Microbial genome data resources

Genomics-Guided Efficient Identification of 2,5-Diketopiperazine Derivatives from Actinobacteria

Secondary metabolites derived from microorganism constitute an important part of natural products. Mining of the microbial genomes revealed a large number of uncharacterized biosynthetic gene clusters, indicating their greater potential to synthetize specialized or secondary metabolites (SMs) than identified by classic fermentation and isolation approaches. Various bioinformatics tools have been developed to analyze and identify such gene clusters, thus accelerating significantly the mining process. Heterologous expression of an individual biosynthetic gene cluster has been proven as an efficient way to activate the genes and identify the encoded metabolites that cannot be detected under normal laboratory cultivation conditions. Herein, we describe a concept of genomics-guided approach by performing genome mining and heterologous expression to uncover novel CDPS-derived DKPs and functionally characterize novel tailoring enzymes embedded in the biosynthetic pathways. Recent works focused on the identification of the nucleobase-related and dimeric DKPs are also presented.

Lactobacillus plantarum LP‑Onlly alters the gut flora and attenuates colitis by inducing microbiome alteration in interleukin‑10 knockout mice

The association between inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and gut microbes has been widely investigated. Our previous study demonstrated that Lactobacillus plantarum LP‑Onlly (LP) applied as a probiotic altered the gut flora and attenuated colitis in interleukin (IL)‑10 knockout (IL‑10‑/‑) mice. In the present study, metagenome sequencing was performed to investigate the gut microbiome in IL‑10‑/‑mice and the influence of oral administration of LP on microbial composition. Metagenomics sequencing was performed to investigate the influence of IBD on the gut microbiome with and without LP treatment. The alteration of the abundances of various taxonomic and functional groups were investigated across these gut microbiomes. The present study demonstrates that Akkermansia muciniphila was significantly enriched in IL‑10‑/‑ mice, and bacteroides were significantly increased following LP administration. In addition, the phylum Bacteroidetes and Firmicutes were significantly influenced by LP administration. Further characterization of functional capacity revealed that in the gut metagenomes of IL‑10‑/‑mice, genes encoding cell cycle control, replication, recombination, repair and cell envelope biogenesis were decreased, but intracellular trafficking, secretion, and vesicular transport were increased. The present findings indicate that the gut metagenome is associated with IBD, and oral administration of LP contributes to prevention of gut inflammation, providing insight into the treatment of IBD.

INDIGO - INtegrated data warehouse of microbial genomes with examples from the red sea extremophiles

BACKGROUND

The next generation sequencing technologies substantially increased the throughput of microbial genome sequencing. To functionally annotate newly sequenced microbial genomes, a variety of experimental and computational methods are used. Integration of information from different sources is a powerful approach to enhance such annotation. Functional analysis of microbial genomes, necessary for downstream experiments, crucially depends on this annotation but it is hampered by the current lack of suitable information integration and exploration systems for microbial genomes.

RESULTS

We developed a data warehouse system (INDIGO) that enables the integration of annotations for exploration and analysis of newly sequenced microbial genomes. INDIGO offers an opportunity to construct complex queries and combine annotations from multiple sources starting from genomic sequence to protein domain, gene ontology and pathway levels. This data warehouse is aimed at being populated with information from genomes of pure cultures and uncultured single cells of Red Sea bacteria and Archaea. Currently, INDIGO contains information from Salinisphaera shabanensis, Haloplasma contractile, and Halorhabdus tiamatea - extremophiles isolated from deep-sea anoxic brine lakes of the Red Sea. We provide examples of utilizing the system to gain new insights into specific aspects on the unique lifestyle and adaptations of these organisms to extreme environments.

CONCLUSIONS

We developed a data warehouse system, INDIGO, which enables comprehensive integration of information from various resources to be used for annotation, exploration and analysis of microbial genomes. It will be regularly updated and extended with new genomes. It is aimed to serve as a resource dedicated to the Red Sea microbes. In addition, through INDIGO, we provide our Automatic Annotation of Microbial Genomes (AAMG) pipeline. The INDIGO web server is freely available at http://www.cbrc.kaust.edu.sa/indigo.

Genomics and metagenomics in medical microbiology

Over the last two decades, sequencing tools have evolved from laborious time-consuming methodologies to real-time detection and deciphering of genomic DNA. Genome sequencing, especially using next generation sequencing (NGS) has revolutionized the landscape of microbiology and infectious disease. This deluge of sequencing data has not only enabled advances in fundamental biology but also helped improve diagnosis, typing of pathogen, virulence and antibiotic resistance detection, and development of new vaccines and culture media. In addition, NGS also enabled efficient analysis of complex human micro-floras, both commensal, and pathological, through metagenomic methods, thus helping the comprehension and management of human diseases such as obesity. This review summarizes technological advances in genomics and metagenomics relevant to the field of medical microbiology.

Laboratory procedures to generate viral metagenomes

This collection of laboratory protocols describes the steps to collect viruses from various samples with the specific aim of generating viral metagenome sequence libraries (viromes). Viral metagenomics, the study of uncultured viral nucleic acid sequences from different biomes, relies on several concentration, purification, extraction, sequencing and heuristic bioinformatic methods. No single technique can provide an all-inclusive approach, and therefore the protocols presented here will be discussed in terms of hypothetical projects. However, care must be taken to individualize each step depending on the source and type of viral-particles. This protocol is a description of the processes we have successfully used to: (i) concentrate viral particles from various types of samples, (ii) eliminate contaminating cells and free nucleic acids and (iii) extract, amplify and purify viral nucleic acids. Overall, a sample can be processed to isolate viral nucleic acids suitable for high-throughput sequencing in approximately 1 week.

A bioinformatician's guide to metagenomics

As random shotgun metagenomic projects proliferate and become the dominant source of publicly available sequence data, procedures for the best practices in their execution and analysis become increasingly important. Based on our experience at the Joint Genome Institute, we describe the chain of decisions accompanying a metagenomic project from the viewpoint of the bioinformatic analysis step by step. We guide the reader through a standard workflow for a metagenomic project beginning with presequencing considerations such as community composition and sequence data type that will greatly influence downstream analyses. We proceed with recommendations for sampling and data generation including sample and metadata collection, community profiling, construction of shotgun libraries, and sequencing strategies. We then discuss the application of generic sequence processing steps (read preprocessing, assembly, and gene prediction and annotation) to metagenomic data sets in contrast to genome projects. Different types of data analyses particular to metagenomes are then presented, including binning, dominant population analysis, and gene-centric analysis. Finally, data management issues are presented and discussed. We hope that this review will assist bioinformaticians and biologists in making better-informed decisions on their journey during a metagenomic project.

Proceedings of the international workshop on Ribosomal RNA technology, April 7-9, 2008, Bremen, Germany

Thirty years have passed since Carl Woese proposed three primary domains of life based on the phylogenetic analysis of ribosomal RNA (rRNA) genes. Adopted by researchers worldwide, rRNA has become the "gold-standard" for molecular taxonomy, biodiversity analysis and the identification of microorganisms. The more than 700,000 rRNA sequences in public databases constitute an unprecedented hallmark of the richness of microbial biodiversity on earth. The International Workshop on Ribosomal RNA Technology convened on April 7-9, 2008 in Bremen, Germany (http://www.arb-silva.de/rrna-workshop) to summarize the current status of the field and strategize on the best ways of proceeding on both biological and technological fronts. In five sessions, 26 leading international speakers and approximately 120 participants representing diverse disciplines discussed new technological approaches to address three basic ecological questions: "Who is out there?" "How many are there?" and "What are they doing?".

A technological update of molecular diagnostics for infectious diseases

Identification of a causative pathogen is essential for the choice of treatment for most infectious diseases. Many FDA approved molecular assays; usually more sensitive and specific compared to traditional tests, have been developed in the last decade. A new trend of high throughput and multiplexing assays are emerging thanks to technological developments for the human genome sequencing project. The applications of microarray and ultra high throughput sequencing technologies for diagnostic microbiology are reviewed. The race for the $1000 genome technology by 2014 will have a profound impact in diagnosis and treatment of infectious diseases in the near future.