1
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von Kügelgen A, Cassidy CK, van Dorst S, Pagani LL, Batters C, Ford Z, Löwe J, Alva V, Stansfeld PJ, Bharat TAM. Membraneless channels sieve cations in ammonia-oxidizing marine archaea. Nature 2024:10.1038/s41586-024-07462-5. [PMID: 38811725 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-024-07462-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/13/2023] [Accepted: 04/24/2024] [Indexed: 05/31/2024]
Abstract
Nitrosopumilus maritimus is an ammonia-oxidizing archaeon that is crucial to the global nitrogen cycle1,2. A critical step for nitrogen oxidation is the entrapment of ammonium ions from a dilute marine environment at the cell surface and their subsequent channelling to the cell membrane of N. maritimus. Here we elucidate the structure of the molecular machinery responsible for this process, comprising the surface layer (S-layer), using electron cryotomography and subtomogram averaging from cells. We supplemented our in situ structure of the ammonium-binding S-layer array with a single-particle electron cryomicroscopy structure, revealing detailed features of this immunoglobulin-rich and glycan-decorated S-layer. Biochemical analyses showed strong ammonium binding by the cell surface, which was lost after S-layer disassembly. Sensitive bioinformatic analyses identified similar S-layers in many ammonia-oxidizing archaea, with conserved sequence and structural characteristics. Moreover, molecular simulations and structure determination of ammonium-enriched specimens enabled us to examine the cation-binding properties of the S-layer, revealing how it concentrates ammonium ions on its cell-facing side, effectively acting as a multichannel sieve on the cell membrane. This in situ structural study illuminates the biogeochemically essential process of ammonium binding and channelling, common to many marine microorganisms that are fundamental to the nitrogen cycle.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andriko von Kügelgen
- Structural Studies Division, MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Cambridge, UK
- Sir William Dunn School of Pathology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - C Keith Cassidy
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Missouri-Columbia, Columbia, MO, USA
| | - Sofie van Dorst
- Sir William Dunn School of Pathology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Lennart L Pagani
- Sir William Dunn School of Pathology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Christopher Batters
- Protein and Nucleic Acid Chemistry Division, MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Cambridge, UK
| | - Zephyr Ford
- Sir William Dunn School of Pathology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Jan Löwe
- Structural Studies Division, MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Cambridge, UK
| | - Vikram Alva
- Department of Protein Evolution, Max Planck Institute for Biology Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Phillip J Stansfeld
- School of Life Sciences and Department of Chemistry, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK
| | - Tanmay A M Bharat
- Structural Studies Division, MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Cambridge, UK.
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2
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Garrison CE, Pachiadaki MG, Soliman S, Helfrich A, Taylor GT. Microbes and microplastics: Community shifts along an urban coastal contaminant gradient. Environ Microbiol 2024; 26:e16563. [PMID: 38151777 DOI: 10.1111/1462-2920.16563] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/04/2023] [Accepted: 12/11/2023] [Indexed: 12/29/2023]
Abstract
Plastic substrates introduced to the environment during the Anthropocene have introduced new pathways for microbial selection and dispersal. Some plastic-colonising microorganisms have adapted phenotypes for plastic degradation (selection), while the spatial transport (dispersal) potential of plastic colonisers remains controlled by polymer-specific density, hydrography and currents. Plastic-degrading enzyme abundances have recently been correlated with concentrations of plastic debris in open ocean environments, making it critical to better understand colonisation of hydrocarbon degraders with plastic degradation potential in urbanised watersheds where plastic pollution often originates. We found that microbial colonisation by reputed hydrocarbon degraders on microplastics (MPs) correlated with a spatial contaminant gradient (New York City/Long Island waterways), polymer types, temporal scales, microbial domains and putative cell activity (DNA vs. RNA). Hydrocarbon-degrading taxa enriched on polyethylene and polyvinyl chloride substrates relative to other polymers and were more commonly recovered in samples proximal to New York City. These differences in MP colonisation could indicate phenotypic adaptation processes resulting from increased exposure to urban plastic runoff as well as differences in carbon bioavailability across polymer types. Shifts in MP community potential across urban coastal contaminant gradients and polymer types improve our understanding of environmental plastic discharge impacts toward biogeochemical cycling across the global ocean.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cody E Garrison
- School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, New York, USA
| | | | | | - Anthony Helfrich
- School of Professional Development, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, New York, USA
| | - Gordon T Taylor
- School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, New York, USA
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3
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Wittenborn AK, Bauersachs T, Hassenrück C, Käding K, Wäge-Recchioni J, Jürgens K, Arz HW, Kaiser J. Nitrosopumilus as main source of isoprenoid glycerol dialkyl glycerol tetraether lipids in the central Baltic Sea. Front Microbiol 2023; 14:1216130. [PMID: 37840736 PMCID: PMC10575479 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2023.1216130] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/03/2023] [Accepted: 09/07/2023] [Indexed: 10/17/2023] Open
Abstract
Nitrososphaeria in the phylum Crenarchaeota, is a widespread archaeal class in the oceanic realm, playing an important role in the marine carbon and nitrogen cycle. Nitrososphaeria-derived membrane lipids, i.e., isoprenoid glycerol dialkyl glycerol tetraethers (GDGTs), are commonly employed to reconstruct past water temperatures using the TetraEther indeX of 86 carbon atoms (TEX86). This index is of particular importance for the brackish Baltic Sea as to date it appears to be the only applicable organic temperature proxy. In this study, we investigated the distribution of intact and core GDGTs and their potential source organisms in the water column of three deep basins located in the central Baltic Sea to evaluate the application of TEX86. A lipidomic approach on suspended particulate matter was combined with the molecular techniques 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing and CARD-FISH. The archaeal community was dominated by Nitrosopumilus (~83-100% of the total archaeal sequences). As other detected taxa known to produce GDGTs each represented less than 2% of the total archaeal sequences, Nitrosopumilus is likely the most dominant GDGT producer in the central Baltic Sea. However, the occurrence of phosphohexose (PH), instead of hexose-phosphohexose (HPH) headgroups, suggested that Nitrosopumilus in the Baltic Sea may differ physiologically from representatives of marine settings and other marginal seas, such as the Black Sea. In the Baltic Sea, Nitrosopumilus is most abundant in the suboxic zone, where intact cells peak according to both CARD-FISH data and intact polar lipid concentrations. The presented data therefore suggest that TEX86 reflects subsurface rather than surface temperature in the central Baltic Sea.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Christiane Hassenrück
- Biological Oceanography, Leibniz Institute for Baltic Sea Research – Warnemünde (IOW), Warnemünde, Germany
| | - Katja Käding
- Biological Oceanography, Leibniz Institute for Baltic Sea Research – Warnemünde (IOW), Warnemünde, Germany
| | - Janine Wäge-Recchioni
- Biological Oceanography, Leibniz Institute for Baltic Sea Research – Warnemünde (IOW), Warnemünde, Germany
| | - Klaus Jürgens
- Biological Oceanography, Leibniz Institute for Baltic Sea Research – Warnemünde (IOW), Warnemünde, Germany
| | - Helge Wolfgang Arz
- Marine Geology, Leibniz Institute for Baltic Sea Research – Warnemünde (IOW), Warnemünde, Germany
| | - Jérôme Kaiser
- Marine Geology, Leibniz Institute for Baltic Sea Research – Warnemünde (IOW), Warnemünde, Germany
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4
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Yang W, Chen H, Chen Y, Chen A, Feng X, Zhao B, Zheng F, Fang H, Zhang C, Zeng Z. Thermophilic archaeon orchestrates temporal expression of GDGT ring synthases in response to temperature and acidity stress. Environ Microbiol 2023; 25:575-587. [PMID: 36495168 DOI: 10.1111/1462-2920.16301] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/05/2022] [Accepted: 12/04/2022] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Glycerol dibiphytanyl glycerol tetraethers (GDGTs) are unique archaeal membrane-spanning lipids with 0-8 cyclopentane rings on the biphytanyl chains. The cyclization pattern of GDGTs is affected by many environmental factors, such as temperature and pH, but the underlying molecular mechanism remains elusive. Here, we find that the expression regulation of GDGT ring synthase genes grsA and grsB in thermophilic archaeon Sulfolobus acidocaldarius is temperature- and pH-dependent. Moreover, the presence of functional GrsA protein, or more likely its products cyclic GDGTs rather than the accumulation of GrsA protein itself, is required to induce grsB expression, resulting in temporal regulation of grsA and grsB expression. Our findings establish a molecular model of GDGT cyclization regulated by environment factors in a thermophilic ecosystem, which could be also relevant to that in mesophilic marine archaea. Our study will help better understand the biological basis for GDGT-based paleoclimate proxies. Archaea inhabit a wide range of terrestrial and marine environments. In response to environment fluctuations, archaea modulate their unique membrane GDGTs lipid composition with different strategies, in particular GDGTs cyclization significantly alters membrane permeability. However, the regulation details of archaeal GDGTs cyclization in response to different environmental factor changes remain unknown. We demonstrated, for the first time, thermophilic archaea orchestrate the temporal expression of GDGT ring synthases, leading to delicate control of GDGTs cyclization to respond environmental temperature and acidity stress. Our study provides insight into the regulation of archaea membrane plasticity, and the survival strategy of archaea in fluctuating environments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wei Yang
- Department of Ocean Science and Engineering, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, China
| | - Huahui Chen
- Department of Ocean Science and Engineering, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, China
| | - Yufei Chen
- Department of Ocean Science and Engineering, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, China
| | - Aiping Chen
- Department of Ocean Science and Engineering, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, China
- Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Guangzhou), Guangzhou, China
| | - Xi Feng
- Department of Ocean Science and Engineering, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, China
| | - Bo Zhao
- Department of Ocean Science and Engineering, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, China
| | - Fengfeng Zheng
- Department of Ocean Science and Engineering, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, China
| | - Hongwei Fang
- Department of Ocean Science and Engineering, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, China
| | - Changyi Zhang
- Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois, USA
| | - Zhirui Zeng
- Department of Ocean Science and Engineering, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, China
- Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Guangzhou), Guangzhou, China
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5
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Tourte M, Schaeffer P, Grossi V, Oger PM. Membrane adaptation in the hyperthermophilic archaeon Pyrococcus furiosus relies upon a novel strategy involving glycerol monoalkyl glycerol tetraether lipids. Environ Microbiol 2022; 24:2029-2046. [PMID: 35106897 DOI: 10.1111/1462-2920.15923] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/21/2021] [Revised: 01/21/2022] [Accepted: 01/24/2022] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Microbes preserve membrane functionality under fluctuating environmental conditions by modulating their membrane lipid composition. Although several studies have documented membrane adaptations in Archaea, the influence of most biotic and abiotic factors on archaeal lipid compositions remains underexplored. Here, we studied the influence of temperature, pH, salinity, the presence/absence of elemental sulfur, the carbon source, and the genetic background on the lipid core composition of the hyperthermophilic neutrophilic marine archaeon Pyrococcus furiosus. Every growth parameter tested affected the lipid core composition to some extent, the carbon source and the genetic background having the greatest influence. Surprisingly, P. furiosus appeared to only marginally rely on the two major responses implemented by Archaea, i.e., the regulation of the ratio of diether to tetraether lipids and that of the number of cyclopentane rings in tetraethers. Instead, this species increased the ratio of glycerol monoalkyl glycerol tetraethers (GMGT, aka. H-shaped tetraethers) to glycerol dialkyl glycerol tetrathers (GDGT) in response to decreasing temperature and pH and increasing salinity, thus providing for the first time evidence of adaptive functions for GMGT. Besides P. furiosus, numerous other species synthesize significant proportions of GMGT, which suggests that this unprecedented adaptive strategy might be common in Archaea. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maxime Tourte
- Univ Lyon, Univ. Lyon 1, CNRS, UMR 5240, F-69622, Villeurbanne, France.,Univ Lyon, INSA Lyon, CNRS, UMR 5240, F-69621, Villeurbanne, France
| | | | - Vincent Grossi
- Univ Lyon, Univ. Lyon 1, CNRS, ENSL, UJM, UMR 5276 LGL-TPE, F-69622, Villeurbanne, France
| | - Philippe M Oger
- Univ Lyon, INSA Lyon, CNRS, UMR 5240, F-69621, Villeurbanne, France
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6
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Law KP, He W, Tao J, Zhang C. A Novel Approach to Characterize the Lipidome of Marine Archaeon Nitrosopumilus maritimus by Ion Mobility Mass Spectrometry. Front Microbiol 2021; 12:735878. [PMID: 34925256 PMCID: PMC8674956 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2021.735878] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/03/2021] [Accepted: 10/18/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Archaea are differentiated from the other two domains of life by their biomolecular characteristics. One such characteristic is the unique structure and composition of their lipids. Characterization of the whole set of lipids in a biological system (the lipidome) remains technologically challenging. This is because the lipidome is innately complex, and not all lipid species are extractable, separable, or ionizable by a single analytical method. Furthermore, lipids are structurally and chemically diverse. Many lipids are isobaric or isomeric and often indistinguishable by the measurement of mass or even their fragmentation spectra. Here we developed a novel analytical protocol based on liquid chromatography ion mobility mass spectrometry to enhance the coverage of the lipidome and characterize the conformations of archaeal lipids by their collision cross-sections (CCSs). The measurements of ion mobility revealed the gas-phase ion chemistry of representative archaeal lipids and provided further insights into their attributions to the adaptability of archaea to environmental stresses. A comprehensive characterization of the lipidome of mesophilic marine thaumarchaeon, Nitrosopumilus maritimus (strain SCM1) revealed potentially an unreported phosphate- and sulfate-containing lipid candidate by negative ionization analysis. It was the first time that experimentally derived CCS values of archaeal lipids were reported. Discrimination of crenarchaeol and its proposed stereoisomer was, however, not achieved with the resolving power of the SYNAPT G2 ion mobility system, and a high-resolution ion mobility system may be required for future work. Structural and spectral libraries of archaeal lipids were constructed in non-vendor-specific formats and are being made available to the community to promote research of Archaea by lipidomics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kai P Law
- Southern University of Science and Technology, SUSTech Academy for Advanced Interdisciplinary Studies, Shenzhen, China.,Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Marine Archaea Geo-Omics, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, China.,Department of Ocean Science and Engineering, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, China
| | - Wei He
- Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Marine Archaea Geo-Omics, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, China.,Department of Ocean Science and Engineering, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, China
| | - Jianchang Tao
- Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Marine Archaea Geo-Omics, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, China.,Department of Ocean Science and Engineering, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, China
| | - Chuanlun Zhang
- Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Marine Archaea Geo-Omics, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, China.,Department of Ocean Science and Engineering, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, China.,Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Guangzhou), Guangzhou, China
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7
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Li F, Leu A, Poff K, Carlson LT, Ingalls AE, DeLong EF. Planktonic Archaeal Ether Lipid Origins in Surface Waters of the North Pacific Subtropical Gyre. Front Microbiol 2021; 12:610675. [PMID: 34589060 PMCID: PMC8473941 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2021.610675] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/26/2020] [Accepted: 08/23/2021] [Indexed: 01/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Thaumarchaeota and Thermoplasmatota are the most abundant planktonic archaea in the sea. Thaumarchaeota contain tetraether lipids as their major membrane lipids, but the lipid composition of uncultured planktonic Thermoplasmatota representatives remains unknown. To address this knowledge gap, we quantified archaeal cells and ether lipids in open ocean depth profiles (0–200 m) of the North Pacific Subtropical Gyre. Planktonic archaeal community structure and ether lipid composition in the water column partitioned into two separate clusters: one above the deep chlorophyll maximum, the other within and below it. In surface waters, Thermoplasmatota densities ranged from 2.11 × 106 to 6.02 × 106 cells/L, while Thaumarchaeota were undetectable. As previously reported for Thaumarchaeota, potential homologs of archaeal tetraether ring synthases were present in planktonic Thermoplasmatota metagenomes. Despite the absence of Thaumarchaeota in surface waters, measurable amounts of intact polar ether lipids were found there. Based on cell abundance estimates, these surface water archaeal ether lipids contributed only 1.21 × 10–9 ng lipid/Thermoplasmatota cell, about three orders of magnitude less than that reported for Thaumarchaeota cells. While these data indicate that even if some tetraether and diether lipids may be derived from Thermoplasmatota, they would only comprise a small fraction of Thermoplasmatota total biomass. Therefore, while both MGI Thaumarchaeota and MGII/III Thermoplasmatota are potential biological sources of archaeal GDGTs, the Thaumarchaeota appear to be the major contributors of archaeal tetraether lipids in planktonic marine habitats. These results extend and confirm previous reports of planktonic archaeal lipid sources, and further emphasize the need for Thermoplasmatota cultivation, to better characterize the membrane lipid constituents of marine planktonic Thermoplasmatota, and more precisely define the sources and patterns of archaeal tetraether lipid distributions in marine plankton.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fuyan Li
- Daniel K. Inouye Center for Microbial Oceanography: Research and Education, University of Hawai'i at Mânoa, Honolulu, HI, United States
| | - Andy Leu
- Daniel K. Inouye Center for Microbial Oceanography: Research and Education, University of Hawai'i at Mânoa, Honolulu, HI, United States
| | - Kirsten Poff
- Daniel K. Inouye Center for Microbial Oceanography: Research and Education, University of Hawai'i at Mânoa, Honolulu, HI, United States
| | - Laura T Carlson
- School of Oceanography, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, United States
| | - Anitra E Ingalls
- School of Oceanography, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, United States
| | - Edward F DeLong
- Daniel K. Inouye Center for Microbial Oceanography: Research and Education, University of Hawai'i at Mânoa, Honolulu, HI, United States
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8
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Bale NJ, Ding S, Hopmans EC, Arts MGI, Villanueva L, Boschman C, Haas AF, Schouten S, Sinninghe Damsté JS. Lipidomics of Environmental Microbial Communities. I: Visualization of Component Distributions Using Untargeted Analysis of High-Resolution Mass Spectrometry Data. Front Microbiol 2021; 12:659302. [PMID: 34367080 PMCID: PMC8343106 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2021.659302] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/27/2021] [Accepted: 06/18/2021] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Lipids, as one of the main building blocks of cells, can provide valuable information on microorganisms in the environment. Traditionally, gas or liquid chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (MS) has been used to analyze environmental lipids. The resulting spectra were then processed through individual peak identification and comparison with previously published mass spectra. Here, we present an untargeted analysis of MS1 spectral data generated by ultra-high-pressure liquid chromatography coupled with high-resolution mass spectrometry of environmental microbial communities. Rather than attempting to relate each mass spectrum to a specific compound, we have treated each mass spectrum as a component, which can be clustered together with other components based on similarity in their abundance depth profiles through the water column. We present this untargeted data visualization method on lipids of suspended particles from the water column of the Black Sea, which included >14,000 components. These components form clusters that correspond with distinct microbial communities driven by the highly stratified water column. The clusters include both known and unknown compounds, predominantly lipids, demonstrating the value of this rapid approach to visualize component distributions and identify novel lipid biomarkers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicole J Bale
- Department of Marine Microbiology and Biogeochemistry, Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research, Texel, Netherlands
| | - Su Ding
- Department of Marine Microbiology and Biogeochemistry, Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research, Texel, Netherlands
| | - Ellen C Hopmans
- Department of Marine Microbiology and Biogeochemistry, Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research, Texel, Netherlands
| | - Milou G I Arts
- Department of Marine Microbiology and Biogeochemistry, Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research, Texel, Netherlands
| | - Laura Villanueva
- Department of Marine Microbiology and Biogeochemistry, Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research, Texel, Netherlands.,Department of Earth Sciences, Faculty of Geosciences, Utrecht University, Utrecht, Netherlands
| | - Christine Boschman
- Department of Marine Microbiology and Biogeochemistry, Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research, Texel, Netherlands
| | - Andreas F Haas
- Department of Marine Microbiology and Biogeochemistry, Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research, Texel, Netherlands
| | - Stefan Schouten
- Department of Marine Microbiology and Biogeochemistry, Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research, Texel, Netherlands.,Department of Earth Sciences, Faculty of Geosciences, Utrecht University, Utrecht, Netherlands
| | - Jaap S Sinninghe Damsté
- Department of Marine Microbiology and Biogeochemistry, Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research, Texel, Netherlands.,Department of Earth Sciences, Faculty of Geosciences, Utrecht University, Utrecht, Netherlands
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9
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Kusch S, Wakeham SG, Dildar N, Zhu C, Sepúlveda J. Bacterial and archaeal lipids trace chemo(auto)trophy along the redoxcline in Vancouver Island fjords. GEOBIOLOGY 2021; 19:521-541. [PMID: 33960615 DOI: 10.1111/gbi.12446] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/08/2021] [Revised: 03/30/2021] [Accepted: 04/10/2021] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Marine oxygen minimum zones play a crucial role in the global oceanic carbon, nitrogen, and sulfur cycles as they harbor microbial communities that are adapted to the water column chemistry and redox zonation, and in turn control the water column chemistry and greenhouse gas release. These micro-organisms have metabolisms that rely on terminal electron acceptors other than O2 and often benefit from syntrophic relationships (metabolic coupling). Here, we study chemo(auto)trophy along the redoxcline in two stratified fjords on Vancouver Island (Canada) using bacterial bacteriohopanepolyols and archaeal ether lipids. We analyze the distribution of these lipid classes in suspended particulate matter (SPM) to trace ammonia oxidation, anaerobic ammonium oxidation (anammox), sulfate reduction/sulfur oxidation, methanogenesis, and methane oxidation, and investigate ecological niches to evaluate potential links between their respective bacterial and archaeal sources. Our results show an unparalleled BHP and ether lipid structural diversity that allows tracing the major redox-driven metabolic processes at the time of sampling: Both fjords are dominated by archaeal ammonia oxidation and anammox; sulfate-reducing bacteria may be present in Deer Bay, but absent from Effingham Inlet; methanogenic Euryarchaeota and archaeal and bacterial methanotrophs are detectable at low abundance. Correlation analysis reveals distinct biomarker clusters that provide constraints on the biogeochemical niches of some orphan BHP and ether lipids such as in situ-produced adenosyl-BHPs or unsaturated archaeols.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stephanie Kusch
- University of Cologne Centre for Accelerator Mass Spectrometry, University of Cologne, Cologne, Germany
| | - Stuart G Wakeham
- Skidaway Institute of Oceanography, University of Georgia, Savannah, GA, USA
| | - Nadia Dildar
- Department of Geological Sciences and Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research (INSTAAR), University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO, USA
| | - Chun Zhu
- MARUM Center for Marine Environmental Sciences and Department of Geosciences, University of Bremen, Bremen, Germany
| | - Julio Sepúlveda
- Department of Geological Sciences and Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research (INSTAAR), University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, CO, USA
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10
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DeLong EF. Exploring Marine Planktonic Archaea: Then and Now. Front Microbiol 2021; 11:616086. [PMID: 33519774 PMCID: PMC7838436 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2020.616086] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/11/2020] [Accepted: 12/18/2020] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
In 1977, Woese and Fox leveraged molecular phylogenetic analyses of ribosomal RNAs and identified a new microbial domain of life on Earth, the Archaebacteria (now known as Archaea). At the time of their discovery, only one archaebacterial group, the strictly anaerobic methanogens, was known. But soon, other phenotypically unrelated microbial isolates were shown to belong to the Archaea, many originating from extreme habitats, including extreme halophiles, extreme thermophiles, and thermoacidophiles. Since most Archaea seemed to inhabit extreme or strictly anoxic habitats, it came as a surprise in 1992 when two new lineages of archaea were reported to be abundant in oxygen rich, temperate marine coastal waters and the deep ocean. Since that time, studies of marine planktonic archaea have revealed many more surprises, including their unexpected ubiquity, unusual symbiotic associations, unpredicted physiologies and biogeochemistry, and global abundance. In this Perspective, early work conducted on marine planktonic Archaea by my lab group and others is discussed in terms of the relevant historical context, some of the original research motivations, and surprises and discoveries encountered along the way.
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Affiliation(s)
- Edward F DeLong
- Daniel K. Inouye Center for Microbial Oceanography Research and Education, University of Hawai'i at Mănoa, Honolulu, HI, United States
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11
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Stahl DA. The path leading to the discovery of the ammoniaoxidizing archaea. Environ Microbiol 2020; 22:4507-4519. [PMID: 32955155 DOI: 10.1111/1462-2920.15239] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/15/2020] [Accepted: 09/16/2020] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- David A Stahl
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, 98195, USA
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12
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Qin W, Zheng Y, Zhao F, Wang Y, Urakawa H, Martens-Habbena W, Liu H, Huang X, Zhang X, Nakagawa T, Mende DR, Bollmann A, Wang B, Zhang Y, Amin SA, Nielsen JL, Mori K, Takahashi R, Virginia Armbrust E, Winkler MKH, DeLong EF, Li M, Lee PH, Zhou J, Zhang C, Zhang T, Stahl DA, Ingalls AE. Alternative strategies of nutrient acquisition and energy conservation map to the biogeography of marine ammonia-oxidizing archaea. ISME JOURNAL 2020; 14:2595-2609. [PMID: 32636492 PMCID: PMC7490402 DOI: 10.1038/s41396-020-0710-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/15/2020] [Revised: 06/16/2020] [Accepted: 06/25/2020] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
Ammonia-oxidizing archaea (AOA) are among the most abundant and ubiquitous microorganisms in the ocean, exerting primary control on nitrification and nitrogen oxides emission. Although united by a common physiology of chemoautotrophic growth on ammonia, a corresponding high genomic and habitat variability suggests tremendous adaptive capacity. Here, we compared 44 diverse AOA genomes, 37 from species cultivated from samples collected across diverse geographic locations and seven assembled from metagenomic sequences from the mesopelagic to hadopelagic zones of the deep ocean. Comparative analysis identified seven major marine AOA genotypic groups having gene content correlated with their distinctive biogeographies. Phosphorus and ammonia availabilities as well as hydrostatic pressure were identified as selective forces driving marine AOA genotypic and gene content variability in different oceanic regions. Notably, AOA methylphosphonate biosynthetic genes span diverse oceanic provinces, reinforcing their importance for methane production in the ocean. Together, our combined comparative physiological, genomic, and metagenomic analyses provide a comprehensive view of the biogeography of globally abundant AOA and their adaptive radiation into a vast range of marine and terrestrial habitats.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wei Qin
- School of Oceanography, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA.
| | - Yue Zheng
- CAS Key Laboratory of Urban Pollutant Conversion, Institute of Urban Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xiamen, China.,University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Feng Zhao
- CAS Key Laboratory of Urban Pollutant Conversion, Institute of Urban Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xiamen, China. .,University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
| | - Yulin Wang
- Environmental Microbiome Engineering and Biotechnology Laboratory, Center for Environmental Engineering Research, Department of Civil Engineering, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
| | - Hidetoshi Urakawa
- Department of Ecology and Environmental Studies, Florida Gulf Coast University, Fort Myers, FL, USA
| | - Willm Martens-Habbena
- Fort Lauderdale Research and Education Center, Department of Microbiology and Cell Science, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida, Davie, FL, USA
| | - Haodong Liu
- Department of Ocean Science and Engineering, Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Marine Archaea Geo-Omics, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, China
| | - Xiaowu Huang
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong, China
| | - Xinxu Zhang
- Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Marine Microbiome Engineering, Institute for Advanced Study, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, China
| | - Tatsunori Nakagawa
- College of Bioresource Sciences, Nihon University, Fujisawa, Kanagawa, Japan
| | - Daniel R Mende
- Daniel K. Inouye Center for Microbial Oceanography: Research and Education, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, HI, USA
| | | | - Baozhan Wang
- Key Lab of Microbiology for Agricultural Environment, Ministry of Agriculture, College of Life Sciences, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing, China
| | - Yao Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Marine Environmental Sciences and College of Ocean and Earth Sciences, Xiamen University, Xiamen, China
| | - Shady A Amin
- Department of Biology, New York University Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi, UAE
| | - Jeppe L Nielsen
- Department of Chemistry and Bioscience, Aalborg University, Aalborg, Denmark
| | - Koji Mori
- NITE Biological Resource Center (NBRC), National Institute of Technology and Evaluation (NITE), Kisarazu, Chiba, Japan
| | - Reiji Takahashi
- College of Bioresource Sciences, Nihon University, Fujisawa, Kanagawa, Japan
| | | | - Mari-K H Winkler
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Edward F DeLong
- Daniel K. Inouye Center for Microbial Oceanography: Research and Education, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, HI, USA
| | - Meng Li
- Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Marine Microbiome Engineering, Institute for Advanced Study, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, China
| | - Po-Heng Lee
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong, China.,Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Imperial College London, London, UK
| | - Jizhong Zhou
- Institute for Environmental Genomics, Department of Microbiology and Plant Biology, and School of Civil Engineering and Environmental Sciences, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK, USA.,Earth and Environmental Sciences, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, USA.,School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China
| | - Chuanlun Zhang
- Department of Ocean Science and Engineering, Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Marine Archaea Geo-Omics, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, China
| | - Tong Zhang
- Environmental Microbiome Engineering and Biotechnology Laboratory, Center for Environmental Engineering Research, Department of Civil Engineering, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
| | - David A Stahl
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Anitra E Ingalls
- School of Oceanography, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA.
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13
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Ma C, Coffinet S, Lipp JS, Hinrichs KU, Zhang C. Marine Group II Euryarchaeota Contribute to the Archaeal Lipid Pool in Northwestern Pacific Ocean Surface Waters. Front Microbiol 2020; 11:1034. [PMID: 32582055 PMCID: PMC7291766 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2020.01034] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/22/2020] [Accepted: 04/27/2020] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Planktonic archaea include predominantly Marine Group I Thaumarchaeota (MG I) and Marine Group II Euryarchaeota (MG II), which play important roles in the oceanic carbon cycle. MG I produce specific lipids called isoprenoid glycerol dibiphytanyl glycerol tetraethers (GDGTs), which are being used in the sea surface temperature proxy named TEX86. Although MG II may be the most abundant planktonic archaeal group in surface water, their lipid composition remains poorly characterized because of the lack of cultured representatives. Circumstantial evidence from previous studies of marine suspended particulate matter suggests that MG II may produce both GDGTs and archaeol-based lipids. In this study, integration of the 16S rRNA gene quantification and sequencing and lipid analysis demonstrated that MG II contributed significantly to the pool of archaeal tetraether lipids in samples collected from MG II-dominated surface waters of the Northwestern Pacific Ocean (NWPO). The archaeal lipid composition in MG II-dominated NWPO waters differed significantly from that of known MG I cultures, containing relatively more 2G-OH-, 2G- and 1G- GDGTs, especially in their acyclic form. Lipid composition in NWPO waters was also markedly different from MG I-dominated surface water samples collected in the East China Sea. GDGTs from MG II-dominated samples seemed to respond to temperature similarly to GDGTs from the MG I-dominated samples, which calls for further study using pure cultures to determine the exact impact of MG II on GDGT-based proxies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cenling Ma
- State Key Laboratory of Marine Geology, Tongji University, Shanghai, China
| | - Sarah Coffinet
- Organic Geochemistry Group, MARUM Center for Marine Environmental Sciences and Department of Geosciences, University of Bremen, Bremen, Germany
| | - Julius S Lipp
- Organic Geochemistry Group, MARUM Center for Marine Environmental Sciences and Department of Geosciences, University of Bremen, Bremen, Germany
| | - Kai-Uwe Hinrichs
- Organic Geochemistry Group, MARUM Center for Marine Environmental Sciences and Department of Geosciences, University of Bremen, Bremen, Germany
| | - Chuanlun Zhang
- Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Marine Archaea Geo-Omics, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, China.,Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Guangzhou), Guangzhou, China
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14
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Besseling MA, Hopmans EC, Bale NJ, Schouten S, Damsté JSS, Villanueva L. The absence of intact polar lipid-derived GDGTs in marine waters dominated by Marine Group II: Implications for lipid biosynthesis in Archaea. Sci Rep 2020; 10:294. [PMID: 31941956 PMCID: PMC6962369 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-57035-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/07/2019] [Accepted: 12/19/2019] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
The marine pelagic archaeal community is dominated by three major groups, the marine group I (MGI) Thaumarchaeota, and the marine groups II and III (MGII and MGIII) Euryarchaeota. Studies of both MGI cultures and the environment have shown that the MGI core membrane lipids are predominantly composed of glycerol dibiphytanyl glycerol tetraether (GDGT) lipids and the diether lipid archaeol. However, there are no cultured representatives of MGII and III archaea and, therefore, both their membrane lipid composition and potential contribution to the marine archaeal lipid pool remain unknown. Here, we show that GDGTs present in suspended particulate matter of the (sub)surface waters of the North Atlantic Ocean and the coastal North Sea are derived from MGI archaea, and that MGII archaea do not significantly contribute to the pool of GDGTs and archaeol. This implies, in contrast to previous suggestions, that their lipids do not affect the widely used sea surface temperature proxy TEX86. These findings also indicate that MGII archaea are not able to produce any known archaeal lipids, implying that our understanding of the evolution of membrane lipid biosynthesis in Archaea is far from complete.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marc A Besseling
- NIOZ, Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research, Department of Marine Microbiology and Biogeochemistry, and Utrecht University., P.O. Box 59, NL-1790, AB Den Burg, The Netherlands.
| | - Ellen C Hopmans
- NIOZ, Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research, Department of Marine Microbiology and Biogeochemistry, and Utrecht University., P.O. Box 59, NL-1790, AB Den Burg, The Netherlands
| | - Nicole J Bale
- NIOZ, Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research, Department of Marine Microbiology and Biogeochemistry, and Utrecht University., P.O. Box 59, NL-1790, AB Den Burg, The Netherlands
| | - Stefan Schouten
- NIOZ, Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research, Department of Marine Microbiology and Biogeochemistry, and Utrecht University., P.O. Box 59, NL-1790, AB Den Burg, The Netherlands.,Utrecht University, Faculty of Geosciences, P.O. Box 80.021, 3508 TA, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Jaap S Sinninghe Damsté
- NIOZ, Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research, Department of Marine Microbiology and Biogeochemistry, and Utrecht University., P.O. Box 59, NL-1790, AB Den Burg, The Netherlands.,Utrecht University, Faculty of Geosciences, P.O. Box 80.021, 3508 TA, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Laura Villanueva
- NIOZ, Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research, Department of Marine Microbiology and Biogeochemistry, and Utrecht University., P.O. Box 59, NL-1790, AB Den Burg, The Netherlands
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15
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Membrane Lipid Composition of the Moderately Thermophilic Ammonia-Oxidizing Archaeon " Candidatus Nitrosotenuis uzonensis" at Different Growth Temperatures. Appl Environ Microbiol 2019; 85:AEM.01332-19. [PMID: 31420340 PMCID: PMC6805073 DOI: 10.1128/aem.01332-19] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/12/2019] [Accepted: 08/12/2019] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
For Thaumarchaeota, the ratio of their glycerol dialkyl glycerol tetraether (GDGT) lipids depends on growth temperature, a premise that forms the basis of the widely applied TEX86 paleotemperature proxy. A thorough understanding of which GDGTs are produced by which Thaumarchaeota and what the effect of temperature is on their GDGT composition is essential for constraining the TEX86 proxy. “Ca. Nitrosotenuis uzonensis” is a moderately thermophilic thaumarchaeote enriched from a thermal spring, setting it apart in its environmental niche from the other marine mesophilic members of its order. Indeed, we found that the GDGT composition of “Ca. Nitrosotenuis uzonensis” cultures was distinct from those of other members of its order and was more similar to those of other thermophilic, terrestrial Thaumarchaeota. This suggests that while phylogeny has a strong influence on GDGT distribution, the environmental niche that a thaumarchaeote inhabits also shapes its GDGT composition. “Candidatus Nitrosotenuis uzonensis” is the only cultured moderately thermophilic member of the thaumarchaeotal order Nitrosopumilales (NP) that contains many mesophilic marine strains. We examined its membrane lipid composition at different growth temperatures (37°C, 46°C, and 50°C). Its lipids were all membrane-spanning glycerol dialkyl glycerol tetraethers (GDGTs), with 0 to 4 cyclopentane moieties. Crenarchaeol (cren), the characteristic thaumarchaeotal GDGT, and its isomer (crenʹ) were present in high abundance (30 to 70%). The GDGT polar headgroups were mono-, di-, and trihexoses and hexose/phosphohexose. The ratio of glycolipid to phospholipid GDGTs was highest in the cultures grown at 50°C. With increasing growth temperatures, the relative contributions of cren and crenʹ increased, while those of GDGT-0 to GDGT-4 (including isomers) decreased. TEX86 (tetraether index of tetraethers consisting of 86 carbons)-derived temperatures were much lower than the actual growth temperatures, further demonstrating that TEX86 does not accurately reflect the membrane lipid adaptation of thermophilic Thaumarchaeota. As the temperature increased, specific GDGTs changed relative to their isomers, possibly representing temperature adaption-induced changes in cyclopentane ring stereochemistry. Comparison of a wide range of thaumarchaeotal core lipid compositions revealed that the “Ca. Nitrosotenuis uzonensis” cultures clustered separately from other members of the NP order and the Nitrososphaerales (NS) order. While phylogeny generally seems to have a strong influence on GDGT distribution, our analysis of “Ca. Nitrosotenuis uzonensis” demonstrates that its terrestrial, higher-temperature niche has led to a lipid composition that clearly differentiates it from other NP members and that this difference is mostly driven by its high crenʹ content. IMPORTANCE For Thaumarchaeota, the ratio of their glycerol dialkyl glycerol tetraether (GDGT) lipids depends on growth temperature, a premise that forms the basis of the widely applied TEX86 paleotemperature proxy. A thorough understanding of which GDGTs are produced by which Thaumarchaeota and what the effect of temperature is on their GDGT composition is essential for constraining the TEX86 proxy. “Ca. Nitrosotenuis uzonensis” is a moderately thermophilic thaumarchaeote enriched from a thermal spring, setting it apart in its environmental niche from the other marine mesophilic members of its order. Indeed, we found that the GDGT composition of “Ca. Nitrosotenuis uzonensis” cultures was distinct from those of other members of its order and was more similar to those of other thermophilic, terrestrial Thaumarchaeota. This suggests that while phylogeny has a strong influence on GDGT distribution, the environmental niche that a thaumarchaeote inhabits also shapes its GDGT composition.
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16
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Sollai M, Villanueva L, Hopmans EC, Keil RG, Sinninghe Damsté JS. Archaeal Sources of Intact Membrane Lipid Biomarkers in the Oxygen Deficient Zone of the Eastern Tropical South Pacific. Front Microbiol 2019; 10:765. [PMID: 31031734 PMCID: PMC6470261 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2019.00765] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/09/2018] [Accepted: 03/26/2019] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Archaea are ubiquitous in the modern ocean where they are involved in the carbon and nitrogen biogeochemical cycles. However, the majority of Archaea remain uncultured. Archaeal specific membrane intact polar lipids (IPLs) are biomarkers of the presence and abundance of living cells. They comprise archaeol and glycerol dibiphytanyl glycerol tetraethers (GDGTs) attached to various polar headgroups. However, little is known of the IPLs of uncultured marine Archaea, complicating their use as biomarkers. Here, we analyzed suspended particulate matter (SPM) obtained in high depth resolution from a coastal and open ocean site in the eastern tropical South Pacific (ETSP) oxygen deficient zone (ODZ) with the aim of determining possible biological sources of archaeal IPL by comparing their composition by Ultra High Pressure Liquid Chromatography coupled to high resolution mass spectrometry with the archaeal diversity by 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing and their abundance by quantitative PCR. Thaumarchaeotal Marine Group I (MGI) closely related to Ca. Nitrosopelagicus and Nitrosopumilus dominated the oxic surface and upper ODZ water together with Marine Euryarchaeota Group II (MGII). High relative abundance of hexose phosphohexose- (HPH) crenarchaeol, the specific biomarker for living Thaumarchaeota, and HPH-GDGT-0, dihexose- (DH) GDGT-3 and -4 were detected in these water masses. Within the ODZ, DPANN (Diapherotrites, Parvarchaeota, Aenigmarchaeota, Nanoarchaeota, and Nanohaloarchaea) of the Woesearchaeota DHVE-6 group and Marine Euryarchaeota Group III (MGIII) were present together with a higher proportion of archaeol-based IPLs, which were likely made by MGIII, since DPANN archaea are supposedly unable to synthesize their own IPLs and possibly have a symbiotic or parasitic partnership with MGIII. Finally, in deep suboxic/oxic waters a different MGI population occurred with HPH-GDGT-1, -2 and DH-GDGT-0 and -crenarchaeol, indicating that here MGI synthesize membranes with IPLs in a different relative abundance which could be attributed to the different detected population or to an environmental adaptation. Our study sheds light on the complex archaeal community of one of the most prominent ODZs and on the IPL biomarkers they potentially synthesize.
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Affiliation(s)
- Martina Sollai
- Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research (NIOZ), Department of Marine Microbiology and Biogeochemistry, Utrecht University, Den Burg, Netherlands
| | - Laura Villanueva
- Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research (NIOZ), Department of Marine Microbiology and Biogeochemistry, Utrecht University, Den Burg, Netherlands
| | - Ellen C Hopmans
- Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research (NIOZ), Department of Marine Microbiology and Biogeochemistry, Utrecht University, Den Burg, Netherlands
| | - Richard G Keil
- School of Oceanography, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, United States
| | - Jaap S Sinninghe Damsté
- Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research (NIOZ), Department of Marine Microbiology and Biogeochemistry, Utrecht University, Den Burg, Netherlands.,Faculty of Geosciences, Utrecht University, Utrecht, Netherlands
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17
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Bale NJ, Sorokin DY, Hopmans EC, Koenen M, Rijpstra WIC, Villanueva L, Wienk H, Sinninghe Damsté JS. New Insights Into the Polar Lipid Composition of Extremely Halo(alkali)philic Euryarchaea From Hypersaline Lakes. Front Microbiol 2019; 10:377. [PMID: 30930858 PMCID: PMC6423904 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2019.00377] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/22/2018] [Accepted: 02/13/2019] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
We analyzed the polar membrane lipids of 13 strains of halo(alkali)philic euryarchaea from hypersaline lakes. Nine belong to the class Halobacteria, representing two functional groups: aerobic polysaccharide utilizers and sulfur-respiring anaerobes. The other four strains represent halo(alkali)philic methanogens from the class Methanomicrobia and a recently discovered class Methanonatronarchaeia. A wide range of polar lipids were detected across the 13 strains including dialkyl glycerol diethers (archaeols), membrane-spanning glycerol tetraethers and diether-based cardiolipins. The archaeols contained a range of core lipid structures, including combinations of C20 and C25 isoprenoidal alkyl chains, unsaturations, and hydroxy moieties. Several diether lipids were novel, including: (a) a phosphatidylglycerolhexose (PG-Gly) headgroup, (b) a N,N,N-trimethyl aminopentanetetrol (APT)-like lipid with a methoxy group in place of a hydroxy group on the pentanetetrol, (c) a series of polar lipids with a headgroup with elemental composition of either C12H25NO13S or C12H25NO16S2, and (d) novel cardiolipins containing a putative phosphatidylglycerolphosphate glycerophosphate (PGPGP) polar moiety. We found that the lipid distribution of the 13 strains could be generally separated into two groups, the methanogens (group) and the Halobacteria (class) based on the presence of specific core lipids. Within the methanogens, adaption to a high or more moderate salt concentration resulted in different ratios of glycerol dialkyl glycerol tetraethers (GDGTs) to archaeol. The methanogen Methanosalsum natronophilum AME2T had the most complex diether lipid composition of any of the 13 strains, including hydroxy archaeol and macrocyclic archaeol which we surmise is an order-specific membrane adaption. The zwitterionic headgroups APT and APT-Me were detected only in the Methanomicrobiales member Methanocalculus alkaliphilus AMF2T which also contained the highest level of unsaturated lipids. Only alkaliphilic members of the Natrialbales order contained PGPGP cardiolipins and the PG-Gly headgroup. The four analyzed neutrophilic members of the Halobacteria were characterized by the presence of sulfur-containing headgroups and glycolipids. The presence of cardiolipins with one or more i-C25 alkyl chains, generally termed extended archaeol (EXT-AR), in one of the Methanonatronarchaeia strains was unexpected as only one other order of methanogenic archaea has been reported to produce EXT-AR. We examined this further by looking into the genomic potential of various archaea to produce EXT-AR.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicole J. Bale
- Department of Marine Microbiology and Biogeochemistry, NIOZ Royal Institute for Sea Research, Utrecht University, Texel, Netherlands
| | - Dimitry Y. Sorokin
- Research Centre of Biotechnology, Winogradsky Institute of Microbiology, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, Russia
- Department of Biotechnology, Faculty of Applied Sciences, Delft University of Technology, Delft, Netherlands
| | - Ellen C. Hopmans
- Department of Marine Microbiology and Biogeochemistry, NIOZ Royal Institute for Sea Research, Utrecht University, Texel, Netherlands
| | - Michel Koenen
- Department of Marine Microbiology and Biogeochemistry, NIOZ Royal Institute for Sea Research, Utrecht University, Texel, Netherlands
| | - W. Irene C. Rijpstra
- Department of Marine Microbiology and Biogeochemistry, NIOZ Royal Institute for Sea Research, Utrecht University, Texel, Netherlands
| | - Laura Villanueva
- Department of Marine Microbiology and Biogeochemistry, NIOZ Royal Institute for Sea Research, Utrecht University, Texel, Netherlands
| | - Hans Wienk
- NMR Spectroscopy, Bijvoet Center for Biomolecular Research, Utrecht University, Utrecht, Netherlands
| | - Jaap S. Sinninghe Damsté
- Department of Marine Microbiology and Biogeochemistry, NIOZ Royal Institute for Sea Research, Utrecht University, Texel, Netherlands
- Department of Earth Sciences, Faculty of Geosciences, Utrecht University, Utrecht, Netherlands
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18
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Sollai M, Villanueva L, Hopmans EC, Reichart G, Sinninghe Damsté JS. A combined lipidomic and 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing approach reveals archaeal sources of intact polar lipids in the stratified Black Sea water column. GEOBIOLOGY 2019; 17:91-109. [PMID: 30281902 PMCID: PMC6586073 DOI: 10.1111/gbi.12316] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/26/2018] [Revised: 08/02/2018] [Accepted: 08/21/2018] [Indexed: 05/25/2023]
Abstract
Archaea are important players in marine biogeochemical cycles, and their membrane lipids are useful biomarkers in environmental and geobiological studies. However, many archaeal groups remain uncultured and their lipid composition unknown. Here, we aim to expand the knowledge on archaeal lipid biomarkers and determine the potential sources of those lipids in the water column of the euxinic Black Sea. The archaeal community was evaluated by 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing and by quantitative PCR. The archaeal intact polar lipids (IPLs) were investigated by ultra-high-pressure liquid chromatography coupled to high-resolution mass spectrometry. Our study revealed both a complex archaeal community and large changes with water depth in the IPL assemblages. In the oxic/upper suboxic waters (<105 m), the archaeal community was dominated by marine group (MG) I Thaumarchaeota, coinciding with a higher relative abundance of hexose phosphohexose crenarchaeol, a known marker for Thaumarchaeota. In the suboxic waters (80-110 m), MGI Nitrosopumilus sp. dominated and produced predominantly monohexose glycerol dibiphytanyl glycerol tetraethers (GDGTs) and hydroxy-GDGTs. Two clades of MGII Euryarchaeota were present in the oxic and upper suboxic zones in much lower abundances, preventing the detection of their specific IPLs. In the deep sulfidic waters (>110 m), archaea belonging to the DPANN Woesearchaeota, Bathyarchaeota, and ANME-1b clades dominated. Correlation analyses suggest that the IPLs GDGT-0, GDGT-1, and GDGT-2 with two phosphatidylglycerol (PG) head groups and archaeol with a PG, phosphatidylethanolamine, and phosphatidylserine head groups were produced by ANME-1b archaea. Bathyarchaeota represented 55% of the archaea in the deeper part of the euxinic zone and likely produces archaeol with phospho-dihexose and hexose-glucuronic acid head groups.
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Affiliation(s)
- Martina Sollai
- Departments of Marine Microbiology and Biogeochemistry and Ocean SystemsNIOZ Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Researchand Utrecht UniversityDen BurgThe Netherlands
| | - Laura Villanueva
- Departments of Marine Microbiology and Biogeochemistry and Ocean SystemsNIOZ Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Researchand Utrecht UniversityDen BurgThe Netherlands
| | - Ellen C. Hopmans
- Departments of Marine Microbiology and Biogeochemistry and Ocean SystemsNIOZ Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Researchand Utrecht UniversityDen BurgThe Netherlands
| | - Gert‐Jan Reichart
- Departments of Marine Microbiology and Biogeochemistry and Ocean SystemsNIOZ Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Researchand Utrecht UniversityDen BurgThe Netherlands
- Department of Earth SciencesFaculty of GeosciencesUniversity of UtrechtUtrechtThe Netherlands
| | - Jaap S. Sinninghe Damsté
- Departments of Marine Microbiology and Biogeochemistry and Ocean SystemsNIOZ Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Researchand Utrecht UniversityDen BurgThe Netherlands
- Department of Earth SciencesFaculty of GeosciencesUniversity of UtrechtUtrechtThe Netherlands
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19
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Jung MY, Islam MA, Gwak JH, Kim JG, Rhee SK. Nitrosarchaeum koreense gen. nov., sp. nov., an aerobic and mesophilic, ammonia-oxidizing archaeon member of the phylum Thaumarchaeota isolated from agricultural soil. Int J Syst Evol Microbiol 2018; 68:3084-3095. [PMID: 30124400 DOI: 10.1099/ijsem.0.002926] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
A mesophilic, chemolithoautotrophic, neutrophilic and aerobic ammonia-oxidizing archaeon, designated strain MY1T, was isolated from agricultural soil. Microscopic observation revealed short, rod-shaped cells with a diameter of 0.3-0.5 µm and length of 0.6-1.0 µm. The isolate had no flagella and pili, and possessed no genes associated with archaeal flagella synthesis. The major membrane lipids consisted mainly of the glycerol dibiphytanyl glycerol tetraether (GDGT) lipids GDGT-0 to GDGT-4 and crenarchaeol. The major intact polar lipids (IPLs) were determined as hexose plus phosphohexose IPL and dihexose IPL. Strain MY1T obtains energy by aerobically oxidizing ammonia and carbon by fixing CO2. An optimal growth was observed at 25 °C, at pH 7 and with 0.2-0.4 % (w/v) salinity that corresponds with its terrestrial habitat. The addition of α-keto acids was necessary to stimulate growth. The strain tolerated ammonium and nitrite concentrations up to 10 and 5 mM, respectively. The MY1T genome has a DNA G+C content of 32.7 mol%. Phylogenetic analysis based on the 16S rRNA gene showed that strain MY1T belongs to the family Nitrosopumilaceaeof the phylum Thaumarchaeota, sharing the highest 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity (96.6-97.1 %) with marine isolates of the genus Nitrosopumilus. The average nucleotide identity was 78 % between strain MY1T and Nitrosopumilus maritimus SCM1T, indicating distant relatedness. Based on the phenotypic, phylogenetic and genomic analyses, it was concluded that strain MY1T belongs to the novel genus Nitrosarchaeum, under which the name Nitrosarchaeum koreense sp. nov. is proposed as the type species. The type strain is MY1T (=JCM 31640T=KCTC 4249T).
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Affiliation(s)
- Man-Young Jung
- 1Department of Microbiology, Chungbuk National University, 1 Chungdae-ro, Seowon-Gu, Cheongju 28644, Republic of Korea.,2Department of Microbiology and Ecosystem Science, Division of Microbial Ecology, University of Vienna, Althanstrasse 14, A-1090 Vienna, Austria
| | - Md Arafat Islam
- 1Department of Microbiology, Chungbuk National University, 1 Chungdae-ro, Seowon-Gu, Cheongju 28644, Republic of Korea
| | - Joo-Han Gwak
- 1Department of Microbiology, Chungbuk National University, 1 Chungdae-ro, Seowon-Gu, Cheongju 28644, Republic of Korea
| | - Jong-Geol Kim
- 1Department of Microbiology, Chungbuk National University, 1 Chungdae-ro, Seowon-Gu, Cheongju 28644, Republic of Korea
| | - Sung-Keun Rhee
- 1Department of Microbiology, Chungbuk National University, 1 Chungdae-ro, Seowon-Gu, Cheongju 28644, Republic of Korea
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20
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Cramwinckel MJ, Huber M, Kocken IJ, Agnini C, Bijl PK, Bohaty SM, Frieling J, Goldner A, Hilgen FJ, Kip EL, Peterse F, van der Ploeg R, Röhl U, Schouten S, Sluijs A. Synchronous tropical and polar temperature evolution in the Eocene. Nature 2018; 559:382-386. [PMID: 29967546 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-018-0272-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/27/2017] [Accepted: 04/13/2018] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
Palaeoclimate reconstructions of periods with warm climates and high atmospheric CO2 concentrations are crucial for developing better projections of future climate change. Deep-ocean1,2 and high-latitude3 palaeotemperature proxies demonstrate that the Eocene epoch (56 to 34 million years ago) encompasses the warmest interval of the past 66 million years, followed by cooling towards the eventual establishment of ice caps on Antarctica. Eocene polar warmth is well established, so the main obstacle in quantifying the evolution of key climate parameters, such as global average temperature change and its polar amplification, is the lack of continuous high-quality tropical temperature reconstructions. Here we present a continuous Eocene equatorial sea surface temperature record, based on biomarker palaeothermometry applied on Atlantic Ocean sediments. We combine this record with the sparse existing data4-6 to construct a 26-million-year multi-proxy, multi-site stack of Eocene tropical climate evolution. We find that tropical and deep-ocean temperatures changed in parallel, under the influence of both long-term climate trends and short-lived events. This is consistent with the hypothesis that greenhouse gas forcing7,8, rather than changes in ocean circulation9,10, was the main driver of Eocene climate. Moreover, we observe a strong linear relationship between tropical and deep-ocean temperatures, which implies a constant polar amplification factor throughout the generally ice-free Eocene. Quantitative comparison with fully coupled climate model simulations indicates that global average temperatures were about 29, 26, 23 and 19 degrees Celsius in the early, early middle, late middle and late Eocene, respectively, compared to the preindustrial temperature of 14.4 degrees Celsius. Finally, combining proxy- and model-based temperature estimates with available CO2 reconstructions8 yields estimates of an Eocene Earth system sensitivity of 0.9 to 2.3 kelvin per watt per square metre at 68 per cent probability, consistent with the high end of previous estimates11.
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Affiliation(s)
- Margot J Cramwinckel
- Department of Earth Sciences, Faculty of Geoscience, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands.
| | - Matthew Huber
- Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, USA
| | - Ilja J Kocken
- Department of Earth Sciences, Faculty of Geoscience, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Claudia Agnini
- Department of Geosciences, University of Padova, Padova, Italy
| | - Peter K Bijl
- Department of Earth Sciences, Faculty of Geoscience, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Steven M Bohaty
- Ocean and Earth Science, National Oceanography Centre Southampton, University of Southampton, Southampton, UK
| | - Joost Frieling
- Department of Earth Sciences, Faculty of Geoscience, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Aaron Goldner
- Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, USA
| | - Frederik J Hilgen
- Department of Earth Sciences, Faculty of Geoscience, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Elizabeth L Kip
- Department of Earth Sciences, Faculty of Geoscience, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Francien Peterse
- Department of Earth Sciences, Faculty of Geoscience, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Robin van der Ploeg
- Department of Earth Sciences, Faculty of Geoscience, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Ursula Röhl
- MARUM - Center for Marine Environmental Sciences, University of Bremen, Bremen, Germany
| | - Stefan Schouten
- Department of Earth Sciences, Faculty of Geoscience, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands.,NIOZ Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research, Department of Marine Microbiology and Biogeochemistry and Utrecht University, Den Burg, The Netherlands
| | - Appy Sluijs
- Department of Earth Sciences, Faculty of Geoscience, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
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21
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Wang JX, Xie W, Zhang YG, Meador TB, Zhang CL. Evaluating Production of Cyclopentyl Tetraethers by Marine Group II Euryarchaeota in the Pearl River Estuary and Coastal South China Sea: Potential Impact on the TEX 86 Paleothermometer. Front Microbiol 2017; 8:2077. [PMID: 29163386 PMCID: PMC5671491 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2017.02077] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2017] [Accepted: 10/10/2017] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
TEX86 [TetraEther indeX of glycerol dialkyl glycerol tetraethers (GDGTs) with 86 carbon atoms] has been widely applied to reconstruct (paleo-) sea surface temperature. Marine Group I (MG-I) Thaumarchaeota were thought to be the primary source of GDGTs constituting the TEX86 formula; however, recent research has suggested that Marine Group II (MG-II) Euryarchaeota may also contribute significantly to the GDGT pool in the ocean. Little is known regarding the potential impact of MG-II Euryarchaeota-derived GDGTs on TEX86 values recorded in marine sediments. In this study, we assessed the relationship between distributions of GDGTs and MG-II Euryarchaeota and evaluated its potential effect on the TEX86 proxy. Lipid and DNA analyses were performed on suspended particulate matter and surface sediments collected along a salinity gradient from the lower Pearl River (river water) and its estuary (mixing water) to the coastal South China Sea (SCS, seawater). TEX86-derived temperatures from the water column and surface sediments were significantly correlated and both were lower than satellite-based temperatures. The ring index (RI) values in these environments were higher than predicted from the calculated TEX86-RI correlation, indicating that the GDGT pool in the water column of the PR estuary and coastal SCS comprises relatively more cyclopentane rings, which thereby altered TEX86 values. Furthermore, the abundance of MG-II Euryarchaeota 16S rRNA gene in the mixing water was two to three orders of magnitude higher than those observed in the river or seawater. Significant linear correlations were observed between the gene abundance ratio of MG-II Euryarchaeota to total archaea and the fractional abundance of GDGTs with cyclopentane rings. Collectively, these results suggest that MG-II Euryarchaeota likely produce a large proportion of GDGTs with 1–4 cyclopentane moieties, which may bias TEX86 values in the water column and sediments. As such, valid interpretation of TEX86 values in the sediment record, particularly in coastal oceans, should consider the contribution from MG-II Euryarchaeota.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jin-Xiang Wang
- MARUM-Center for Marine Environmental Sciences, University of Bremen, Bremen, Germany.,Department of Marine Sciences, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, United States
| | - Wei Xie
- State Key Laboratory of Marine Geology, Tongji University, Shanghai, China
| | - Yi Ge Zhang
- Department of Oceanography, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, United States
| | - Travis B Meador
- MARUM-Center for Marine Environmental Sciences, University of Bremen, Bremen, Germany
| | - Chuanlun L Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Marine Geology, Tongji University, Shanghai, China.,Department of Ocean Science & Engineering, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, China
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22
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Carr SA, Schubotz F, Dunbar RB, Mills CT, Dias R, Summons RE, Mandernack KW. Acetoclastic Methanosaeta are dominant methanogens in organic-rich Antarctic marine sediments. ISME JOURNAL 2017; 12:330-342. [PMID: 29039843 PMCID: PMC5776447 DOI: 10.1038/ismej.2017.150] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/17/2017] [Revised: 06/16/2017] [Accepted: 06/24/2017] [Indexed: 01/11/2023]
Abstract
Despite accounting for the majority of sedimentary methane, the physiology and relative abundance of subsurface methanogens remain poorly understood. We combined intact polar lipid and metagenome techniques to better constrain the presence and functions of methanogens within the highly reducing, organic-rich sediments of Antarctica's Adélie Basin. The assembly of metagenomic sequence data identified phylogenic and functional marker genes of methanogens and generated the first Methanosaeta sp. genome from a deep subsurface sedimentary environment. Based on structural and isotopic measurements, glycerol dialkyl glycerol tetraethers with diglycosyl phosphatidylglycerol head groups were classified as biomarkers for active methanogens. The stable carbon isotope (δ13C) values of these biomarkers and the Methanosaeta partial genome suggest that these organisms are acetoclastic methanogens and represent a relatively small (0.2%) but active population. Metagenomic and lipid analyses suggest that Thaumarchaeota and heterotrophic bacteria co-exist with Methanosaeta and together contribute to increasing concentrations and δ13C values of dissolved inorganic carbon with depth. This study presents the first functional insights of deep subsurface Methanosaeta organisms and highlights their role in methane production and overall carbon cycling within sedimentary environments.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Florence Schubotz
- MARUM Center for Marine Environmental Sciences, University of Bremen, Bremen, Germany
| | - Robert B Dunbar
- Department of Environmental Earth Systems Science, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | | | - Robert Dias
- US Geological Survey, Denver Federal Center, Denver, CO, USA
| | - Roger E Summons
- Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Kevin W Mandernack
- Department of Earth Sciences, Indiana University - Purdue University Indianapolis, Indianapolis, IN, USA
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23
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Abstract
Microbial communities adjust the chemical structure of their cell membranes in response to environmental temperature. This enables the development of lipid-based paleothermometers such as the glycerol dialkyl glycerol tetraether (GDGT) proxies described here. Surface-sediment calibrations establish a strong empirical relationship between the relative distribution of GDGTs and temperature. GDGT proxies can be used in marine, lacustrine, and paleosol sequences as long as the organic material is not thermally mature. Thus far, GDGT proxies have been applied to sediments dating back to the middle Jurassic. Many of the key uncertainties of these proxies are related to our emerging understanding of archaeal (and for the branched GDGTs, bacterial) ecology.
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24
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Elling FJ, Könneke M, Nicol GW, Stieglmeier M, Bayer B, Spieck E, de la Torre JR, Becker KW, Thomm M, Prosser JI, Herndl GJ, Schleper C, Hinrichs KU. Chemotaxonomic characterisation of the thaumarchaeal lipidome. Environ Microbiol 2017; 19:2681-2700. [PMID: 28419726 DOI: 10.1111/1462-2920.13759] [Citation(s) in RCA: 84] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/08/2016] [Revised: 04/05/2017] [Accepted: 04/07/2017] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Thaumarchaeota are globally distributed and abundant microorganisms occurring in diverse habitats and thus represent a major source of archaeal lipids. The scope of lipids as taxonomic markers in microbial ecological studies is limited by the scarcity of comparative data on the membrane lipid composition of cultivated representatives, including the phylum Thaumarchaeota. Here, we comprehensively describe the core and intact polar lipid (IPL) inventory of ten ammonia-oxidising thaumarchaeal cultures representing all four characterized phylogenetic clades. IPLs of these thaumarchaeal strains are generally similar and consist of membrane-spanning, glycerol dibiphytanyl glycerol tetraethers with monoglycosyl, diglycosyl, phosphohexose and hexose-phosphohexose headgroups. However, the relative abundances of these IPLs and their core lipid compositions differ systematically between the phylogenetic subgroups, indicating high potential for chemotaxonomic distinction of thaumarchaeal clades. Comparative lipidomic analyses of 19 euryarchaeal and crenarchaeal strains suggested that the lipid methoxy archaeol is synthesized exclusively by Thaumarchaeota and may thus represent a diagnostic lipid biomarker for this phylum. The unprecedented diversity of the thaumarchaeal lipidome with 118 different lipids suggests that membrane lipid composition and adaptation mechanisms in Thaumarchaeota are more complex than previously thought and include unique lipids with as yet unresolved properties.
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Affiliation(s)
- Felix J Elling
- Organic Geochemistry Group, MARUM - Center for Marine Environmental Sciences & Department of Geosciences, University of Bremen, Bremen, 28359, Germany
| | - Martin Könneke
- Organic Geochemistry Group, MARUM - Center for Marine Environmental Sciences & Department of Geosciences, University of Bremen, Bremen, 28359, Germany.,Marine Archaea Group, MARUM - Center for Marine Environmental Sciences & Department of Geosciences, University of Bremen, Bremen, 28359, Germany
| | - Graeme W Nicol
- Environmental Microbial Genomics, Laboratoire Ampère, École Centrale de Lyon, Université de Lyon, 69134, Ecully, France
| | | | - Barbara Bayer
- Limnology and Bio-Oceanography, Center of Ecology, University of Vienna, Vienna, 1090, Austria
| | - Eva Spieck
- Biocenter Klein Flottbek, Department of Microbiology and Biotechnology, University of Hamburg, Hamburg, 22609, Germany
| | - José R de la Torre
- Department of Biology, San Francisco State University, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Kevin W Becker
- Organic Geochemistry Group, MARUM - Center for Marine Environmental Sciences & Department of Geosciences, University of Bremen, Bremen, 28359, Germany
| | - Michael Thomm
- Lehrstuhl für Mikrobiologie und Archaeenzentrum, Universität Regensburg, Regensburg, 93053, Germany
| | - James I Prosser
- Institute of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Aberdeen, Cruickshank Building, Aberdeen, AB24 3UU, UK
| | - Gerhard J Herndl
- Limnology and Bio-Oceanography, Center of Ecology, University of Vienna, Vienna, 1090, Austria.,Department of Marine Microbiology and Biogeochemistry, Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research, Utrecht University, 1790 AB Den Burg, Texel, The Netherlands
| | | | - Kai-Uwe Hinrichs
- Organic Geochemistry Group, MARUM - Center for Marine Environmental Sciences & Department of Geosciences, University of Bremen, Bremen, 28359, Germany
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25
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Caforio A, Driessen AJM. Archaeal phospholipids: Structural properties and biosynthesis. Biochim Biophys Acta Mol Cell Biol Lipids 2016; 1862:1325-1339. [PMID: 28007654 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbalip.2016.12.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 54] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/03/2016] [Revised: 12/13/2016] [Accepted: 12/15/2016] [Indexed: 01/06/2023]
Abstract
Phospholipids are major components of the cellular membranes present in all living organisms. They typically form a lipid bilayer that embroiders the cell or cellular organelles, constitute a barrier for ions and small solutes and form a matrix that supports the function of membrane proteins. The chemical composition of the membrane phospholipids present in the two prokaryotic domains Archaea and Bacteria are vastly different. Archaeal lipids are composed of highly-methylated isoprenoid chains that are ether-linked to a glycerol-1-phosphate backbone while bacterial phospholipids consist of straight fatty acids bound by ester bonds to the enantiomeric glycerol-3-phosphate backbone. The chemical structure of the archaeal lipids and their compositional diversity ensures the required stability at extreme environmental conditions as many archaea thrive at such conditions including high or low temperature, high salinity and extreme acidic or alkaline pH values. However, not all archaea are extremophiles, and the presence of ether-linked phospholipids is a phylogenetic marker that distinguishes Archaea from other life forms. During the past decade, our understanding of the biosynthesis of archaeal lipids has progressed resulting in the characterization of the main biosynthetic steps of the pathway including the reconstitution of lipid biosynthesis in vitro. Here we describe the chemical and physical properties of archaeal lipids and membranes derived thereof, summarize the existing knowledge about the enzymology of the archaeal lipid biosynthetic pathway and discuss evolutionary theories associated with the "Lipid Divide" that resulted in the differentiation of bacterial and archaeal organisms. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled: Bacterial Lipids edited by Russell E. Bishop.
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Affiliation(s)
- Antonella Caforio
- Department of Molecular Microbiology, Groningen Biomolecular Sciences and Biotechnology Institute, University of Groningen, Nijenborgh 7, 9747 AG, Groningen, The Netherlands; The Zernike Institute for Advanced Materials, University of Groningen, Nijenborgh 7, 9747 AG, Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Arnold J M Driessen
- Department of Molecular Microbiology, Groningen Biomolecular Sciences and Biotechnology Institute, University of Groningen, Nijenborgh 7, 9747 AG, Groningen, The Netherlands; The Zernike Institute for Advanced Materials, University of Groningen, Nijenborgh 7, 9747 AG, Groningen, The Netherlands.
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26
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Feyhl-Buska J, Chen Y, Jia C, Wang JX, Zhang CL, Boyd ES. Influence of Growth Phase, pH, and Temperature on the Abundance and Composition of Tetraether Lipids in the Thermoacidophile Picrophilus torridus. Front Microbiol 2016; 7:1323. [PMID: 27625636 PMCID: PMC5003844 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2016.01323] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/01/2016] [Accepted: 08/10/2016] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The abundance and composition of glycerol dibiphytanyl glycerol tetraether (GDGT) and glycerol tribiphytanyl glycerol tetraether (GTGT) lipids were determined as a function of growth phase as a proxy for nutrient availability, the pH of growth medium, and incubation temperature in cultures of the thermoacidophile Picrophilus torridus. Regardless of the cultivation condition, the abundance of GDGTs and GTGTs was greater in the polar than core fraction, with a marked decrease in core GDGTs in cultures harvested during log phase growth. These data are consistent with previous suggestions indicating that core GDGTs are re-functionalized during polar lipid synthesis. Under all conditions examined, polar lipids were enriched in a GDGT with 2 cyclopentyl rings (GDGT-2), indicating GDGT-2 is the preferred lipid in this taxon. However, lag or stationary phase grown cells or cells subjected to pH or thermal stress were enriched in GDGTs with 4, 5, or 6 rings and depleted in GDGTs with 1, 2, 3, rings relative to log phase cells grown under optimal conditions. Variation in the composition of polar GDGT lipids in cells harvested during various growth phases tended to be greater than in cells cultivated over a pH range of 0.3–1.1 and a temperature range of 53–63°C. These results suggest that the growth phase, the pH of growth medium, and incubation temperature are all important factors that shape the composition of tetraether lipids in Picrophilus. The similarity in enrichment of GDGTs with more rings in cultures undergoing nutrient, pH, and thermal stress points to GDGT cyclization as a generalized physiological response to stress in this taxon.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jayme Feyhl-Buska
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Montana State University Bozeman, MT, USA
| | - Yufei Chen
- State Key Laboratory of Marine Geology, Tongji University Shanghai, China
| | - Chengling Jia
- State Key Laboratory of Marine Geology, Tongji University Shanghai, China
| | - Jin-Xiang Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Marine Geology, Tongji University Shanghai, China
| | - Chuanlun L Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Marine Geology, Tongji University Shanghai, China
| | - Eric S Boyd
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Montana State UniversityBozeman, MT, USA; NASA Astrobiology InstituteMountain View, CA, USA
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27
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Unusual Butane- and Pentanetriol-Based Tetraether Lipids in Methanomassiliicoccus luminyensis, a Representative of the Seventh Order of Methanogens. Appl Environ Microbiol 2016; 82:4505-4516. [PMID: 27208108 DOI: 10.1128/aem.00772-16] [Citation(s) in RCA: 54] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2016] [Accepted: 05/10/2016] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
UNLABELLED A new clade of archaea has recently been proposed to constitute the seventh methanogenic order, the Methanomassiliicoccales, which is related to the Thermoplasmatales and the uncultivated archaeal clades deep-sea hydrothermal vent Euryarchaeota group 2 and marine group II Euryarchaeota but only distantly related to other methanogens. In this study, we investigated the membrane lipid composition of Methanomassiliicoccus luminyensis, the sole cultured representative of this seventh order. The lipid inventory of M. luminyensis comprises a unique assemblage of novel lipids as well as lipids otherwise typical for thermophilic, methanogenic, or halophilic archaea. For instance, glycerol sesterpanyl-phytanyl diether core lipids found mainly in halophilic archaea were detected, and so were compounds bearing either heptose or methoxylated glycosidic head groups, neither of which have been reported so far for other archaea. The absence of quinones or methanophenazines is consistent with a biochemistry of methanogenesis different from that of the methanophenazine-containing methylotrophic methanogens. The most distinctive characteristic of the membrane lipid composition of M. luminyensis, however, is the presence of tetraether lipids in which one glycerol backbone is replaced by either butane- or pentanetriol, i.e., lipids recently discovered in marine sediments. Butanetriol dibiphytanyl glycerol tetraether (BDGT) constitutes the most abundant core lipid type (>50% relative abundance) in M. luminyensis We have thus identified a source for these unusual orphan lipids. The complementary analysis of diverse marine sediment samples showed that BDGTs are widespread in anoxic layers, suggesting an environmental significance of Methanomassiliicoccales and/or related BDGT producers beyond gastrointestinal tracts. IMPORTANCE Cellular membranes of members of all three domains of life, Archaea, Bacteria, and Eukarya, are largely formed by lipids in which glycerol serves as backbone for the hydrophobic alkyl chains. Recently, however, archaeal tetraether lipids with either butanetriol or pentanetriol as a backbone were identified in marine sediments and attributed to uncultured sediment-dwelling archaea. Here we show that the butanetriol-based dibiphytanyl tetraethers constitute the major lipids in Methanomassiliicoccus luminyensis, currently the only isolate of the novel seventh order of methanogens. Given the absence of these lipids in a large set of archaeal isolates, these compounds may be diagnostic for the Methanomassiliicoccales and/or closely related archaea.
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28
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Hoppstock L, Trusch F, Lederer C, van West P, Koenneke M, Bayer P. NmPin from the marine thaumarchaeote Nitrosopumilus maritimus is an active membrane associated prolyl isomerase. BMC Biol 2016; 14:53. [PMID: 27349962 PMCID: PMC4922055 DOI: 10.1186/s12915-016-0274-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/03/2016] [Accepted: 06/14/2016] [Indexed: 12/01/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Peptidyl-prolyl isomerases (PPIases) are present in all forms of life and play a crucial role in protein folding and regulation. They catalyze the cis-trans isomerization of the peptide bond that precedes proline residues in numerous proteins. The parvulins, which is one family of PPIases, have been extensively investigated in several eukaryotes. However, nothing is known about their expression, function and localization in archaea. Results Here, we describe the endogenous expression, molecular structure, function and cellular localization of NmPin, a single-domain parvulin-type PPIase from Nitrosopumilus maritimus. This marine chemolithoautotrophic archaeon belongs to the globally abundant phylum Thaumarchaeota. Using high resolution NMR spectroscopy we demonstrate that the 3D structure of NmPin adopts a parvulin fold and confirmed its peptidyl-prolyl isomerase activity by protease-coupled assays and mutagenesis studies. A detailed topological analysis revealed a positively charged lysine-rich patch on the protein surface, which is conserved in all known parvulin sequences of thaumarchaeotes and targets NmPin to lipids in vitro. Immunofluorescence microscopy confirms that the protein is attached to the outer archaeal cell membrane in vivo. Transmission electron microscopy uncovered that NmPin has a uniform distribution at the membrane surface, which is correlated with a native cell shape of the prokaryote. Conclusion We present a novel solution structure of a catalytically active thaumarchaeal parvulin. Our results reveal that a lysine-rich patch in NmPin mediates membrane localization. These findings provide a model whereby NmPin is located between the archaeal membrane and the surface layer and hence suggest proteins of the S-layer as the key target substrates of this parvulin. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12915-016-0274-1) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lukas Hoppstock
- Department of Structural and Medicinal Biochemistry, Centre for Medical Biotechnology, University of Duisburg-Essen, Universitätsstr. 1-4, 45141, Essen, Germany
| | - Franziska Trusch
- Aberdeen Oomycetes Laboratory, Institute of Medical Sciences, University of Aberdeen, Foresterhill, AB25 2ZD, Aberdeen, UK
| | - Christoph Lederer
- Department of Structural and Medicinal Biochemistry, Centre for Medical Biotechnology, University of Duisburg-Essen, Universitätsstr. 1-4, 45141, Essen, Germany
| | - Pieter van West
- Aberdeen Oomycetes Laboratory, Institute of Medical Sciences, University of Aberdeen, Foresterhill, AB25 2ZD, Aberdeen, UK
| | - Martin Koenneke
- Organic Geochemistry Group, MARUM Center for Marine Environmental Sciences, University of Bremen, Leobener Str. MARUM, 28359, Bremen, Germany
| | - Peter Bayer
- Department of Structural and Medicinal Biochemistry, Centre for Medical Biotechnology, University of Duisburg-Essen, Universitätsstr. 1-4, 45141, Essen, Germany.
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29
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Zhu C, Wakeham SG, Elling FJ, Basse A, Mollenhauer G, Versteegh GJM, Könneke M, Hinrichs KU. Stratification of archaeal membrane lipids in the ocean and implications for adaptation and chemotaxonomy of planktonic archaea. Environ Microbiol 2016; 18:4324-4336. [DOI: 10.1111/1462-2920.13289] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/08/2015] [Accepted: 03/03/2016] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Chun Zhu
- MARUM Center for Marine Environmental Sciences and Department of Geosciences; University of Bremen; D-28359 Bremen Germany
- School of Earth and Ocean Sciences; Cardiff University; Cardiff CF10 3AT UK
| | - Stuart G. Wakeham
- Skidaway Institute of Oceanography; 10 Ocean Science Circle Savannah GA 31411 USA
| | - Felix J. Elling
- MARUM Center for Marine Environmental Sciences and Department of Geosciences; University of Bremen; D-28359 Bremen Germany
| | - Andreas Basse
- MARUM Center for Marine Environmental Sciences and Department of Geosciences; University of Bremen; D-28359 Bremen Germany
- Alfred-Wegener-Institute for Polar and Marine Research (AWI); Bremerhaven Germany
| | - Gesine Mollenhauer
- MARUM Center for Marine Environmental Sciences and Department of Geosciences; University of Bremen; D-28359 Bremen Germany
- Alfred-Wegener-Institute for Polar and Marine Research (AWI); Bremerhaven Germany
| | - Gerard J. M. Versteegh
- MARUM Center for Marine Environmental Sciences and Department of Geosciences; University of Bremen; D-28359 Bremen Germany
| | - Martin Könneke
- MARUM Center for Marine Environmental Sciences and Department of Geosciences; University of Bremen; D-28359 Bremen Germany
| | - Kai-Uwe Hinrichs
- MARUM Center for Marine Environmental Sciences and Department of Geosciences; University of Bremen; D-28359 Bremen Germany
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30
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Factors Controlling the Stable Nitrogen Isotopic Composition (δ15N) of Lipids in Marine Animals. PLoS One 2016; 11:e0146321. [PMID: 26731720 PMCID: PMC4701503 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0146321] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/06/2014] [Accepted: 12/16/2015] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
Lipid extraction of biomass prior to stable isotope analysis is known to cause variable changes in the stable nitrogen isotopic composition (δ15N) of residual biomass. However, the underlying factors causing these changes are not yet clear. Here we address this issue by comparing the δ15N of bulk and residual biomass of several marine animal tissues (fish, crab, cockle, oyster, and polychaete), as well as the δ15N of the extracted lipids. As observed previously, lipid extraction led to a variable offset in δ15N of biomass (differences ranging from -2.3 to +1.8 ‰). Importantly, the total lipid extract (TLE) was highly depleted in 15N compared to bulk biomass, and also highly variable (differences ranging from -14 to +0.7 ‰). The TLE consisted mainly of phosphatidylcholines, a group of lipids with one nitrogen atom in the headgroup. To elucidate the cause for the 15N-depletion in the TLE, the δ15N of amino acids was determined, including serine because it is one of the main sources of nitrogen to N-containing lipids. Serine δ15N values differed by -7 to +2 ‰ from bulk biomass δ15N, and correlated well with the 15N depletion in TLEs. On average, serine was less depleted (-3‰) than the TLE (-7 ‰), possibly due to fractionation during biosynthesis of N-containing headgroups, or that other nitrogen-containing compounds, such as urea and choline, or recycled nitrogen contribute to the nitrogen isotopic composition of the TLE. The depletion in 15N of the TLE relative to biomass increased with the trophic level of the organisms.
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Sedimentary archaeal amoA gene abundance reflects historic nutrient level and salinity fluctuations in Qinghai Lake, Tibetan Plateau. Sci Rep 2015; 5:18071. [PMID: 26666501 PMCID: PMC4678299 DOI: 10.1038/srep18071] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/24/2015] [Accepted: 11/10/2015] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Integration of DNA derived from ancient phototrophs with their characteristic lipid biomarkers has been successfully employed to reconstruct paleoenvironmental conditions. However, it is poorly known that whether the DNA and lipids of microbial functional aerobes (such as ammonia-oxidizing archaea: AOA) can be used for reconstructing past environmental conditions. Here we identify and quantify the AOA amoA genes (encoding the alpha subunit of ammonia monooxygenases) preserved in a 5.8-m sediment core (spanning the last 18,500 years) from Qinghai Lake. Parallel analyses revealed that low amoA gene abundance corresponded to high total organic carbon (TOC) and salinity, while high amoA gene abundance corresponded to low TOC and salinity. In the Qinghai Lake region, TOC can serve as an indicator of paleo-productivity and paleo-precipitation, which is related to historic nutrient input and salinity. So our data suggest that temporal variation of AOA amoA gene abundance preserved in Qinghai Lake sediment may reflect the variations of nutrient level and salinity throughout the late Pleistocene and Holocene in the Qinghai Lake region.
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Svensson E, Schouten S, Stam A, Middelburg JJ, Sinninghe Damsté JS. Compound-specific stable isotope analysis of nitrogen-containing intact polar lipids. RAPID COMMUNICATIONS IN MASS SPECTROMETRY : RCM 2015; 29:2263-2271. [PMID: 26522319 DOI: 10.1002/rcm.7393] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/20/2015] [Revised: 08/12/2015] [Accepted: 09/10/2015] [Indexed: 06/05/2023]
Abstract
RATIONALE Compound-specific isotope analysis (CSIA) of nitrogen in amino acids has proven a valuable tool in many fields (e.g. ecology). Several intact polar lipids (IPLs) also contain nitrogen, and their nitrogen isotope ratios have the potential to elucidate food-web interactions or metabolic pathways. Here we have developed novel methodology for the determination of δ(15)N values of nitrogen-containing headgroups of IPLs using gas chromatography coupled with isotope-ratio mass spectrometry. METHODS Intact polar lipids with nitrogen-containing headgroups were hydrolyzed and the resulting compounds were derivatized by (1) acetylation with pivaloyl chloride for compounds with amine and hydroxyl groups or (2) esterification using acidified 2-propanol followed by acetylation with pivaloyl chloride for compounds with both carboxyl and amine groups. The δ(15)N values of the derivatives were subsequently determined using gas chromatography/combustion/isotope-ratio mass spectrometry. RESULTS Intact polar lipids with ethanolamine and amino acid headgroups, such as phosphatidylethanolamine and phosphatidylserine, were successfully released from the IPLs and derivatized. Using commercially available pure compounds it was established that δ(15)N values of ethanolamine and glycine were not statistically different from the offline-determined values. Application of the technique to microbial cultures and a microbial mat showed that the method works well for the release and derivatization of the headgroup of phosphatidylethanolamine, a common IPL in bacteria. CONCLUSIONS A method to enable CSIA of nitrogen of selected IPLs has been developed. The method is suitable for measuring natural stable nitrogen isotope ratios in microbial lipids, in particular phosphatidylethanolamine, and will be especially useful for tracing the fate of nitrogen in deliberate tracer experiments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elisabeth Svensson
- Department of Marine Organic Biogeochemistry, NIOZ Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research, P.O. Box 59, 1790 AB, Den Burg (Texel), The Netherlands
| | - Stefan Schouten
- Department of Marine Organic Biogeochemistry, NIOZ Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research, P.O. Box 59, 1790 AB, Den Burg (Texel), The Netherlands
- Department of Earth Sciences, Faculty of Geosciences, Utrecht University, P.O. Box 80021, 3508 TA, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Axel Stam
- Department of Marine Organic Biogeochemistry, NIOZ Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research, P.O. Box 59, 1790 AB, Den Burg (Texel), The Netherlands
| | - Jack J Middelburg
- Department of Earth Sciences, Faculty of Geosciences, Utrecht University, P.O. Box 80021, 3508 TA, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Jaap S Sinninghe Damsté
- Department of Marine Organic Biogeochemistry, NIOZ Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research, P.O. Box 59, 1790 AB, Den Burg (Texel), The Netherlands
- Department of Earth Sciences, Faculty of Geosciences, Utrecht University, P.O. Box 80021, 3508 TA, Utrecht, The Netherlands
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Zarzycki PK, Portka JK. Recent advances in hopanoids analysis: Quantification protocols overview, main research targets and selected problems of complex data exploration. J Steroid Biochem Mol Biol 2015; 153:3-26. [PMID: 25958047 DOI: 10.1016/j.jsbmb.2015.04.017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/12/2015] [Revised: 04/20/2015] [Accepted: 04/23/2015] [Indexed: 01/02/2023]
Abstract
Pentacyclic triterpenoids, particularly hopanoids, are organism-specific compounds and are generally considered as useful biomarkers that allow fingerprinting and classification of biological, environmental and geological samples. Simultaneous quantification of various hopanoids together with battery of related non-polar and low-molecular mass compounds may provide principal information for geochemical and environmental research focusing on both modern and ancient investigations. Target compounds can be derived from microbial biomass, water columns, sediments, coals, crude fossils or rocks. This create number of analytical problems due to different composition of the analytical matrix and interfering compounds and therefore, proper optimization of quantification protocols for such biomarkers is still the challenge. In this work we summarizing typical analytical protocols that were recently applied for quantification of hopanoids like compounds from different samples. Main steps including components of interest extraction, pre-purification, fractionation, derivatization and quantification involving gas (1D and 2D) as well as liquid separation techniques (liquid-liquid extraction, solid-phase extraction, planar and low resolution column chromatography, high-performance liquid chromatography) are described and discussed from practical point of view, mainly based on the experimental papers that were published within last two years, where significant increase in hopanoids research was noticed. The second aim of this review is to describe the latest research trends concerning determination of hopanoids and related low-molecular mass lipids analyzed in various samples including sediments, rocks, coals, crude oils and plant fossils as well as stromatolites and microbial biomass cultivated under different conditions. It has been found that majority of the most recent papers are based on uni- or bivariate approach for complex data analysis. Data interpretation involves number of physicochemical parameters and hopanoids quantities or given biomarkers mass ratios derived from high-throughput separation and detection systems, typically GC-MS and HPLC-MS. Based on quantitative data reported in recently published experimental works it has been demonstrated that multivariate data analysis using e.g. principal components computations may significantly extend our knowledge concerning proper biomarkers selection and samples classification by means of hopanoids and related non-polar compounds.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paweł K Zarzycki
- Section of Toxicology and Bioanalytics, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Koszalin University of Technology, Śniadeckich 2, 75-453 Koszalin, Poland.
| | - Joanna K Portka
- Apteka "Na Słowińców", Słowińców 8/1, 78-100 Kołobrzeg, Poland
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Meador TB, Bowles M, Lazar CS, Zhu C, Teske A, Hinrichs KU. The archaeal lipidome in estuarine sediment dominated by members of the Miscellaneous Crenarchaeotal Group. Environ Microbiol 2015; 17:2441-58. [PMID: 25403417 DOI: 10.1111/1462-2920.12716] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/02/2014] [Accepted: 11/08/2014] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
The anoxic sediments of the White Oak River estuary comprise a distinctive sulfate-methane transition zone (SMTZ) and natural enrichment of the archaea affiliated with the Miscellaneous Crenarchaeotal Group (MCG). Archaeal biphytanes were generally depleted in (13) C, with δ(13) C values being less than -35‰, indicative of production by active sedimentary archaeal populations. Multivariate analysis of the downcore distributions of 63 lipid biomarkers identified three major groups of lipids that were enriched in the surface, SMTZ or subsurface depths. Intact polar lipids with phosphatidylglycerol headgroups and glycerol dibiphytanyl glycerol tetraethers containing one, two or three cyclopentane rings were enriched at the base of the SMTZ and likely represent the accumulated product of a small but active ANME-1 community. The recently identified butanetriol dibiphytanyl glycerol tetraethers (BDGT), which increased relatively to other lipids with depth, were correlated with the relative abundance of MCG in archaeal 16S rRNA clone libraries, and were (13) C depleted throughout the depth profile, suggesting BDGT lipids as putative biomarkers of an MCG community that may either be autotrophic or feeding on (13) C-depleted organic substrates transported by porewater.
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Affiliation(s)
- Travis B Meador
- MARUM Center for Marine Environmental Sciences, Department of Geosciences, University of Bremen, Bremen, Germany
| | - Marshall Bowles
- MARUM Center for Marine Environmental Sciences, Department of Geosciences, University of Bremen, Bremen, Germany
| | - Cassandre S Lazar
- MARUM Center for Marine Environmental Sciences, Department of Geosciences, University of Bremen, Bremen, Germany.,Department of Marine Sciences, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
| | - Chun Zhu
- MARUM Center for Marine Environmental Sciences, Department of Geosciences, University of Bremen, Bremen, Germany
| | - Andreas Teske
- Department of Marine Sciences, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
| | - Kai-Uwe Hinrichs
- MARUM Center for Marine Environmental Sciences, Department of Geosciences, University of Bremen, Bremen, Germany
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Xie W, Zhang CL, Wang J, Chen Y, Zhu Y, de la Torre JR, Dong H, Hartnett HE, Hedlund BP, Klotz MG. Distribution of ether lipids and composition of the archaeal community in terrestrial geothermal springs: impact of environmental variables. Environ Microbiol 2014; 17:1600-14. [PMID: 25142282 DOI: 10.1111/1462-2920.12595] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/07/2014] [Accepted: 08/08/2014] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
Archaea can respond to changes in the environment by altering the composition of their membrane lipids, for example, by modification of the abundance and composition of glycerol dialkyl glycerol tetraethers (GDGTs). Here, we investigated the abundance and proportions of polar GDGTs (P-GDGTs) and core GDGTs (C-GDGTs) sampled in different seasons from Tengchong hot springs (Yunnan, China), which encompassed a pH range of 2.5-10.1 and a temperature range of 43.7-93.6°C. The phylogenetic composition of the archaeal community (reanalysed from published work) divided the Archaea in spring sediment samples into three major groups that corresponded with spring pH: acidic, circumneutral and alkaline. Cluster analysis showed correlation between spring pH and the composition of P- and C-GDGTs and archaeal 16S rRNA genes, indicating an intimate link between resident Archaea and the distribution of P- and C-GDGTs in Tengchong hot springs. The distribution of GDGTs in Tengchong springs was also significantly affected by temperature; however, the relationship was weaker than with pH. Analysis of published datasets including samples from Tibet, Yellowstone and the US Great Basin hot springs revealed a similar relationship between pH and GDGT content. Specifically, low pH springs had higher concentrations of GDGTs with high numbers of cyclopentyl rings than neutral and alkaline springs, which is consistent with the predominance of high cyclopentyl ring-characterized Sulfolobales and Thermoplasmatales present in some of the low pH springs. Our study suggests that the resident Archaea in these hot springs are acclimated if not adapted to low pH by their genetic capacity to effect the packing density of their membranes by increasing cyclopentyl rings in GDGTs at the rank of community.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wei Xie
- State Key Laboratory of Marine Geology, Tongji University, Shanghai, 200092, China; Department of Marine Sciences, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, 30602, USA
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Lipsewers YA, Bale NJ, Hopmans EC, Schouten S, Sinninghe Damsté JS, Villanueva L. Seasonality and depth distribution of the abundance and activity of ammonia oxidizing microorganisms in marine coastal sediments (North Sea). Front Microbiol 2014; 5:472. [PMID: 25250020 PMCID: PMC4155873 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2014.00472] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/02/2014] [Accepted: 08/20/2014] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Microbial processes such as nitrification and anaerobic ammonium oxidation (anammox) are important for nitrogen cycling in marine sediments. Seasonal variations of archaeal and bacterial ammonia oxidizers (AOA and AOB) and anammox bacteria, as well as the environmental factors affecting these groups, are not well studied. We have examined the seasonal and depth distribution of the abundance and potential activity of these microbial groups in coastal marine sediments of the southern North Sea. This was achieved by quantifying specific intact polar lipids as well as the abundance and gene expression of their 16S rRNA gene, the ammonia monooxygenase subunit A (amoA) gene of AOA and AOB, and the hydrazine synthase (hzsA) gene of anammox bacteria. AOA, AOB, and anammox bacteria were detected and transcriptionally active down to 12 cm sediment depth. In all seasons, the abundance of AOA was higher compared to the AOB abundance suggesting that AOA play a more dominant role in aerobic ammonia oxidation in these sediments. Anammox bacteria were abundant and active even in oxygenated and bioturbated parts of the sediment. The abundance of AOA and AOB was relatively stable with depth and over the seasonal cycle, while anammox bacteria abundance and transcriptional activity were highest in August. North Sea sediments thus seem to provide a common, stable, ecological niche for AOA, AOB, and anammox bacteria.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yvonne A Lipsewers
- Department of Marine Organic Biogeochemistry, NIOZ Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research Den Burg, Netherlands
| | - Nicole J Bale
- Department of Marine Organic Biogeochemistry, NIOZ Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research Den Burg, Netherlands
| | - Ellen C Hopmans
- Department of Marine Organic Biogeochemistry, NIOZ Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research Den Burg, Netherlands
| | - Stefan Schouten
- Department of Marine Organic Biogeochemistry, NIOZ Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research Den Burg, Netherlands
| | - Jaap S Sinninghe Damsté
- Department of Marine Organic Biogeochemistry, NIOZ Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research Den Burg, Netherlands
| | - Laura Villanueva
- Department of Marine Organic Biogeochemistry, NIOZ Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research Den Burg, Netherlands
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Stieglmeier M, Klingl A, Alves RJE, Rittmann SKMR, Melcher M, Leisch N, Schleper C. Nitrososphaera viennensis gen. nov., sp. nov., an aerobic and mesophilic, ammonia-oxidizing archaeon from soil and a member of the archaeal phylum Thaumarchaeota. Int J Syst Evol Microbiol 2014; 64:2738-2752. [PMID: 24907263 PMCID: PMC4129164 DOI: 10.1099/ijs.0.063172-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 194] [Impact Index Per Article: 19.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
A mesophilic, neutrophilic and aerobic, ammonia-oxidizing archaeon, strain EN76(T), was isolated from garden soil in Vienna (Austria). Cells were irregular cocci with a diameter of 0.6-0.9 µm and possessed archaella and archaeal pili as cell appendages. Electron microscopy also indicated clearly discernible areas of high and low electron density, as well as tubule-like structures. Strain EN76(T) had an S-layer with p3 symmetry, so far only reported for members of the Sulfolobales. Crenarchaeol was the major core lipid. The organism gained energy by oxidizing ammonia to nitrite aerobically, thereby fixing CO2, but growth depended on the addition of small amounts of organic acids. The optimal growth temperature was 42 °C and the optimal pH was 7.5, with ammonium and pyruvate concentrations of 2.6 and 1 mM, respectively. The genome of strain EN76(T) had a DNA G+C content of 52.7 mol%. Phylogenetic analyses of 16S rRNA genes showed that strain EN76(T) is affiliated with the recently proposed phylum Thaumarchaeota, sharing 85% 16S rRNA gene sequence identity with the closest cultivated relative 'Candidatus Nitrosopumilus maritimus' SCM1, a marine ammonia-oxidizing archaeon, and a maximum of 81% 16S rRNA gene sequence identity with members of the phyla Crenarchaeota and Euryarchaeota and any of the other recently proposed phyla (e.g. 'Korarchaeota' and 'Aigarchaeota'). We propose the name Nitrososphaera viennensis gen. nov., sp. nov. to accommodate strain EN76(T). The type strain of Nitrososphaera viennensis is strain EN76(T) ( = DSM 26422(T) = JMC 19564(T)). Additionally, we propose the family Nitrososphaeraceae fam. nov., the order Nitrososphaerales ord. nov. and the class Nitrososphaeria classis nov.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michaela Stieglmeier
- University of Vienna, Department of Ecogenomics and Systems Biology, Archaea Biology and Ecogenomics Division, Althanstr. 14, 1090 Vienna, Austria
| | - Andreas Klingl
- Cell Biology and LOEWE Research Centre for Synthetic Microbiology (Synmikro), Philipps-University Marburg, Karl-von-Frisch-Str. 8, 35043 Marburg, Germany
| | - Ricardo J. E. Alves
- University of Vienna, Department of Ecogenomics and Systems Biology, Archaea Biology and Ecogenomics Division, Althanstr. 14, 1090 Vienna, Austria
| | - Simon K.-M. R. Rittmann
- University of Vienna, Department of Ecogenomics and Systems Biology, Archaea Biology and Ecogenomics Division, Althanstr. 14, 1090 Vienna, Austria
| | - Michael Melcher
- University of Vienna, Department of Ecogenomics and Systems Biology, Archaea Biology and Ecogenomics Division, Althanstr. 14, 1090 Vienna, Austria
| | - Nikolaus Leisch
- University of Vienna, Department of Ecogenomics and Systems Biology, Archaea Biology and Ecogenomics Division, Althanstr. 14, 1090 Vienna, Austria
| | - Christa Schleper
- University of Vienna, Department of Ecogenomics and Systems Biology, Archaea Biology and Ecogenomics Division, Althanstr. 14, 1090 Vienna, Austria
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Monteiro M, Séneca J, Magalhães C. The history of aerobic ammonia oxidizers: from the first discoveries to today. J Microbiol 2014; 52:537-47. [PMID: 24972807 DOI: 10.1007/s12275-014-4114-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/21/2014] [Revised: 06/11/2014] [Accepted: 06/12/2014] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
Nitrification, the oxidation of ammonia to nitrite and nitrate, has long been considered a central biological process in the global nitrogen cycle, with its first description dated 133 years ago. Until 2005, bacteria were considered the only organisms capable of nitrification. However, the recent discovery of a chemoautotrophic ammonia-oxidizing archaeon, Nitrosopumilus maritimus, changed our concept of the range of organisms involved in nitrification, highlighting the importance of ammonia-oxidizing archaea (AOA) as potential players in global biogeochemical nitrogen transformations. The uniqueness of these archaea justified the creation of a novel archaeal phylum, Thaumarchaeota. These recent discoveries increased the global scientific interest within the microbial ecology society and have triggered an analysis of the importance of bacterial vs archaeal ammonia oxidation in a wide range of natural ecosystems. In this mini review we provide a chronological perspective of the current knowledge on the ammonia oxidation pathway of nitrification, based on the main physiological, ecological and genomic discoveries.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria Monteiro
- EcoBioTec Laboratory, Interdisciplinary Centre of Marine and Environmental Research (CIIMAR/CIMAR), University of Porto, Rua dos Bragas 289, P 4050-123, Porto, Portugal
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Planktonic Euryarchaeota are a significant source of archaeal tetraether lipids in the ocean. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2014; 111:9858-63. [PMID: 24946804 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1409439111] [Citation(s) in RCA: 115] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/25/2023] Open
Abstract
Archaea are ubiquitous in marine plankton, and fossil forms of archaeal tetraether membrane lipids in sedimentary rocks document their participation in marine biogeochemical cycles for >100 million years. Ribosomal RNA surveys have identified four major clades of planktonic archaea but, to date, tetraether lipids have been characterized in only one, the Marine Group I Thaumarchaeota. The membrane lipid composition of the other planktonic archaeal groups--all uncultured Euryarchaeota--is currently unknown. Using integrated nucleic acid and lipid analyses, we found that Marine Group II Euryarchaeota (MG-II) contributed significantly to the tetraether lipid pool in the North Pacific Subtropical Gyre at shallow to intermediate depths. Our data strongly suggested that MG-II also synthesize crenarchaeol, a tetraether lipid previously considered to be a unique biomarker for Thaumarchaeota. Metagenomic datasets spanning 5 y indicated that depth stratification of planktonic archaeal groups was a stable feature in the North Pacific Subtropical Gyre. The consistent prevalence of MG-II at depths where the bulk of exported organic matter originates, together with their ubiquitous distribution over diverse oceanic provinces, suggests that this clade is a significant source of tetraether lipids to marine sediments. Our results are relevant to archaeal lipid biomarker applications in the modern oceans and the interpretation of these compounds in the geologic record.
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Villanueva L, Schouten S, Sinninghe Damsté JS. Depth-related distribution of a key gene of the tetraether lipid biosynthetic pathway in marine Thaumarchaeota. Environ Microbiol 2014; 17:3527-39. [PMID: 24813867 DOI: 10.1111/1462-2920.12508] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/28/2013] [Accepted: 05/07/2014] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
The distribution of isoprenoid glycerol dialkyl glycerol tetraethers (GDGT) lipids synthesized by Thaumarchaeota has been shown to be temperature-dependent in world oceans. Depth-related differences in the ammonia monooxygenase (amoA) of Thaumarchaeota have led to the classification of 'shallow' and 'deep water' clusters, potentially affecting GDGT distributions. Here, we investigate if this classification is also reflected in a key gene of the thaumarchaeotal lipid biosynthetic pathway coding for geranylgeranylglyceryl phosphate (GGGP) synthase. We investigated metagenomic databases, suspended particulate matter and surface sediment of the Arabian Sea oxygen minimum zone. These revealed significant differences in amoA and GGGP synthase between 'shallow' and 'deep water' Thaumarchaeota. Intriguingly, amoA and GGGP synthase sequences of benthic Thaumarchaeota clustered with the 'shallow water' rather than with 'deep water' Thaumarchaeota. This suggests that pressure and temperature are unlikely factors that drive the differentiation, and suggests an important role of ammonia concentration that is higher in benthic and 'shallow water' niches. Analysis of the relative abundance of GDGTs in the Arabian Sea and in globally distributed surface sediments showed differences in GDGT distributions from subsurface to deep waters that may be explained by differences in the GGGP synthase, suggesting a genetic control on GDGT distributions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura Villanueva
- Department of Marine Organic Biogeochemistry, NIOZ Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research, P.O. Box 59, AB, Den Burg, NL-1790, The Netherlands
| | - Stefan Schouten
- Department of Marine Organic Biogeochemistry, NIOZ Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research, P.O. Box 59, AB, Den Burg, NL-1790, The Netherlands
| | - Jaap S Sinninghe Damsté
- Department of Marine Organic Biogeochemistry, NIOZ Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research, P.O. Box 59, AB, Den Burg, NL-1790, The Netherlands
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Lengger SK, Hopmans EC, Sinninghe Damsté JS, Schouten S. Fossilization and degradation of archaeal intact polar tetraether lipids in deeply buried marine sediments (Peru Margin). GEOBIOLOGY 2014; 12:212-220. [PMID: 24612345 DOI: 10.1111/gbi.12081] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/04/2013] [Accepted: 01/28/2014] [Indexed: 06/03/2023]
Abstract
Glycerol dibiphytanyl glycerol tetraether (GDGT) lipids are part of the cellular membranes of Thaumarchaeota, an archaeal phylum composed of aerobic ammonia oxidizers, and are used in the paleotemperature proxy TEX86 . GDGTs in live cells possess polar head groups and are called intact polar lipids (IPL-GDGTs). Their transformation to core lipids (CL) by cleavage of the head group was assumed to proceed rapidly after cell death, but it has been suggested that some of these IPL-GDGTs can, just like the CL-GDGTs, be preserved over geological timescales. Here, we examined IPL-GDGTs in deeply buried (0.2-186 mbsf, ~2.5 Myr) sediments from the Peru Margin. Direct measurements of the most abundant IPL-GDGT, IPL-crenarchaeol, specific for Thaumarchaeota, revealed depth profiles, which differed per head group. Shallow sediments (<1 mbsf) contained IPL-crenarchaeol with both glycosidic and phosphate head groups, as also observed in thaumarchaeal enrichment cultures, marine suspended particulate matter and marine surface sediments. However, hexose, phosphohexose-crenarchaeol is not detected anymore below 6 mbsf (~7 kyr), suggesting a high lability. In contrast, IPL-crenarchaeol with glycosidic head groups is preserved over timescales of Myr. This agrees with previous analyses of deeply buried (>1 m) marine sediments, which only reported glycosidic and no phosphate-containing IPL-GDGTs. TEX86 values of CL-GDGTs did not markedly change with depth, and the TEX86 of IPL-derived GDGTs decreased only when the proportions of monohexose- to dihexose-GDGTs changed, likely due to the enhanced preservation of the monohexose GDGTs. Our results support the hypothesis that in situ GDGT production and differential IPL degradation in sediments is not substantially affecting TEX86 paleotemperature estimations based on CL-GDGTs and indicates that likely only a small amount of IPL-GDGTs present in deeply buried sediments is part of cell membranes of active archaea. The amount of archaeal biomass in the deep biosphere based on these IPLs may have been substantially overestimated.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sabine K Lengger
- Department of Marine Organic Biogeochemistry, Royal NIOZ Netherlands Institute for Sea Research, Texel, The Netherlands
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Enrichment and genome sequence of the group I.1a ammonia-oxidizing Archaeon "Ca. Nitrosotenuis uzonensis" representing a clade globally distributed in thermal habitats. PLoS One 2013; 8:e80835. [PMID: 24278328 PMCID: PMC3835317 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0080835] [Citation(s) in RCA: 75] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/26/2013] [Accepted: 10/14/2013] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
The discovery of ammonia-oxidizing archaea (AOA) of the phylum Thaumarchaeota and the high abundance of archaeal ammonia monooxygenase subunit A encoding gene sequences in many environments have extended our perception of nitrifying microbial communities. Moreover, AOA are the only aerobic ammonia oxidizers known to be active in geothermal environments. Molecular data indicate that in many globally distributed terrestrial high-temperature habits a thaumarchaeotal lineage within the Nitrosopumilus cluster (also called “marine” group I.1a) thrives, but these microbes have neither been isolated from these systems nor functionally characterized in situ yet. In this study, we report on the enrichment and genomic characterization of a representative of this lineage from a thermal spring in Kamchatka. This thaumarchaeote, provisionally classified as “Candidatus Nitrosotenuis uzonensis”, is a moderately thermophilic, non-halophilic, chemolithoautotrophic ammonia oxidizer. The nearly complete genome sequence (assembled into a single scaffold) of this AOA confirmed the presence of the typical thaumarchaeotal pathways for ammonia oxidation and carbon fixation, and indicated its ability to produce coenzyme F420 and to chemotactically react to its environment. Interestingly, like members of the genus Nitrosoarchaeum, “Candidatus N. uzonensis” also possesses a putative artubulin-encoding gene. Genome comparisons to related AOA with available genome sequences confirmed that the newly cultured AOA has an average nucleotide identity far below the species threshold and revealed a substantial degree of genomic plasticity with unique genomic regions in “Ca. N. uzonensis”, which potentially include genetic determinants of ecological niche differentiation.
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Yang J, Jiang H, Dong H, Wang H, Wu G, Hou W, Liu W, Zhang C, Sun Y, Lai Z. amoA-encoding archaea and thaumarchaeol in the lakes on the northeastern Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau, China. Front Microbiol 2013; 4:329. [PMID: 24273535 PMCID: PMC3824093 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2013.00329] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/19/2013] [Accepted: 10/17/2013] [Indexed: 01/07/2023] Open
Abstract
All known ammonia-oxidizing archaea (AOA) belong to the phylum Thaumarchaeota within the domain Archaea. AOA possess the diagnostic amoA gene (encoding the alpha subunit of ammonia monooxygenase) and produce lipid biomarker thaumarchaeol. Although the abundance and diversity of amoA gene-encoding archaea (AEA) in freshwater lakes have been well-studied, little is known about AEA ecology in saline/hypersaline lakes. In this study, the distribution of the archaeal amoA gene and thaumarchaeol were investigated in nine Qinghai–Tibetan lakes with a salinity range from freshwater to salt-saturation (salinity: 325 g L-1). The results showed that the archaeal amoA gene was present in hypersaline lakes with salinity up to 160 g L-1. The archaeal amoA gene diversity in Tibetan lakes was different from those in other lakes worldwide, suggesting Tibetan lakes (high elevation, strong ultraviolet, and dry climate) may host a unique AEA population of different evolutionary origin from those in other lakes. Thaumarchaeol was present in all of the studied hypersaline lakes, even in those where no AEA amoA gene was observed. Future research is needed to determine the ecological function of AEA and possible sources of thaumarchaeol in the Qinghai–Tibetan hypersaline lakes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jian Yang
- State Key Laboratory of Biogeology and Environmental Geology, China University of Geosciences Wuhan, China ; Key Lab of Salt Lake Resources and Chemistry, Qinghai Institute of Salt Lakes, Chinese Academy of Sciences Xining, China
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Schubotz F, Meyer-Dombard DR, Bradley AS, Fredricks HF, Hinrichs KU, Shock EL, Summons RE. Spatial and temporal variability of biomarkers and microbial diversity reveal metabolic and community flexibility in Streamer Biofilm Communities in the Lower Geyser Basin, Yellowstone National Park. GEOBIOLOGY 2013; 11:549-569. [PMID: 23981055 DOI: 10.1111/gbi.12051] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/08/2012] [Accepted: 07/19/2013] [Indexed: 06/02/2023]
Abstract
Detailed analysis of 16S rRNA and intact polar lipids (IPLs) from streamer biofilm communities (SBCs), collected from geochemically similar hot springs in the Lower Geyser Basin, Yellowstone National Park, shows good agreement and affirm that IPLs can be used as reliable markers for the microbial constituents of SBCs. Uncultured Crenarchaea are prominent in SBS, and their IPLs contain both glycosidic and mixed glyco-phospho head groups with tetraether cores, having 0-4 rings. Archaeal IPL contributions increase with increasing temperature and comprise up to one-fourth of the total IPL inventory at >84 °C. At elevated temperatures, bacterial IPLs contain abundant glycosidic glycerol diether lipids. Diether and diacylglycerol (DAG) lipids with aminopentanetetrol and phosphatidylinositol head groups were identified as lipids diagnostic of Aquificales, while DAG glycolipids and glyco-phospholipids containing N-acetylgycosamine as head group were assigned to members of the Thermales. With decreasing temperature and concomitant changes in water chemistry, IPLs typical of phototrophic bacteria, such as mono-, diglycosyl, and sulfoquinovosyl DAG, which are specific for cyanobacteria, increase in abundance, consistent with genomic data from the same samples. Compound-specific stable carbon isotope analysis of IPL breakdown products reveals a large isotopic diversity among SBCs in different hot springs. At two of the hot springs, 'Bison Pool' and Flat Cone, lipids derived from Aquificales are enriched in (13) C relative to biomass and approach values close to dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) (approximately 0‰), consistent with fractionation during autotrophic carbon fixation via the reversed tricarboxylic acid pathway. At a third site, Octopus Spring, the same Aquificales-diagnostic lipids are 10‰ depleted relative to biomass and resemble stable carbon isotope values of dissolved organic carbon (DOC), indicative of heterotrophy. Other bacterial and archaeal lipids show a similar variance, with values resembling the DIC or DOC pool or a mixture thereof. This variance cannot be explained by hot spring chemistry or temperature alone, but instead, we argue that intermittent input of exogenous organic carbon can result in metabolic shifts of the chemotrophic communities from autotrophy to heterotrophy and vice versa.
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MESH Headings
- Archaea/classification
- Archaea/genetics
- Bacteria/classification
- Bacteria/genetics
- Biofilms
- Biota
- Cluster Analysis
- DNA, Archaeal/chemistry
- DNA, Archaeal/genetics
- DNA, Bacterial/chemistry
- DNA, Bacterial/genetics
- DNA, Ribosomal/chemistry
- DNA, Ribosomal/genetics
- Genes, rRNA
- Hot Springs/microbiology
- Lipids/analysis
- Molecular Sequence Data
- Phylogeny
- RNA, Archaeal/genetics
- RNA, Bacterial/genetics
- RNA, Ribosomal, 16S/genetics
- Sequence Analysis, DNA
- Sequence Homology, Nucleic Acid
- Temperature
- United States
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Affiliation(s)
- F Schubotz
- Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
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Shen T, Stieglmeier M, Dai J, Urich T, Schleper C. Responses of the terrestrial ammonia-oxidizing archaeon Ca. Nitrososphaera viennensis and the ammonia-oxidizing bacterium Nitrosospira multiformis to nitrification inhibitors. FEMS Microbiol Lett 2013; 344:121-9. [PMID: 23617238 DOI: 10.1111/1574-6968.12164] [Citation(s) in RCA: 94] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/04/2013] [Revised: 04/19/2013] [Accepted: 04/22/2013] [Indexed: 01/31/2023] Open
Abstract
Nitrification inhibitors have been used for decades to improve nitrogen fertilizer utilization in farmland. However, their effect on ammonia-oxidizing Archaea (AOA) in soil is little explored. Here, we compared the impact of diverse inhibitors on nitrification activity of the soil archaeon Ca. Nitrososphaera viennensis EN76 and compared it to that of the ammonia-oxidizing bacterium (AOB) Nitrosospira multiformis. Allylthiourea, amidinothiourea, and dicyandiamide (DCD) inhibited ammonia oxidation in cultures of both N. multiformis and N. viennensis, but the effect on N. viennensis was markedly lower. In particular, the effective concentration 50 (EC50) of allylthiourea was 1000 times higher for the AOA culture. Among the tested nitrification inhibitors, DCD was the least potent against N. viennensis. Nitrapyrin had at the maximal soluble concentration only a very weak inhibitory effect on the AOB N. multiformis, but showed a moderate effect on the AOA. The antibiotic sulfathiazole inhibited the bacterium, but barely affected the archaeon. Only the NO-scavenger carboxy-PTIO had a strong inhibitory effect on the archaeon, but had little effect on the bacterium in the concentrations tested. Our results reflect the fundamental metabolic and cellular differences of AOA and AOB and will be useful for future applications of inhibitors aimed at distinguishing activities of AOA and AOB in soil environments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tianlin Shen
- Institute of Ecology and Biodiversity, College of Life Science, Shandong University, Jinan, China
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Buckles LK, Villanueva L, Weijers JWH, Verschuren D, Damsté JSS. Linking isoprenoidal GDGT membrane lipid distributions with gene abundances of ammonia-oxidizing Thaumarchaeota and uncultured crenarchaeotal groups in the water column of a tropical lake (Lake Challa, East Africa). Environ Microbiol 2013; 15:2445-62. [PMID: 23560451 DOI: 10.1111/1462-2920.12118] [Citation(s) in RCA: 62] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/29/2012] [Accepted: 03/07/2013] [Indexed: 01/13/2023]
Abstract
Stratified lakes are important reservoirs of microbial diversity and provide habitats for niche differentiation of Archaea. In this study, we used a lipid biomarker/DNA-based approach to reveal the diversity and abundance of Archaea in the water column of Lake Challa (East Africa). Concentrations of intact polar lipid (IPL) crenarchaeol, a specific biomarker of Thaumarchaeota, were enhanced (1 ng l(-1) ) at the oxycline/nitrocline. The predominance of the more labile IPL hexose-phosphohexose crenarchaeol indicated the presence of an actively living community of Thaumarchaeota. Archaeal 16S rRNA clone libraries revealed the presence of thaumarchaeotal groups 1.1a and 1.1b at and above the oxycline. In the anoxic deep water, amoA gene abundance was an order of magnitude lower than at the oxycline and high abundance (∼90 ng l(-1) ) of an IPL with the acyclic glycerol dialkyl glycerol tetraether (GDGT-0) was evident. The predominance of archaeal 16S rRNA sequences affiliated to the uncultured crenarchaeota groups 1.2 and miscellaneous crenarchaeotic group (MCG) points to an origin of GDGT-0 from uncultured crenarchaeota. This study demonstrates the importance of thermal stratification and nutrient availability in the distribution of archaeal groups in lakes, which is relevant to constrain and validate temperature proxies based on archaeal GDGTs (i.e. TEX86 ).
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura K Buckles
- Department of Earth Sciences, Faculty of Geosciences, Utrecht University, PO Box 80.021, 3508 TA, Utrecht, the Netherlands
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Gaudin M, Gauliard E, Schouten S, Houel-Renault L, Lenormand P, Marguet E, Forterre P. Hyperthermophilic archaea produce membrane vesicles that can transfer DNA. ENVIRONMENTAL MICROBIOLOGY REPORTS 2013; 5:109-116. [PMID: 23757139 DOI: 10.1111/j.1758-2229.2012.00348.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 53] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/02/2023]
Abstract
Thermococcales are hyperthermophilic archaea found in deep-sea hydrothermal vents. They have been recently reported to produce membrane vesicles (MVs) into their culture medium. Here, we have characterized the mode of production and determined the biochemical composition of MVs from two species of Thermococcales, Thermococcus gammatolerans and Thermococcus kodakaraensis. We observed that MVs are produced by a budding process from the cell membrane reminiscent of ectosome (microparticle) formation in eukaryotes. MVs and cell membranes from the same species have a similar protein and lipid composition, confirming that MVs are produced from cell membranes. The major protein present in cell membranes and MVs of both species is the oligopeptide binding protein OppA. This protein is also abundant in MVs from cells grown in minimal medium, suggesting that OppA could be involved in processes other than peptides scavenging. We have previously shown that MVs from Thermococcales harbour DNA and protect DNA against thermodegradation. Here, we show that T. kodakaraensis cells transformed with the shuttle plasmid pLC70 release MVs harbouring this plasmid. Notably, these MVs can be used to transfer pLC70 into plasmid-free cells, suggesting that MVs could be involved in DNA transfer between cells at high temperature.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marie Gaudin
- Institut de Génétique et Microbiologie, Univ Paris-Sud, CNRS UMR8621, 91405 Orsay Cedex, France.
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Liu XL, Summons RE, Hinrichs KU. Extending the known range of glycerol ether lipids in the environment: structural assignments based on tandem mass spectral fragmentation patterns. RAPID COMMUNICATIONS IN MASS SPECTROMETRY : RCM 2012; 26:2295-2302. [PMID: 22956321 DOI: 10.1002/rcm.6355] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/01/2023]
Abstract
RATIONALE Glycerol-based alkyl ether lipids are ubiquitous components in marine sediments. In order to explore their structural diversity and biological sources, marine sediment samples from diverse environments were analyzed and the mass spectra of widely distributed, novel glycerol di- and tetraethers were examined systematically. METHODS Lipid extracts of twelve globally distributed marine subsurface sediments were analyzed by atmospheric pressure chemical ionization mass spectrometry (APCI-MS). Tandem mass (MS/MS) spectra of compounds were obtained with a quadrupole time-of-flight (qTOF) mass spectrometer. RESULTS In addition to the well-established isoprenoidal glycerol dialkyl glycerol tetraether (isoprenoidal GDGT) and branched GDGT, suites of novel lipids were detected in all studied samples. These lipids include the following classes of tentatively identified compounds: isoprenoidal glycerol dialkanol diether (isoprenoidal GDD), hydroxylated isoprenoidal GDGT (OH-GDGT), hybrid isoprenoidal/branched GDGT (IB-GDGT), hydroxylated isoprenoidal GDD (OH-GDD), overly branched GDGT (OB-GDGT), sparsely branched GDGT (SB-GDGT) and an abundant H-shaped GDGT with the [M+H](+) ion of m/z 1020 (H-1020). CONCLUSIONS Characteristic MS/MS fragmentation patterns provided mass spectral 'fingerprints' for the recognition of diverse and prominent glycerol ether lipids. The ubiquitous distribution and substantial abundance of these glycerol ethers, as well as their structural variability, suggest a significant ecological role of their source organisms in various marine environments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiao-Lei Liu
- Organic Geochemistry Group, MARUM Center for Marine Environmental Sciences and Department of Geosciences, University of Bremen, 28334 Bremen, Germany.
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Lin YS, Lipp JS, Elvert M, Holler T, Hinrichs KU. Assessing production of the ubiquitous archaeal diglycosyl tetraether lipids in marine subsurface sediment using intramolecular stable isotope probing. Environ Microbiol 2012; 15:1634-46. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1462-2920.2012.02888.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/11/2012] [Accepted: 08/30/2012] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Yu-Shih Lin
- Organic Geochemistry Group; Department of Geosciences and MARUM Center for Marine Environmental Sciences; University of Bremen; PO Box 330 440; D-28359; Bremen; Germany
| | - Julius S. Lipp
- Organic Geochemistry Group; Department of Geosciences and MARUM Center for Marine Environmental Sciences; University of Bremen; PO Box 330 440; D-28359; Bremen; Germany
| | - Marcus Elvert
- Organic Geochemistry Group; Department of Geosciences and MARUM Center for Marine Environmental Sciences; University of Bremen; PO Box 330 440; D-28359; Bremen; Germany
| | - Thomas Holler
- Max Planck Institute for Marine Microbiology; Bremen; Germany
| | - Kai-Uwe Hinrichs
- Organic Geochemistry Group; Department of Geosciences and MARUM Center for Marine Environmental Sciences; University of Bremen; PO Box 330 440; D-28359; Bremen; Germany
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50
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Knappy C, Barillà D, de Blaquiere J, Morgan H, Nunn C, Suleman M, Tan C, Keely B. Structural complexity in isoprenoid glycerol dialkyl glycerol tetraether lipid cores of Sulfolobus and other archaea revealed by liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry. Chem Phys Lipids 2012; 165:648-55. [DOI: 10.1016/j.chemphyslip.2012.06.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/23/2012] [Revised: 06/18/2012] [Accepted: 06/28/2012] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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