Molecular Environmental Microbiology, Department of Environmental Science and Ecological Engineering, Korea University, Seoul 02841, South Korea
| | - Jaejoon Jung
- Department of Life Science, Chung-Ang University, Seoul 02841, South Korea
| | - Che Ok Jeon
- Department of Life Science, Chung-Ang University, Seoul 02841, South Korea
| | - Woojun Park
- Laboratory of Molecular Environmental Microbiology, Department of Environmental Science and Ecological Engineering, Korea University, Seoul 02841, South Korea.
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3
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Giordano N, Gaudin M, Trottier C, Delage E, Nef C, Bowler C, Chaffron S. Genome-scale community modelling reveals conserved metabolic cross-feedings in epipelagic bacterioplankton communities. Nat Commun 2024; 15:2721. [PMID: 38548725 PMCID: PMC10978986 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-46374-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2023] [Accepted: 02/26/2024] [Indexed: 04/01/2024] Open
Abstract
Marine microorganisms form complex communities of interacting organisms that influence central ecosystem functions in the ocean such as primary production and nutrient cycling. Identifying the mechanisms controlling their assembly and activities is a major challenge in microbial ecology. Here, we integrated Tara Oceans meta-omics data to predict genome-scale community interactions within prokaryotic assemblages in the euphotic ocean. A global genome-resolved co-activity network revealed a significant number of inter-lineage associations across diverse phylogenetic distances. Identified co-active communities include species displaying smaller genomes but encoding a higher potential for quorum sensing, biofilm formation, and secondary metabolism. Community metabolic modelling reveals a higher potential for interaction within co-active communities and points towards conserved metabolic cross-feedings, in particular of specific amino acids and group B vitamins. Our integrated ecological and metabolic modelling approach suggests that genome streamlining and metabolic auxotrophies may act as joint mechanisms shaping bacterioplankton community assembly in the global ocean surface.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nils Giordano
- Nantes Université, École Centrale Nantes, CNRS, LS2N, UMR 6004, F-44000, Nantes, France
| | - Marinna Gaudin
- Nantes Université, École Centrale Nantes, CNRS, LS2N, UMR 6004, F-44000, Nantes, France
| | - Camille Trottier
- Nantes Université, École Centrale Nantes, CNRS, LS2N, UMR 6004, F-44000, Nantes, France
| | - Erwan Delage
- Nantes Université, École Centrale Nantes, CNRS, LS2N, UMR 6004, F-44000, Nantes, France
| | - Charlotte Nef
- Institut de Biologie de l'École Normale Supérieure (IBENS), École Normale Supérieure, CNRS, INSERM, PSL Université Paris, F-75016, Paris, France
| | - Chris Bowler
- Institut de Biologie de l'École Normale Supérieure (IBENS), École Normale Supérieure, CNRS, INSERM, PSL Université Paris, F-75016, Paris, France
- Research Federation for the Study of Global Ocean Systems Ecology and Evolution, FR2022/Tara Oceans GOSEE, F-75016, Paris, France
| | - Samuel Chaffron
- Nantes Université, École Centrale Nantes, CNRS, LS2N, UMR 6004, F-44000, Nantes, France.
- Research Federation for the Study of Global Ocean Systems Ecology and Evolution, FR2022/Tara Oceans GOSEE, F-75016, Paris, France.
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4
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Cai L, Li H, Deng J, Zhou R, Zeng Q. Biological interactions with Prochlorococcus: implications for the marine carbon cycle. Trends Microbiol 2024; 32:280-291. [PMID: 37722980 DOI: 10.1016/j.tim.2023.08.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/29/2023] [Revised: 08/25/2023] [Accepted: 08/28/2023] [Indexed: 09/20/2023]
Abstract
The unicellular picocyanobacterium Prochlorococcus is the most abundant photoautotroph and contributes substantially to global CO2 fixation. In the vast euphotic zones of the open ocean, Prochlorococcus converts CO2 into organic compounds and supports diverse organisms, forming an intricate network of interactions that regulate the magnitude of carbon cycling and storage in the ocean. An understanding of the biological interactions with Prochlorococcus is critical for accurately estimating the contributions of Prochlorococcus and interacting organisms to the marine carbon cycle. This review synthesizes the primary production contributed by Prochlorococcus in the global ocean. We outline recent progress on the interactions of Prochlorococcus with heterotrophic bacteria, phages, and grazers that multifacetedly determine Prochlorococcus carbon production and fate. We discuss that climate change might affect the biological interactions with Prochlorococcus and thus the marine carbon cycle.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lanlan Cai
- Department of Ocean Science, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Hong Kong, China; Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Zhuhai), Zhuhai, China
| | - Haofu Li
- Department of Ocean Science, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Hong Kong, China; HKUST Shenzhen-Hong Kong Collaborative Innovation Research Institute, Shenzhen, China
| | - Junwei Deng
- Department of Ocean Science, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Hong Kong, China
| | - Ruiqian Zhou
- Department of Ocean Science, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Hong Kong, China
| | - Qinglu Zeng
- Department of Ocean Science, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Hong Kong, China; HKUST Shenzhen-Hong Kong Collaborative Innovation Research Institute, Shenzhen, China; Center for Ocean Research in Hong Kong and Macau, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Hong Kong, China.
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5
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Thompson AW, Nyerges G, Brevick K, Sutherland KR. Ubiquitous filter feeders shape open ocean microbial community structure and function. PNAS NEXUS 2024; 3:pgae091. [PMID: 38505693 PMCID: PMC10949910 DOI: 10.1093/pnasnexus/pgae091] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/10/2024] [Accepted: 02/13/2024] [Indexed: 03/21/2024]
Abstract
The mechanism of mortality plays a large role in how microorganisms in the open ocean contribute to global energy and nutrient cycling. Salps are ubiquitous pelagic tunicates that are a well-known mortality source for large phototrophic microorganisms in coastal and high-latitude systems, but their impact on the immense populations of smaller prokaryotes in the tropical and subtropical open ocean gyres is not well quantified. We used robustly quantitative techniques to measure salp clearance and enrichment of specific microbial functional groups in the North Pacific Subtropical Gyre, one of the largest ecosystems on Earth. We discovered that salps are a previously unknown predator of the globally abundant nitrogen fixer Crocosphaera; thus, salps restrain new nitrogen delivery to the marine ecosystem. We show that the ocean's two numerically dominant cells, Prochlorococcus and SAR11, are not consumed by salps, which offers a new explanation for the dominance of small cells in open ocean systems. We also identified a double bonus for Prochlorococcus, wherein it not only escapes salp predation but the salps also remove one of its major mixotrophic predators, the prymnesiophyte Chrysochromulina. When we modeled the interaction between salp mesh and particles, we found that cell size alone could not account for these prey selection patterns. Instead, the results suggest that alternative mechanisms, such as surface property, shape, nutritional quality, or even prey behavior, determine which microbial cells are consumed by salps. Together, these results identify salps as a major factor in shaping the structure, function, and ecology of open ocean microbial communities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anne W Thompson
- Department of Biology, Portland State University, Portland, OR 97201, USA
| | - Györgyi Nyerges
- Department of Biology, Pacific University, Forest Grove, OR 97116, USA
| | - Kylee Brevick
- Department of Chemistry, Portland State University, Portland, OR 97201, USA
| | - Kelly R Sutherland
- Oregon Institute of Marine Biology, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403, USA
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6
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Behrenfeld MJ, Bisson KM. Neutral Theory and Plankton Biodiversity. ANNUAL REVIEW OF MARINE SCIENCE 2024; 16:283-305. [PMID: 37368954 DOI: 10.1146/annurev-marine-112122-105229] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/29/2023]
Abstract
The biodiversity of the plankton has been interpreted largely through the monocle of competition. The spatial distancing of phytoplankton in nature is so large that cell boundary layers rarely overlap, undermining opportunities for resource-based competitive exclusion. Neutral theory accounts for biodiversity patterns based purely on random birth, death, immigration, and speciation events and has commonly served as a null hypothesis in terrestrial ecology but has received comparatively little attention in aquatic ecology. This review summarizes basic elements of neutral theory and explores its stand-alone utility for understanding phytoplankton diversity. A theoretical framework is described entailing a very nonneutral trophic exclusion principle melded with the concept of ecologically defined neutral niches. This perspective permits all phytoplankton size classes to coexist at any limiting resource level, predicts greater diversity than anticipated from readily identifiable environmental niches but less diversity than expected from pure neutral theory, and functions effectively in populations of distantly spaced individuals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael J Behrenfeld
- Department of Botany and Plant Pathology, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon, USA; ,
| | - Kelsey M Bisson
- Department of Botany and Plant Pathology, Oregon State University, Corvallis, Oregon, USA; ,
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7
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Anderson SI, Fronda C, Barton AD, Clayton S, Rynearson TA, Dutkiewicz S. Phytoplankton thermal trait parameterization alters community structure and biogeochemical processes in a modeled ocean. GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY 2024; 30:e17093. [PMID: 38273480 DOI: 10.1111/gcb.17093] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/12/2023] [Revised: 10/19/2023] [Accepted: 11/20/2023] [Indexed: 01/27/2024]
Abstract
Phytoplankton exhibit diverse physiological responses to temperature which influence their fitness in the environment and consequently alter their community structure. Here, we explored the sensitivity of phytoplankton community structure to thermal response parameterization in a modelled marine phytoplankton community. Using published empirical data, we evaluated the maximum thermal growth rates (μmax ) and temperature coefficients (Q10 ; the rate at which growth scales with temperature) of six key Phytoplankton Functional Types (PFTs): coccolithophores, cyanobacteria, diatoms, diazotrophs, dinoflagellates, and green algae. Following three well-documented methods, PFTs were either assumed to have (1) the same μmax and the same Q10 (as in to Eppley, 1972), (2) a unique μmax but the same Q10 (similar to Kremer et al., 2017), or (3) a unique μmax and a unique Q10 (following Anderson et al., 2021). These trait values were then implemented within the Massachusetts Institute of Technology biogeochemistry and ecosystem model (called Darwin) for each PFT under a control and climate change scenario. Our results suggest that applying a μmax and Q10 universally across PFTs (as in Eppley, 1972) leads to unrealistic phytoplankton communities, which lack diatoms globally. Additionally, we find that accounting for differences in the Q10 between PFTs can significantly impact each PFT's competitive ability, especially at high latitudes, leading to altered modeled phytoplankton community structures in our control and climate change simulations. This then impacts estimates of biogeochemical processes, with, for example, estimates of export production varying by ~10% in the Southern Ocean depending on the parameterization. Our results indicate that the diversity of thermal response traits in phytoplankton not only shape community composition in the historical and future, warmer ocean, but that these traits have significant feedbacks on global biogeochemical cycles.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stephanie I Anderson
- Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Clara Fronda
- Laboratoire de Physique, Ecole Normale Supérieure, Paris, France
| | - Andrew D Barton
- Scripps Institution of Oceanography and Department of Ecology, Behavior and Evolution, San Diego, California, USA
| | - Sophie Clayton
- Department of Ocean and Earth Sciences, Old Dominion University, Norfolk, Virginia, USA
| | - Tatiana A Rynearson
- Graduate School of Oceanography, University of Rhode Island, Narragansett, Rhode Island, USA
| | - Stephanie Dutkiewicz
- Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA
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8
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Taniguchi DAA, Menden-Deuer S. Planktonic predator selectivity: Eating local with global implications. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2023; 120:e2317302120. [PMID: 37967209 PMCID: PMC10691229 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2317302120] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2023] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Darcy A. A. Taniguchi
- Department of Biological Sciences, California State University San Marcos, San Marcos, CA92096
| | - Susanne Menden-Deuer
- Graduate School of Oceanography, University of Rhode Island, Narragansett, RI02882
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9
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Landry MR, Stukel MR, Selph KE, Goericke R. Coexisting picoplankton experience different relative grazing pressures across an ocean productivity gradient. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2023; 120:e2220771120. [PMID: 37871180 PMCID: PMC10622918 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2220771120] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/06/2022] [Accepted: 08/30/2023] [Indexed: 10/25/2023] Open
Abstract
Picophytoplankton populations [Prochlorococcus, Synechococcus (SYN), and picoeukaryotes] are dominant primary producers in the open ocean and projected to become more important with climate change. Their fates can vary, however, with microbial food web complexities. In the California Current Ecosystem, picophytoplankton biomass and abundance peak in waters of intermediate productivity and decrease at higher production. Using experimental data from eight cruises crossing the pronounced CCE trophic gradient, we tested the hypothesis that these declines are driven by intensified grazing on heterotrophic bacteria (HBAC) passed to similarly sized picophytoplankton via shared predators. Results confirm previously observed distributions as well as significant increases in bacterial abundance, cell growth, and grazing mortality with primary production. Mortalities of picophytoplankton, however, diverge from the bacterial mortality trend such that relative grazing rates on SYN compared to HBAC decline by 12-fold between low and high productivity waters. The large shifts in mortality rate ratios for coexisting populations are not explained by size variability but rather suggest high selectivity of grazer assemblages or tightly coupled tradeoffs in microbial growth advantages and grazing vulnerabilities. These findings challenge the long-held view that protistan grazing mainly determines overall biomass of microbial communities while viruses uniquely regulate diversity by "killing the winners".
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael R. Landry
- Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California at San Diego, San Diego, CA92093
| | - Michael R. Stukel
- Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Science Department, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL32306
| | - Karen E. Selph
- Department of Oceanography, University of Hawai’i at Manoa, Honolulu, HI96822
| | - Ralf Goericke
- Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California at San Diego, San Diego, CA92093
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10
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Alonso-Sáez L, Palacio AS, Cabello AM, Robaina-Estévez S, González JM, Garczarek L, López-Urrutia Á. Transcriptional Mechanisms of Thermal Acclimation in Prochlorococcus. mBio 2023:e0342522. [PMID: 37052490 DOI: 10.1128/mbio.03425-22] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/14/2023] Open
Abstract
Low temperature limits the growth and the distribution of the key oceanic primary producer Prochlorococcus, which does not proliferate above a latitude of ca. 40°. Yet, the molecular basis of thermal acclimation in this cyanobacterium remains unexplored. We analyzed the transcriptional response of the Prochlorococcus marinus strain MIT9301 in long-term acclimations and in natural Prochlorococcus populations along a temperature range enabling its growth (17 to 30°C). MIT9301 upregulated mechanisms of the global stress response at the temperature minimum (17°C) but maintained the expression levels of genes involved in essential metabolic pathways (e.g., ATP synthesis and carbon fixation) along the whole thermal niche. Notably, the declining growth of MIT9301 from the optimum to the minimum temperature was coincident with a transcriptional suppression of the photosynthetic apparatus and a dampening of its circadian expression patterns, indicating a loss in their regulatory capacity under cold conditions. Under warm conditions, the cellular transcript inventory of MIT9301 was strongly streamlined, which may also induce regulatory imbalances due to stochasticity in gene expression. The daytime transcriptional suppression of photosynthetic genes at low temperature was also observed in metatranscriptomic reads mapping to MIT9301 across the global ocean, implying that this molecular mechanism may be associated with the restricted distribution of Prochlorococcus to temperate zones. IMPORTANCE Prochlorococcus is a major marine primary producer with a global impact on atmospheric CO2 fixation. This cyanobacterium is widely distributed across the temperate ocean, but virtually absent at latitudes above 40° for yet unknown reasons. Temperature has been suggested as a major limiting factor, but the exact mechanisms behind Prochlorococcus thermal growth restriction remain unexplored. This study brings us closer to understanding how Prochlorococcus functions under challenging temperature conditions, by focusing on its transcriptional response after long-term acclimation from its optimum to its thermal thresholds. Our results show that the drop in Prochlorococcus growth rate under cold conditions was paralleled by a transcriptional suppression of the photosynthetic machinery during daytime and a loss in the organism's regulatory capacity to maintain circadian expression patterns. Notably, warm temperature induced a marked shrinkage of the organism's cellular transcript inventory, which may also induce regulatory imbalances in the future functioning of this cyanobacterium.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura Alonso-Sáez
- AZTI, Marine Research, Basque Research and Technology Alliance (BRTA), Sukarrieta, Spain
| | - Antonio S Palacio
- AZTI, Marine Research, Basque Research and Technology Alliance (BRTA), Sukarrieta, Spain
| | - Ana M Cabello
- AZTI, Marine Research, Basque Research and Technology Alliance (BRTA), Sukarrieta, Spain
| | | | - José M González
- Department of Microbiology, University of La Laguna, La Laguna, Spain
| | - Laurence Garczarek
- Sorbonne Université, CNRS, UMR 7144 Adaptation and Diversity in the Marine Environment (AD2M), Station Biologique de Roscoff (SBR), Roscoff, France
| | - Ángel López-Urrutia
- Centro Oceanográfico de Gijón, Instituto Español de Oceanografía, IEO-CSIC, Gijón, Asturias, Spain
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11
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Understanding opposing predictions of Prochlorococcus in a changing climate. Nat Commun 2023; 14:1445. [PMID: 36922531 PMCID: PMC10017810 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-36928-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/03/2021] [Accepted: 02/23/2023] [Indexed: 03/17/2023] Open
Abstract
Statistically derived species distribution models (SDMs) are increasingly used to predict ecological changes on a warming planet. For Prochlorococcus, the most abundant phytoplankton, an established statistical prediction conflicts with dynamical models as they predict large, opposite, changes in abundance. We probe the SDM at various spatial-temporal scales, showing that light and temperature fail to explain both temporal fluctuations and sharp spatial transitions. Strong correlations between changes in temperature and population emerge only at very large spatial scales, as transects pass through transitions between regions of high and low abundance. Furthermore, a two-state model based on a temperature threshold matches the original SDM in the surface ocean. We conclude that the original SDM has little power to predict changes when Prochlorococcus is already abundant, which resolves the conflict with dynamical models. Our conclusion suggests that SDMs should prove efficacy across multiple spatial-temporal scales before being trusted in a changing ocean.
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12
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Larkin AA, Hagstrom GI, Brock ML, Garcia NS, Martiny AC. Basin-scale biogeography of Prochlorococcus and SAR11 ecotype replication. THE ISME JOURNAL 2023; 17:185-194. [PMID: 36273241 PMCID: PMC9589681 DOI: 10.1038/s41396-022-01332-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/29/2022] [Revised: 10/03/2022] [Accepted: 10/06/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022]
Abstract
Establishing links between microbial diversity and environmental processes requires resolving the high degree of functional variation among closely related lineages or ecotypes. Here, we implement and validate an improved metagenomic approach that estimates the spatial biogeography and environmental regulation of ecotype-specific replication patterns (RObs) across ocean regions. A total of 719 metagenomes were analyzed from meridional Bio-GO-SHIP sections in the Atlantic and Indian Ocean. Accounting for sequencing bias and anchoring replication estimates in genome structure were critical for identifying physiologically relevant biological signals. For example, ecotypes within the dominant marine cyanobacteria Prochlorococcus exhibited distinct diel cycles in RObs that peaked between 19:00-22:00. Additionally, both Prochlorococcus ecotypes and ecotypes within the highly abundant heterotroph Pelagibacter (SAR11) demonstrated systematic biogeographies in RObs that differed from spatial patterns in relative abundance. Finally, RObs was significantly regulated by nutrient stress and temperature, and explained by differences in the genomic potential for nutrient transport, energy production, cell wall structure, and replication. Our results suggest that our new approach to estimating replication is reflective of gross population growth. Moreover, this work reveals that the interaction between adaptation and environmental change drives systematic variability in replication patterns across ocean basins that is ecotype-specific, adding an activity-based dimension to our understanding of microbial niche space.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alyse A Larkin
- Department of Earth System Science, University of California, Irvine, CA, USA
| | - George I Hagstrom
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
| | - Melissa L Brock
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California, Irvine, CA, USA
| | - Nathan S Garcia
- Department of Earth System Science, University of California, Irvine, CA, USA
| | - Adam C Martiny
- Department of Earth System Science, University of California, Irvine, CA, USA.
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California, Irvine, CA, USA.
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Moreno-Cabezuelo JÁ, Gómez-Baena G, Díez J, García-Fernández JM. Integrated Proteomic and Metabolomic Analyses Show Differential Effects of Glucose Availability in Marine Synechococcus and Prochlorococcus. Microbiol Spectr 2023; 11:e0327522. [PMID: 36722960 PMCID: PMC10100731 DOI: 10.1128/spectrum.03275-22] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/18/2022] [Accepted: 12/29/2022] [Indexed: 02/02/2023] Open
Abstract
We compared changes induced by the addition of 100 nM and 5 mM glucose on the proteome and metabolome complements in Synechococcus sp. strains WH8102, WH7803, and BL107 and Prochlorococcus sp. strains MED4, SS120, and MIT9313, grown either under standard light conditions or in darkness. Our results suggested that glucose is metabolized by these cyanobacteria, using primarily the oxidative pentoses and Calvin pathways, while no proof was found for the involvement of the Entner-Doudoroff pathway in this process. We observed differences in the effects of glucose availability, both between genera and between Prochlorococcus MED4 and SS120 strains, which might be related to their specific adaptations to the environment. We found evidence for fermentation in Prochlorococcus sp. strain SS120 and Synechococcus sp. strain WH8102 after 5 mM glucose addition. Our results additionally suggested that marine cyanobacteria can detect nanomolar glucose concentrations in the environment and that glucose might be used to sustain metabolism under darkness. Furthermore, the KaiB and KaiC proteins were also affected in Synechococcus sp. WH8102, pointing to a direct link between glucose assimilation and circadian rhythms in marine cyanobacteria. In conclusion, our study provides a wide overview on the metabolic effects induced by glucose availability in representative strains of the diverse marine picocyanobacteria, providing further evidence for the importance of mixotrophy in marine picocyanobacteria. IMPORTANCE Glucose uptake by marine picocyanobacteria has been previously described and strongly suggests they are mixotrophic organisms (capable of using energy from the sun to make organic matter, but also to directly use organic matter from the environment when available). However, a detailed analysis of the effects of glucose addition on the proteome and metabolome of these microorganisms had not been carried out. Here, we analyzed three Prochlorococcus sp. and three Synechococcus sp. strains which were representative of several marine picocyanobacterial clades. We observed differential features in the effects of glucose availability, depending on both the genus and strain; our study illuminated the strategies utilized by these organisms to metabolize glucose and showed unexpected links to other pathways, such as circadian regulation. Furthermore, we found glucose addition had profound effects in the microbiome, favoring the growth of coexisting heterotrophic bacteria.
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Affiliation(s)
- José Ángel Moreno-Cabezuelo
- Departamento de Bioquímica y Biología Molecular-Campus de Excelencia Agroalimentaria CEIA3, Universidad de Córdoba, Cordoba, Spain
| | - Guadalupe Gómez-Baena
- Departamento de Bioquímica y Biología Molecular-Campus de Excelencia Agroalimentaria CEIA3, Universidad de Córdoba, Cordoba, Spain
| | - Jesús Díez
- Departamento de Bioquímica y Biología Molecular-Campus de Excelencia Agroalimentaria CEIA3, Universidad de Córdoba, Cordoba, Spain
| | - José Manuel García-Fernández
- Departamento de Bioquímica y Biología Molecular-Campus de Excelencia Agroalimentaria CEIA3, Universidad de Córdoba, Cordoba, Spain
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Thompson AW, Sweeney CP, Sutherland KR. Selective and differential feeding on marine prokaryotes by mucous mesh feeders. Environ Microbiol 2023; 25:880-893. [PMID: 36594240 DOI: 10.1111/1462-2920.16334] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/13/2022] [Accepted: 12/27/2022] [Indexed: 01/04/2023]
Abstract
Microbial mortality impacts the structure of food webs, carbon flow, and the interactions that create dynamic patterns of abundance across gradients in space and time in diverse ecosystems. In the oceans, estimates of microbial mortality by viruses, protists, and small zooplankton do not account fully for observations of loss, suggesting the existence of underappreciated mortality sources. We examined how ubiquitous mucous mesh feeders (i.e. gelatinous zooplankton) could contribute to microbial mortality in the open ocean. We coupled capture of live animals by blue-water diving to sequence-based approaches to measure the enrichment and selectivity of feeding by two coexisting mucous grazer taxa (pteropods and salps) on numerically dominant marine prokaryotes. We show that mucous mesh grazers consume a variety of marine prokaryotes and select between coexisting lineages and similar cell sizes. We show that Prochlorococcus may evade filtration more than other cells and that planktonic archaea are consumed by macrozooplanktonic grazers. Discovery of these feeding relationships identifies a new source of mortality for Earth's dominant marine microbes and alters our understanding of how top-down processes shape microbial community and function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anne W Thompson
- Department of Biology, Portland State University, Portland, Oregon, USA
| | - Carey P Sweeney
- Department of Biology, Portland State University, Portland, Oregon, USA
| | - Kelly R Sutherland
- Oregon Institute of Marine Biology, University of Oregon, Eugene, Oregon, USA
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15
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Feng Y, Hou S, Roleda MY, Fu FX. Editorial: Responses of marine microbes to multiple environmental drivers of global change: The interplay of abiotic and biotic factors. Front Microbiol 2022; 13:975841. [PMID: 36147843 PMCID: PMC9488806 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2022.975841] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/22/2022] [Accepted: 08/23/2022] [Indexed: 12/01/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Yuanyuan Feng
- School of Oceanography, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China
- Shanghai Frontiers Science Center of Polar Science (SCOPS), Shanghai, China
- *Correspondence: Yuanyuan Feng
| | - Shengwei Hou
- Department of Ocean Science and Engineering, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, China
- State Key Laboratory for Marine Environmental Science, Institute of Marine Microbes and Ecospheres, Xiamen University, Xiamen, China
- Shengwei Hou
| | - Michael Y. Roleda
- Division of Biotechnology and Plant Health, Norwegian Institute of Bioeconomy Research (NIBIO), Ås, Norway
- Biomarine Resource Valorisation, Division of Food Production and Society, Norwegian Institute of Bioeconomy Research (NIBIO), Bodø, Norway
- The Marine Science Institute, College of Science, University of the Philippines, Quezon City, Philippines
| | - Fei-Xue Fu
- Department of Biological Sciences – Marine and Environmental Biology, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, United States
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16
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Talmy D. Life, death and cyanobacterial biogeography. Nat Microbiol 2022; 7:480-481. [PMID: 35365793 DOI: 10.1038/s41564-022-01095-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- David Talmy
- University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN, USA.
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17
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Casey JR, Boiteau RM, Engqvist MKM, Finkel ZV, Li G, Liefer J, Müller CL, Muñoz N, Follows MJ. Basin-scale biogeography of marine phytoplankton reflects cellular-scale optimization of metabolism and physiology. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2022; 8:eabl4930. [PMID: 35061539 PMCID: PMC8782455 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abl4930] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/16/2021] [Accepted: 11/29/2021] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Extensive microdiversity within Prochlorococcus, the most abundant marine cyanobacterium, occurs at scales from a single droplet of seawater to ocean basins. To interpret the structuring role of variations in genetic potential, as well as metabolic and physiological acclimation, we developed a mechanistic constraint-based modeling framework that incorporates the full suite of genes, proteins, metabolic reactions, pigments, and biochemical compositions of 69 sequenced isolates spanning the Prochlorococcus pangenome. Optimizing each strain to the local, observed physical and chemical environment along an Atlantic Ocean transect, we predicted variations in strain-specific patterns of growth rate, metabolic configuration, and physiological state, defining subtle niche subspaces directly attributable to differences in their encoded metabolic potential. Predicted growth rates covaried with observed ecotype abundances, affirming their significance as a measure of fitness and inferring a nonlinear density dependence of mortality. Our study demonstrates the potential to interpret global-scale ecosystem organization in terms of cellular-scale processes.
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Affiliation(s)
- John R. Casey
- Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
- School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology, University of Hawai‘i at Ma¯noa, Honolulu, HI, USA
| | - Rene M. Boiteau
- College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR, USA
| | - Martin K. M. Engqvist
- Department of Biology and Biological Engineering, Chalmers University of Technology, Göteborg, Sweden
| | - Zoe V. Finkel
- Department of Oceanography, Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS, Canada
| | - Gang Li
- Department of Biology and Biological Engineering, Chalmers University of Technology, Göteborg, Sweden
| | - Justin Liefer
- Department of Biology, Mount Allison University, Sackville, NB, Canada
| | | | - Nathalie Muñoz
- Environmental Molecular Sciences Division, Pacific Northwest National Laboratories, Richland, WA, USA
| | - Michael J. Follows
- Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
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