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Maltz MR, Carey CJ, Freund HL, Botthoff JK, Hart SC, Stajich JE, Aarons SM, Aciego SM, Blakowski M, Dove NC, Barnes ME, Pombubpa N, Aronson EL. Landscape Topography and Regional Drought Alters Dust Microbiomes in the Sierra Nevada of California. Front Microbiol 2022; 13:856454. [PMID: 35836417 PMCID: PMC9274194 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2022.856454] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/17/2022] [Accepted: 03/22/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Dust provides an ecologically significant input of nutrients, especially in slowly eroding ecosystems where chemical weathering intensity limits nutrient inputs from underlying bedrock. In addition to nutrient inputs, incoming dust is a vector for dispersing dust-associated microorganisms. While little is known about dust-microbial dispersal, dust deposits may have transformative effects on ecosystems far from where the dust was emitted. Using molecular analyses, we examined spatiotemporal variation in incoming dust microbiomes along an elevational gradient within the Sierra Nevada of California. We sampled throughout two dry seasons and found that dust microbiomes differed by elevation across two summer dry seasons (2014 and 2015), which corresponded to competing droughts in dust source areas. Dust microbial taxa richness decreased with elevation and was inversely proportional to dust heterogeneity. Likewise, dust phosphorus content increased with elevation. At lower elevations, early season dust microbiomes were more diverse than those found later in the year. The relative abundances of microbial groups shifted during the summer dry season. Furthermore, mutualistic fungal diversity increased with elevation, which may have corresponded with the biogeography of their plant hosts. Although dust fungal pathogen diversity was equivalent across elevations, elevation and sampling month interactions for the relative abundance, diversity, and richness of fungal pathogens suggest that these pathogens differed temporally across elevations, with potential implications for humans and wildlife. This study shows that landscape topography and droughts in source locations may alter the composition and diversity of ecologically relevant dust-associated microorganisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mia R. Maltz
- Division of Biomedical Sciences, University of California, Riverside, Riverside, CA, United States
- Department of Microbiology and Plant Pathology, University of California, Riverside, Riverside, CA, United States
- Center for Conservation Biology, University of California, Riverside, Riverside, CA, United States
- BREATHE Center, University of California, Riverside, Riverside, CA, United States
| | - Chelsea J. Carey
- Point Blue Conservation Sciences, Petaluma, CA, United States
- Genetics, Genomics, and Bioinformatics Program, University of California, Riverside, Riverside, CA, United States
| | - Hannah L. Freund
- Genetics, Genomics, and Bioinformatics Program, University of California, Riverside, Riverside, CA, United States
| | - Jon K. Botthoff
- Center for Conservation Biology, University of California, Riverside, Riverside, CA, United States
| | - Stephen C. Hart
- Sierra Nevada Research Institute, University of California, Merced, Merced, CA, United States
- Department of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of California, Merced, Merced, CA, United States
| | - Jason E. Stajich
- Department of Microbiology and Plant Pathology, University of California, Riverside, Riverside, CA, United States
- Genetics, Genomics, and Bioinformatics Program, University of California, Riverside, Riverside, CA, United States
| | - Sarah M. Aarons
- Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California, San Diego, San Diego, CA, United States
| | - Sarah M. Aciego
- Department of Geology and Geophysics, University of Wyoming, Laramie, WY, United States
- Noctilucent Aviation, Bridgeport, TX, United States
| | - Molly Blakowski
- Department of Watershed Science, Utah State University, Logan, UT, United States
| | - Nicholas C. Dove
- Sierra Nevada Research Institute, University of California, Merced, Merced, CA, United States
- Environmental Systems Graduate Group, University of California, Merced, Merced, CA, United States
- Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Biosciences Division, Oak Ridge, TN, United States
| | - Morgan E. Barnes
- Sierra Nevada Research Institute, University of California, Merced, Merced, CA, United States
- Environmental Systems Graduate Group, University of California, Merced, Merced, CA, United States
- Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Biological Sciences, Richland, WA, United States
| | - Nuttapon Pombubpa
- Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Science, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand
| | - Emma L. Aronson
- Department of Microbiology and Plant Pathology, University of California, Riverside, Riverside, CA, United States
- Center for Conservation Biology, University of California, Riverside, Riverside, CA, United States
- BREATHE Center, University of California, Riverside, Riverside, CA, United States
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Zakeri Z, Junne S, Jäger F, Dostert M, Otte V, Neubauer P. Lichen cell factories: methods for the isolation of photobiont and mycobiont partners for defined pure and co-cultivation. Microb Cell Fact 2022; 21:80. [PMID: 35534897 PMCID: PMC9082883 DOI: 10.1186/s12934-022-01804-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/21/2021] [Accepted: 04/27/2022] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Due to their huge biodiversity and the capability to produce a wide range of secondary metabolites, lichens have a great potential in biotechnological applications. They have, however, hardly been used as cell factories to date, as it is considered to be difficult and laborious to cultivate lichen partners in pure or co-culture in the laboratory. The various methods used to isolate lichen fungi, based on either the ascospores, the conidia, or the thallus, have so far not been compared or critically examined. Therefore, here we systematically investigate and compare the known methods and two new methods to identify the most suitable technology for isolation of fungi from lichens. Results Within this study six lichen fungi species were isolated and propagated as pure cultures. All of them formed colonies within one month. In case of lichens with ascocarps the spore discharge was the most suitable method. Spores were already discharged within 2 days and germinated within only four days and the contamination rate was low. Otherwise, the soredia and thallus method without homogenization, as described in this work, are also well suited to obtain pure fungal cultures. For the isolation of algae, we were also successful with the thallus method without homogenization. Conclusion With the methods described here and the proposed strategic approach, we believe that a large proportion of the lichen fungi can be cultivated within a reasonable time and effort. Based on this, methods of controlled cultivation and co-cultivation must now be developed in order to use the potential of lichens with regard to their secondary metabolites, but also for other applications. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12934-022-01804-6.
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Tuovinen V, Millanes AM, Freire-Rallo S, Rosling A, Wedin M. Tremella macrobasidiata and Tremella variae have abundant and widespread yeast stages in Lecanora lichens. Environ Microbiol 2021; 23:2484-2498. [PMID: 33684261 DOI: 10.1111/1462-2920.15455] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/29/2021] [Revised: 03/03/2021] [Accepted: 03/03/2021] [Indexed: 01/22/2023]
Abstract
Dimorphism is a widespread feature of tremellalean fungi in general, but a little-studied aspect of the biology of lichen-associated Tremella. We show that Tremella macrobasidiata and Tremella variae have an abundant and widespread yeast stage in their life cycles that occurs in Lecanora lichens. Their sexual filamentous stage is restricted to a specific lichen: T. macrobasidiata only forms basidiomata on Lecanora chlarotera hymenia and T. variae only on Lecanora varia thalli. However, the yeast stage of T. macrobasidiata is less specific and can occur in L. varia lichens, whilst all life stages of T. variae may be specific to L. varia. Contrary to the hyphal stages, the yeasts are distributed across the thalli and hymenia of Lecanora lichens, and not limited to specimens with basidiomata. Tremella macrobasidiata was present in all studied L. chlarotera, and in 59% of L. varia specimens. Only in 8% of the L. varia thalli could none of the two Tremella species be detected. Our results indicate that lichen-associated Tremella may be much more abundant and widespread than previously assumed leading to skewed estimations about their distribution ranges and lichen specificity, and raise new questions about their biology, ecology and function in the symbiosis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Veera Tuovinen
- Department of Ecology and Genetics, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Norbyvägen 18D, 752 36, Sweden.,Department of Botany, Swedish Museum of Natural History, Stockholm, P.O. Box 50007, SE-104 05, Sweden
| | - Ana Maria Millanes
- Departamento de Biología y Geología, Física y Química Inorgánica, Universidad Rey Juan Carlos, Móstoles, E-28933, Spain
| | - Sandra Freire-Rallo
- Departamento de Biología y Geología, Física y Química Inorgánica, Universidad Rey Juan Carlos, Móstoles, E-28933, Spain
| | - Anna Rosling
- Department of Ecology and Genetics, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Norbyvägen 18D, 752 36, Sweden
| | - Mats Wedin
- Department of Botany, Swedish Museum of Natural History, Stockholm, P.O. Box 50007, SE-104 05, Sweden
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