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Michoud G, Kohler TJ, Ezzat L, Peter H, Nattabi JK, Nalwanga R, Pramateftaki P, Styllas M, Tolosano M, De Staercke V, Schön M, Marasco R, Daffonchio D, Bourquin M, Busi SB, Battin TJ. The dark side of the moon: first insights into the microbiome structure and function of one of the last glacier-fed streams in Africa. R Soc Open Sci 2023; 10:230329. [PMID: 37564072 PMCID: PMC10410210 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.230329] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/16/2023] [Accepted: 06/20/2023] [Indexed: 08/12/2023]
Abstract
The glaciers on Africa's 'Mountains of the Moon' (Rwenzori National Park, Uganda) are predicted to disappear within the next decades owing to climate change. Consequently, the glacier-fed streams (GFSs) that drain them will vanish, along with their resident microbial communities. Despite the relevance of microbial communities for performing ecosystem processes in equatorial GFSs, their ecology remains understudied. Here, we show that the benthic microbiome from the Mt. Stanley GFS is distinct at several levels from other GFSs. Specifically, several novel taxa were present, and usually common groups such as Chrysophytes and Polaromonas exhibited lower relative abundances compared to higher-latitude GFSs, while cyanobacteria and diatoms were more abundant. The rich primary producer community in this GFS likely results from the greater environmental stability of the Afrotropics, and accordingly, heterotrophic processes dominated in the bacterial community. Metagenomics revealed that almost all prokaryotes in the Mt. Stanley GFS are capable of organic carbon oxidation, while greater than 80% have the potential for fermentation and acetate oxidation. Our findings suggest a close coupling between photoautotrophs and other microbes in this GFS, and provide a glimpse into the future for high-latitude GFSs globally where primary production is projected to increase with ongoing glacier shrinkage.
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Affiliation(s)
- Grégoire Michoud
- River Ecosystems Laboratory, Alpine and Polar Environmental Research Center, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Tyler J. Kohler
- River Ecosystems Laboratory, Alpine and Polar Environmental Research Center, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Leïla Ezzat
- River Ecosystems Laboratory, Alpine and Polar Environmental Research Center, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Hannes Peter
- River Ecosystems Laboratory, Alpine and Polar Environmental Research Center, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Juliet Kigongo Nattabi
- Department of Zoology, Entomology and Fisheries Sciences (ZEFs), College of Natural Sciences, Makerere University, Kampala, Uganda
| | - Rosemary Nalwanga
- Department of Zoology, Entomology and Fisheries Sciences (ZEFs), College of Natural Sciences, Makerere University, Kampala, Uganda
| | - Paraskevi Pramateftaki
- River Ecosystems Laboratory, Alpine and Polar Environmental Research Center, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Michail Styllas
- River Ecosystems Laboratory, Alpine and Polar Environmental Research Center, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Matteo Tolosano
- River Ecosystems Laboratory, Alpine and Polar Environmental Research Center, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Vincent De Staercke
- River Ecosystems Laboratory, Alpine and Polar Environmental Research Center, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Martina Schön
- River Ecosystems Laboratory, Alpine and Polar Environmental Research Center, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Ramona Marasco
- Biological and Environmental Sciences and Engineering Division (BESE), King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Thuwal, Saudi Arabia
| | - Daniele Daffonchio
- Biological and Environmental Sciences and Engineering Division (BESE), King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Thuwal, Saudi Arabia
| | - Massimo Bourquin
- River Ecosystems Laboratory, Alpine and Polar Environmental Research Center, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Susheel Bhanu Busi
- Systems Ecology Group, Luxembourg Centre for Systems Biomedicine, University of Luxembourg, Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
| | - Tom J. Battin
- River Ecosystems Laboratory, Alpine and Polar Environmental Research Center, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland
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Busi SB, de Nies L, Pramateftaki P, Bourquin M, Kohler TJ, Ezzat L, Fodelianakis S, Michoud G, Peter H, Styllas M, Tolosano M, De Staercke V, Schön M, Galata V, Wilmes P, Battin T. Glacier-Fed Stream Biofilms Harbor Diverse Resistomes and Biosynthetic Gene Clusters. Microbiol Spectr 2023; 11:e0406922. [PMID: 36688698 PMCID: PMC9927545 DOI: 10.1128/spectrum.04069-22] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/08/2022] [Accepted: 12/22/2022] [Indexed: 01/24/2023] Open
Abstract
Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a universal phenomenon the origins of which lay in natural ecological interactions such as competition within niches, within and between micro- to higher-order organisms. To study these phenomena, it is crucial to examine the origins of AMR in pristine environments, i.e., limited anthropogenic influences. In this context, epilithic biofilms residing in glacier-fed streams (GFSs) are an excellent model system to study diverse, intra- and inter-domain, ecological crosstalk. We assessed the resistomes of epilithic biofilms from GFSs across the Southern Alps (New Zealand) and the Caucasus (Russia) and observed that both bacteria and eukaryotes encoded twenty-nine distinct AMR categories. Of these, beta-lactam, aminoglycoside, and multidrug resistance were both abundant and taxonomically distributed in most of the bacterial and eukaryotic phyla. AMR-encoding phyla included Bacteroidota and Proteobacteria among the bacteria, alongside Ochrophyta (algae) among the eukaryotes. Additionally, biosynthetic gene clusters (BGCs) involved in the production of antibacterial compounds were identified across all phyla in the epilithic biofilms. Furthermore, we found that several bacterial genera (Flavobacterium, Polaromonas, Superphylum Patescibacteria) encode both atimicrobial resistance genes (ARGs) and BGCs within close proximity of each other, demonstrating their capacity to simultaneously influence and compete within the microbial community. Our findings help unravel how naturally occurring BGCs and AMR contribute to the epilithic biofilms mode of life in GFSs. Additionally, we report that eukaryotes may serve as AMR reservoirs owing to their potential for encoding ARGs. Importantly, these observations may be generalizable and potentially extended to other environments that may be more or less impacted by human activity. IMPORTANCE Antimicrobial resistance is an omnipresent phenomenon in the anthropogenically influenced ecosystems. However, its role in shaping microbial community dynamics in pristine environments is relatively unknown. Using metagenomics, we report the presence of antimicrobial resistance genes and their associated pathways in epilithic biofilms within glacier-fed streams. Importantly, we observe biosynthetic gene clusters associated with antimicrobial resistance in both pro- and eukaryotes in these biofilms. Understanding the role of resistance in the context of this pristine environment and complex biodiversity may shed light on previously uncharacterized mechanisms of cross-domain interactions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Susheel Bhanu Busi
- Systems Ecology Group, Luxembourg Centre for Systems Biomedicine, University of Luxembourg, Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
| | - Laura de Nies
- Systems Ecology Group, Luxembourg Centre for Systems Biomedicine, University of Luxembourg, Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
| | - Paraskevi Pramateftaki
- River Ecosystems Laboratory, Alpine and Polar Environmental Research Center, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Massimo Bourquin
- River Ecosystems Laboratory, Alpine and Polar Environmental Research Center, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Tyler J. Kohler
- River Ecosystems Laboratory, Alpine and Polar Environmental Research Center, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Leïla Ezzat
- River Ecosystems Laboratory, Alpine and Polar Environmental Research Center, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Stilianos Fodelianakis
- River Ecosystems Laboratory, Alpine and Polar Environmental Research Center, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Grégoire Michoud
- River Ecosystems Laboratory, Alpine and Polar Environmental Research Center, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Hannes Peter
- River Ecosystems Laboratory, Alpine and Polar Environmental Research Center, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Michail Styllas
- River Ecosystems Laboratory, Alpine and Polar Environmental Research Center, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Matteo Tolosano
- River Ecosystems Laboratory, Alpine and Polar Environmental Research Center, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Vincent De Staercke
- River Ecosystems Laboratory, Alpine and Polar Environmental Research Center, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Martina Schön
- River Ecosystems Laboratory, Alpine and Polar Environmental Research Center, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Valentina Galata
- Systems Ecology Group, Luxembourg Centre for Systems Biomedicine, University of Luxembourg, Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
| | - Paul Wilmes
- Systems Ecology Group, Luxembourg Centre for Systems Biomedicine, University of Luxembourg, Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
| | - Tom Battin
- River Ecosystems Laboratory, Alpine and Polar Environmental Research Center, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
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Busi SB, Bourquin M, Fodelianakis S, Michoud G, Kohler TJ, Peter H, Pramateftaki P, Styllas M, Tolosano M, De Staercke V, Schön M, de Nies L, Marasco R, Daffonchio D, Ezzat L, Wilmes P, Battin TJ. Genomic and metabolic adaptations of biofilms to ecological windows of opportunity in glacier-fed streams. Nat Commun 2022; 13:2168. [PMID: 35444202 PMCID: PMC9021309 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-29914-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/08/2021] [Accepted: 04/07/2022] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
In glacier-fed streams, ecological windows of opportunity allow complex microbial biofilms to develop and transiently form the basis of the food web, thereby controlling key ecosystem processes. Using metagenome-assembled genomes, we unravel strategies that allow biofilms to seize this opportunity in an ecosystem otherwise characterized by harsh environmental conditions. We observe a diverse microbiome spanning the entire tree of life including a rich virome. Various co-existing energy acquisition pathways point to diverse niches and the exploitation of available resources, likely fostering the establishment of complex biofilms during windows of opportunity. The wide occurrence of rhodopsins, besides chlorophyll, highlights the role of solar energy capture in these biofilms while internal carbon and nutrient cycling between photoautotrophs and heterotrophs may help overcome constraints imposed by oligotrophy in these habitats. Mechanisms potentially protecting bacteria against low temperatures and high UV-radiation are also revealed and the selective pressure of this environment is further highlighted by a phylogenomic analysis differentiating important components of the glacier-fed stream microbiome from other ecosystems. Our findings reveal key genomic underpinnings of adaptive traits contributing to the success of complex biofilms to exploit environmental opportunities in glacier-fed streams, which are now rapidly changing owing to global warming.
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Affiliation(s)
- Susheel Bhanu Busi
- Systems Ecology Group, Luxembourg Centre for Systems Biomedicine, University of Luxembourg, Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
| | - Massimo Bourquin
- River Ecosystems Laboratory, Center for Alpine and Polar Environmental Research (ALPOLE), Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Stilianos Fodelianakis
- River Ecosystems Laboratory, Center for Alpine and Polar Environmental Research (ALPOLE), Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Grégoire Michoud
- River Ecosystems Laboratory, Center for Alpine and Polar Environmental Research (ALPOLE), Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Tyler J Kohler
- River Ecosystems Laboratory, Center for Alpine and Polar Environmental Research (ALPOLE), Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Hannes Peter
- River Ecosystems Laboratory, Center for Alpine and Polar Environmental Research (ALPOLE), Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Paraskevi Pramateftaki
- River Ecosystems Laboratory, Center for Alpine and Polar Environmental Research (ALPOLE), Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Michail Styllas
- River Ecosystems Laboratory, Center for Alpine and Polar Environmental Research (ALPOLE), Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Matteo Tolosano
- River Ecosystems Laboratory, Center for Alpine and Polar Environmental Research (ALPOLE), Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Vincent De Staercke
- River Ecosystems Laboratory, Center for Alpine and Polar Environmental Research (ALPOLE), Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Martina Schön
- River Ecosystems Laboratory, Center for Alpine and Polar Environmental Research (ALPOLE), Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Laura de Nies
- Systems Ecology Group, Luxembourg Centre for Systems Biomedicine, University of Luxembourg, Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
| | - Ramona Marasco
- Biological and Environmental Sciences and Engineering Division (BESE), King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Thuwal, Saudi Arabia
| | - Daniele Daffonchio
- Biological and Environmental Sciences and Engineering Division (BESE), King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Thuwal, Saudi Arabia
| | - Leïla Ezzat
- River Ecosystems Laboratory, Center for Alpine and Polar Environmental Research (ALPOLE), Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Paul Wilmes
- Systems Ecology Group, Luxembourg Centre for Systems Biomedicine, University of Luxembourg, Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg. .,Department of Life Sciences and Medicine, Faculty of Science, Technology and Medicine, University of Luxembourg, Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg.
| | - Tom J Battin
- River Ecosystems Laboratory, Center for Alpine and Polar Environmental Research (ALPOLE), Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland.
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Fodelianakis S, Washburne AD, Bourquin M, Pramateftaki P, Kohler TJ, Styllas M, Tolosano M, De Staercke V, Schön M, Busi SB, Brandani J, Wilmes P, Peter H, Battin TJ. Microdiversity characterizes prevalent phylogenetic clades in the glacier-fed stream microbiome. ISME J 2021; 16:666-675. [PMID: 34522009 PMCID: PMC8857233 DOI: 10.1038/s41396-021-01106-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/21/2020] [Revised: 08/14/2021] [Accepted: 09/02/2021] [Indexed: 02/01/2023]
Abstract
Glacier-fed streams (GFSs) are extreme and rapidly vanishing ecosystems, and yet they harbor diverse microbial communities. Although our understanding of the GFS microbiome has recently increased, we do not know which microbial clades are ecologically successful in these ecosystems, nor do we understand potentially underlying mechanisms. Ecologically successful clades should be more prevalent across GFSs compared to other clades, which should be reflected as clade-wise distinctly low phylogenetic turnover. However, methods to assess such patterns are currently missing. Here we developed and applied a novel analytical framework, “phyloscore analysis”, to identify clades with lower spatial phylogenetic turnover than other clades in the sediment microbiome across twenty GFSs in New Zealand. These clades constituted up to 44% and 64% of community α-diversity and abundance, respectively. Furthermore, both their α-diversity and abundance increased as sediment chlorophyll a decreased, corroborating their ecological success in GFS habitats largely devoid of primary production. These clades also contained elevated levels of putative microdiversity than others, which could potentially explain their high prevalence in GFSs. This hitherto unknown microdiversity may be threatened as glaciers shrink, urging towards further genomic and functional exploration of the GFS microbiome.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stilianos Fodelianakis
- Stream Biofilm & Ecosystem Research Lab, ENAC Division, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, EPFL, Lausanne, Switzerland.
| | | | - Massimo Bourquin
- Stream Biofilm & Ecosystem Research Lab, ENAC Division, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, EPFL, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Paraskevi Pramateftaki
- Stream Biofilm & Ecosystem Research Lab, ENAC Division, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, EPFL, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Tyler J Kohler
- Stream Biofilm & Ecosystem Research Lab, ENAC Division, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, EPFL, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Michail Styllas
- Stream Biofilm & Ecosystem Research Lab, ENAC Division, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, EPFL, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Matteo Tolosano
- Stream Biofilm & Ecosystem Research Lab, ENAC Division, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, EPFL, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Vincent De Staercke
- Stream Biofilm & Ecosystem Research Lab, ENAC Division, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, EPFL, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Martina Schön
- Stream Biofilm & Ecosystem Research Lab, ENAC Division, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, EPFL, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Susheel Bhanu Busi
- Systems Ecology Research Group, Luxembourg Centre for Systems Biomedicine, University of Luxembourg, Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
| | - Jade Brandani
- Stream Biofilm & Ecosystem Research Lab, ENAC Division, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, EPFL, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Paul Wilmes
- Systems Ecology Research Group, Luxembourg Centre for Systems Biomedicine, University of Luxembourg, Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
| | - Hannes Peter
- Stream Biofilm & Ecosystem Research Lab, ENAC Division, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, EPFL, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Tom J Battin
- Stream Biofilm & Ecosystem Research Lab, ENAC Division, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, EPFL, Lausanne, Switzerland.
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