Polygold-FISH for signal amplification of metallo-labeled microbial cells

Real-Time Monitoring of Dynamic Microbial Fe(III) Respiration Metabolism with a Living Cell-Compatible Electron-Sensing Probe

Monitoring microbial metabolism is vital for biomanufacturing processes optimization. However, it remains a grand challenge to offer insight into microbial metabolism due to particularly complex and dynamic processes. Here, we report an electron-sensing probe Zn₂ GeO₄ :Mn@Fe³⁺ for real-time and dynamic monitoring of Fe(III) respiration metabolism. The quenched persistent luminescence of Zn₂ GeO4:Mn@Fe³⁺ is recovered when Fe³⁺ accepted electrons from the dynamic Fe(III) respiration metabolism, enabling the real-time monitoring of microbial metabolism. The probe shows the capability to verify the role of related biomolecules in microbial Fe(III) respiration metabolism, to track the dynamic Fe(III) respiration metabolic response to environmental stress and microbial co-culture interactions. Furthermore, the Zn₂ GeO₄ :Mn@Fe³⁺ probe provides guidance for improving biosynthesis efficiency by monitoring Fe redox recycling in microbial co-culture.

An intracellular silver deposition method for targeted detection and chemical analysis of uncultured microorganisms

The vast majority of environmental bacteria remain uncultured, despite two centuries of effort in cultivating microorganisms. Our knowledge of their physiology and metabolic activity depends to a large extent on methods capable of analyzing single cells. Bacterial identification is a key step required by all currently used single-cell imaging techniques and is typically performed by means of fluorescent labeling. However, fluorescent cells cannot be visualized by ion- and electron microscopy and thus only correlative, indirect, cell identification is possible. Here we present a new method of bacterial identification by in situ hybridization coupled to the deposition of elemental silver nanoparticles (silver-DISH). We show that hybridized cells containing silver can be directly visualized by light microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, secondary ion mass spectrometry (nanoSIMS), and confocal Raman micro-spectroscopy. Silver-DISH did not alter the isotopic (¹³C) and elemental composition of stable-isotope probed cells more than other available hybridization methods, making silver-DISH suitable for broad applications in stable-isotope labeling studies. Additionally, we demonstrate that silver-DISH can induce a surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) effect, amplifying the Raman signal of biomolecules inside bacterial cells. This makes silver-DISH the only currently available method that is capable of delivering a SERS-active substrate inside specifically targeted microbial cells.

Organoheterotrophic Bacterial Abundance Associates with Zinc Removal in Lignocellulose-Based Sulfate-Reducing Systems

Syntrophic relationships between fermentative and sulfate-reducing bacteria are essential to lignocellulose-based systems applied to the passive remediation of mining-influenced waters. In this study, seven pilot-scale sulfate-reducing bioreactor columns containing varying ratios of alfalfa hay, pine woodchips, and sawdust were analyzed over ∼500 days to investigate the influence of substrate composition on zinc removal and microbial community structure. Columns amended with >10% alfalfa removed significantly more sulfate and zinc than did wood-based columns. Enumeration of sulfate reducers by functional signatures (dsrA) and their putative identification from 16S rRNA genes did not reveal significant correlations with zinc removal, suggesting limitations in this directed approach. In contrast, a strong indicator of zinc removal was discerned in comparing the relative abundance of core microorganisms shared by all reactors (>80% of total community), many of which had little direct involvement in metal or sulfate respiration. The relative abundance of Desulfosporosinus, the dominant putative sulfate reducer within these reactors, correlated to representatives of this core microbiome. A subset of these clades, including Treponema, Weissella, and Anaerolinea, was associated with alfalfa and zinc removal, and the inverse was found for a second subset whose abundance was associated with wood-based columns, including Ruminococcus, Dysgonomonas, and Azospira. The construction of a putative metabolic flowchart delineated syntrophic interactions supporting sulfate reduction and suggests that the production of and competition for secondary fermentation byproducts, such as lactate scavenging, influence bacterial community composition and reactor efficacy.