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Yin H, Rudolf VHW. Time is of the essence: A general framework for uncovering temporal structures of communities. Ecol Lett 2024; 27:e14481. [PMID: 39022847 DOI: 10.1111/ele.14481] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/05/2024] [Revised: 04/30/2024] [Accepted: 06/21/2024] [Indexed: 07/20/2024]
Abstract
Ecological communities are inherently dynamic: species constantly turn over within years, months, weeks or even days. These temporal shifts in community composition determine essential aspects of species interactions and how energy, nutrients, information, diseases and perturbations 'flow' through systems. Yet, our understanding of community structure has relied heavily on static analyses not designed to capture critical features of this dynamic temporal dimension of communities. Here, we propose a conceptual and methodological framework for quantifying and analysing this temporal dimension. Conceptually, we split the temporal structure into two definitive features, sequence and duration, and review how they are linked to key concepts in ecology. We then outline how we can capture these definitive features using perspectives and tools from temporal graph theory. We demonstrate how we can easily integrate ongoing research on phenology into this framework and highlight what new opportunities arise from this approach to answer fundamental questions in community ecology. As climate change reshuffles ecological communities worldwide, quantifying the temporal organization of communities is imperative to resolve the fundamental processes that shape natural ecosystems and predict how these systems may change in the future.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hannah Yin
- Program of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, BioSciences, Rice University, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - Volker H W Rudolf
- Program of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, BioSciences, Rice University, Houston, Texas, USA
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Rosenqvist T, Chan S, Ahlinder J, Salomonsson EN, Suarez C, Persson KM, Rådström P, Paul CJ. Inoculation with adapted bacterial communities promotes development of full scale slow sand filters for drinking water production. WATER RESEARCH 2024; 253:121203. [PMID: 38402751 DOI: 10.1016/j.watres.2024.121203] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/06/2023] [Revised: 01/11/2024] [Accepted: 01/24/2024] [Indexed: 02/27/2024]
Abstract
Gravity-driven filtration through slow sand filters (SSFs) is one of the oldest methods for producing drinking water. As water passes through a sand bed, undesired microorganisms and chemicals are removed by interactions with SSF biofilm and its resident microbes. Despite their importance, the processes through which these microbial communities form are largely unknown, as are the factors affecting these processes. In this study, two SSFs constructed using different sand sources were compared to an established filter and observed throughout their maturation process. One SSF was inoculated through addition of sand scraped from established filters, while the other was not inoculated. The operational and developing microbial communities of SSFs, as well as their influents and effluents, were studied by sequencing of 16S ribosomal rRNA genes. A functional microbial community resembling that of the established SSF was achieved in the inoculated SSF, but not in the non-inoculated SSF. Notably, the non-inoculated SSF had significantly (p < 0.01) higher abundances of classes Armatimonadia, Elusimicrobia, Fimbriimonadia, OM190 (phylum Planctomycetota), Parcubacteria, Vampirivibrionia and Verrucomicrobiae. Conversely, it had lower abundances of classes Anaerolineae, Bacilli, bacteriap25 (phylum Myxococcota), Blastocatellia, Entotheonellia, Gemmatimonadetes, lineage 11b (phylum Elusimicrobiota), Nitrospiria, Phycisphaerae, subgroup 22 (phylum Acidobacteriota) and subgroup 11 (phylum Acidobacteriota). Poor performance of neutral models showed that the assembly and dispersal of SSF microbial communities was mainly driven by selection. The temporal turnover of microbial species, as estimated through the scaling exponent of the species-time relationship, was twice as high in the non-inoculated filter (0.946 ± 0.164) compared to the inoculated filter (0.422 ± 0.0431). This study shows that the addition of an inoculum changed the assembly processes within SSFs. Specifically, the rate at which new microorganisms were observed in the biofilm was reduced. The reduced temporal turnover may be driven by inoculating taxa inhibiting growth, potentially via secondary metabolite production. This in turn would allow the inoculation community to persist and contribute to SSF function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tage Rosenqvist
- Division of Applied Microbiology, Department of Chemistry, Lund University, P.O. Box 124, SE-221 00 Lund, Sweden; Sweden Water Research AB, Ideon Science Park, Scheelevägen 15, SE-223 70 Lund, Sweden
| | - Sandy Chan
- Division of Applied Microbiology, Department of Chemistry, Lund University, P.O. Box 124, SE-221 00 Lund, Sweden; Sweden Water Research AB, Ideon Science Park, Scheelevägen 15, SE-223 70 Lund, Sweden; Sydvatten AB, Hyllie Stationstorg 21, SE-215 32 Malmö, Sweden
| | - Jon Ahlinder
- FOI, Swedish Defense Research Agency, Cementvägen 20, SE-906 21 Umeå, Sweden
| | | | - Carolina Suarez
- Water Resources Engineering, Department of Building and Environmental Technology, Lund University, SE-221 00 Lund, Sweden
| | - Kenneth M Persson
- Sydvatten AB, Hyllie Stationstorg 21, SE-215 32 Malmö, Sweden; Water Resources Engineering, Department of Building and Environmental Technology, Lund University, SE-221 00 Lund, Sweden
| | - Peter Rådström
- Division of Applied Microbiology, Department of Chemistry, Lund University, P.O. Box 124, SE-221 00 Lund, Sweden
| | - Catherine J Paul
- Division of Applied Microbiology, Department of Chemistry, Lund University, P.O. Box 124, SE-221 00 Lund, Sweden; Water Resources Engineering, Department of Building and Environmental Technology, Lund University, SE-221 00 Lund, Sweden.
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Gavillet H, Hatfield L, Jones A, Maitra A, Horsley A, Rivett D, van der Gast C. Ecological patterns and processes of temporal turnover within lung infection microbiota. MICROBIOME 2024; 12:63. [PMID: 38523273 PMCID: PMC10962200 DOI: 10.1186/s40168-024-01780-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/10/2023] [Accepted: 02/22/2024] [Indexed: 03/26/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Chronic infection and consequent airway inflammation are the leading causes of morbidity and early mortality for people living with cystic fibrosis (CF). However, lower airway infections across a range of chronic respiratory diseases, including in CF, do not follow classical 'one microbe, one disease' concepts of infection pathogenesis. Instead, they are comprised of diverse and temporally dynamic lung infection microbiota. Consequently, temporal dynamics need to be considered when attempting to associate lung microbiota with changes in disease status. Set within an island biogeography framework, we aimed to determine the ecological patterns and processes of temporal turnover within the lung microbiota of 30 paediatric and adult CF patients prospectively sampled over a 3-year period. Moreover, we aimed to ascertain the contributions of constituent chronic and intermittent colonizers on turnover within the wider microbiota. RESULTS The lung microbiota within individual patients was partitioned into constituent chronic and intermittent colonizing groups using the Leeds criteria and visualised with persistence-abundance relationships. This revealed bacteria chronically infecting a patient were both persistent and common through time, whereas intermittently infecting taxa were infrequent and rare; respectively representing the resident and transient portions of the wider microbiota. It also indicated that the extent of chronic colonization was far greater than could be appreciated with microbiological culture alone. Using species-time relationships to measure temporal turnover and Vellend's rationalized ecological processes demonstrated turnover in the resident chronic infecting groups was conserved and underpinned principally by the deterministic process of homogenizing dispersal. Conversely, intermittent colonizing groups, representing newly arrived immigrants and transient species, drove turnover in the wider microbiota and were predominately underpinned by the stochastic process of drift. For adult patients, homogenizing dispersal and drift were found to be significantly associated with lung function. Where a greater frequency of homogenizing dispersal was observed with worsening lung function and conversely drift increased with better lung function. CONCLUSIONS Our work provides a novel ecological framework for understanding the temporal dynamics of polymicrobial infection in CF that has translational potential to guide and improve therapeutic targeting of lung microbiota in CF and across a range of chronic airway diseases. Video Abstract.
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Affiliation(s)
- Helen Gavillet
- Department of Applied Sciences, Northumbria University, Newcastle, UK
| | - Lauren Hatfield
- Department of Life Sciences, Manchester Metropolitan University, Manchester, UK
| | - Andrew Jones
- Manchester Adult Cystic Fibrosis Centre, Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust, Manchester, UK
| | - Anirban Maitra
- Royal Manchester Children's Hospital, Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust, Manchester, UK
| | - Alexander Horsley
- Manchester Adult Cystic Fibrosis Centre, Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust, Manchester, UK
- Division of Infection, Immunity and Respiratory Medicine, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK
| | - Damian Rivett
- Department of Natural Sciences, Manchester Metropolitan University, Manchester, UK.
| | - Christopher van der Gast
- Department of Applied Sciences, Northumbria University, Newcastle, UK.
- Department of Respiratory Medicine, Northern Care Alliance NHS Foundation Trust, Salford, UK.
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Power JF, Carere CR, Welford HE, Hudson DT, Lee KC, Moreau JW, Ettema TJG, Reysenbach AL, Lee CK, Colman DR, Boyd ES, Morgan XC, McDonald IR, Craig Cary S, Stott MB. A genus in the bacterial phylum Aquificota appears to be endemic to Aotearoa-New Zealand. Nat Commun 2024; 15:179. [PMID: 38167814 PMCID: PMC10762115 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-43960-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/18/2023] [Accepted: 11/24/2023] [Indexed: 01/05/2024] Open
Abstract
Allopatric speciation has been difficult to examine among microorganisms, with prior reports of endemism restricted to sub-genus level taxa. Previous microbial community analysis via 16S rRNA gene sequencing of 925 geothermal springs from the Taupō Volcanic Zone (TVZ), Aotearoa-New Zealand, revealed widespread distribution and abundance of a single bacterial genus across 686 of these ecosystems (pH 1.2-9.6 and 17.4-99.8 °C). Here, we present evidence to suggest that this genus, Venenivibrio (phylum Aquificota), is endemic to Aotearoa-New Zealand. A specific environmental niche that increases habitat isolation was identified, with maximal read abundance of Venenivibrio occurring at pH 4-6, 50-70 °C, and low oxidation-reduction potentials. This was further highlighted by genomic and culture-based analyses of the only characterised species for the genus, Venenivibrio stagnispumantis CP.B2T, which confirmed a chemolithoautotrophic metabolism dependent on hydrogen oxidation. While similarity between Venenivibrio populations illustrated that dispersal is not limited across the TVZ, extensive amplicon, metagenomic, and phylogenomic analyses of global microbial communities from DNA sequence databases indicates Venenivibrio is geographically restricted to the Aotearoa-New Zealand archipelago. We conclude that geographic isolation, complemented by physicochemical constraints, has resulted in the establishment of an endemic bacterial genus.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jean F Power
- Thermophile Research Unit, Te Aka Mātuatua | School of Science, Te Whare Wānanga o Waikato | University of Waikato, Hamilton, 3240, Aotearoa New Zealand
| | - Carlo R Carere
- Te Tari Pūhanga Tukanga Matū | Department of Chemical and Process Engineering, Te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha | University of Canterbury, Christchurch, 8140, Aotearoa New Zealand
| | - Holly E Welford
- Te Kura Pūtaiao Koiora | School of Biological Sciences, Te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha | University of Canterbury, Christchurch, 8140, Aotearoa New Zealand
| | - Daniel T Hudson
- Te Tari Moromoroiti me te Ārai Mate | Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Te Whare Wānanga o Ōtākou | University of Otago, Dunedin, 9054, Aotearoa New Zealand
| | - Kevin C Lee
- Te Kura Pūtaiao | School of Science, Te Wānanga Aronui o Tāmaki Makau Rau | Auckland University of Technology, Auckland, 1010, Aotearoa New Zealand
| | - John W Moreau
- School of Geographical & Earth Sciences, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, G12 8RZ, UK
| | - Thijs J G Ettema
- Laboratory of Microbiology, Wageningen University & Research, 6708, WE, Wageningen, the Netherlands
| | | | - Charles K Lee
- Thermophile Research Unit, Te Aka Mātuatua | School of Science, Te Whare Wānanga o Waikato | University of Waikato, Hamilton, 3240, Aotearoa New Zealand
| | - Daniel R Colman
- Department of Microbiology and Cell Biology, Montana State University, Bozeman, MT, 59717, USA
| | - Eric S Boyd
- Department of Microbiology and Cell Biology, Montana State University, Bozeman, MT, 59717, USA
| | - Xochitl C Morgan
- Te Tari Moromoroiti me te Ārai Mate | Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Te Whare Wānanga o Ōtākou | University of Otago, Dunedin, 9054, Aotearoa New Zealand
- Department of Biostatistics, Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, 02115, USA
| | - Ian R McDonald
- Thermophile Research Unit, Te Aka Mātuatua | School of Science, Te Whare Wānanga o Waikato | University of Waikato, Hamilton, 3240, Aotearoa New Zealand
| | - S Craig Cary
- Thermophile Research Unit, Te Aka Mātuatua | School of Science, Te Whare Wānanga o Waikato | University of Waikato, Hamilton, 3240, Aotearoa New Zealand.
| | - Matthew B Stott
- Te Kura Pūtaiao Koiora | School of Biological Sciences, Te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha | University of Canterbury, Christchurch, 8140, Aotearoa New Zealand.
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Gong X, Liu X, Li Y, Ma K, Song W, Zhou J, Tu Q. Distinct Ecological Processes Mediate Domain-Level Differentiation in Microbial Spatial Scaling. Appl Environ Microbiol 2023; 89:e0209622. [PMID: 36815790 PMCID: PMC10056974 DOI: 10.1128/aem.02096-22] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/14/2022] [Accepted: 01/26/2023] [Indexed: 02/24/2023] Open
Abstract
The spatial scaling of biodiversity, such as the taxa-area relationship (TAR) and distance-decay relationship (DDR), is a typical ecological pattern that is followed by both microbes and macrobes in natural ecosystems. Previous studies focusing on microbes mainly aimed to address whether and how different types of microbial taxa differ in spatial scaling patterns, leaving the underlying mechanisms largely untouched. In this study, the spatial scaling of different microbial domains and their associated ecological processes in an intertidal zone were comparatively investigated. The significant spatial scaling of biodiversity could be observed across all microbial domains, including archaea, bacteria, fungi, and protists. Among them, archaea and fungi were found with much stronger DDR slopes than those observed in bacteria and protists. For both TAR and DDR, rare subcommunities were mainly responsible for the observed spatial scaling patterns, except for the DDR of protists and bacteria. This was also evidenced by extending the TAR and DDR diversity metrics to Hill numbers. Further statistical analyses demonstrated that different microbial domains were influenced by different environmental factors and harbored distinct local community assembly processes. Of these, drift was mainly responsible for the compositional variations of bacteria and protists. Archaea were shaped by strong homogeneous selection, whereas fungi were more affected by dispersal limitation. Such differing ecological processes resulted in the domain-level differentiation of microbial spatial scaling. This study links ecological processes with microbial spatial scaling and provides novel mechanistic insights into the diversity patterns of microbes that belong to different trophic levels. IMPORTANCE As the most diverse and numerous life form on Earth, microorganisms play indispensable roles in natural ecological processes. Revealing their diversity patterns across space and through time is of essential importance to better understand the underlying ecological mechanisms controlling the distribution and assembly of microbial communities. However, the diversity patterns and their underlying ecological mechanisms for different microbial domains and/or trophic levels require further exploration. In this study, the spatial scaling of different microbial domains and their associated ecological processes in a mudflat intertidal zone were investigated. The results showed different spatial scaling patterns for different microbial domains. Different ecological processes underlie the domain-level differentiation of microbial spatial scaling. This study links ecological processes with microbial spatial scaling to provide novel mechanistic insights into the diversity patterns of microorganisms that belong to different trophic levels.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaofan Gong
- Institute of Marine Science and Technology, Shandong University, Qingdao, China
| | - Xia Liu
- Institute of Marine Science and Technology, Shandong University, Qingdao, China
| | - Yueyue Li
- Institute of Marine Science and Technology, Shandong University, Qingdao, China
| | - Kai Ma
- Institute of Marine Science and Technology, Shandong University, Qingdao, China
| | - Wen Song
- Institute of Marine Science and Technology, Shandong University, Qingdao, China
| | - Jiayin Zhou
- Institute of Marine Science and Technology, Shandong University, Qingdao, China
| | - Qichao Tu
- Institute of Marine Science and Technology, Shandong University, Qingdao, China
- Joint Lab for Ocean Research and Education at Dalhousie University, Shandong University and Xiamen University, Qingdao, China
- Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Zhuhai), Guangzhou, China
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He H, Carlson AL, Nielsen PH, Zhou J, Daigger GT. Comparative analysis of floc characteristics and microbial communities in anoxic and aerobic suspended growth processes. WATER ENVIRONMENT RESEARCH : A RESEARCH PUBLICATION OF THE WATER ENVIRONMENT FEDERATION 2022; 94:e10822. [PMID: 36544219 PMCID: PMC10107865 DOI: 10.1002/wer.10822] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/12/2022] [Revised: 11/10/2022] [Accepted: 11/21/2022] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
A fully anoxic suspended growth process is an appealing alternative to conventional activated sludge (AS) due to considerable aeration reduction and improved carbon processing efficiency for biological nutrient removal (BNR). With development of the hybrid membrane aerated biofilm reactor (MABR) technology, implementation of a fully anoxic suspended growth community in BNR facilities became practical. To better understand potential limitations with the elimination of aeration, we carried out microscopic examination and 16S rRNA gene-based microbial community profiling to determine how an anoxic suspended growth would differ from the conventional aerobic process in floc characteristics, microbial diversity, microbial temporal dynamics, and community assembly pattern. Fewer filamentous populations were found in the anoxic mixed liquor, suggesting easily sheared flocs. The anoxic microbial community had distinct composition and structure, but its diversity and temporal dynamics were similar to the conventional aerobic community. A variety of well-studied functional guilds were also identified in the anoxic community. The anoxic microbial community assembly was more stochastic than the conventional aerobic community, but deterministic assembly was still significant with a large core microbiome adapted to the anoxic condition. PRACTITIONER POINTS: Flocs developed under the anoxic conditions had less filamentous backbones, implying reduced flocculation capacity and easily sheared flocs. Knowledge about the ecophysiology of Thauera, Thiothrix, and Trichococcus can help achieve good properties of the anoxic flocs. A diverse microbial community sustainably adapted to the fully anoxic condition, containing a variety of filaments, denitrifiers, and PAOs. The anoxic microbial community displayed a similar degree of diversity and temporal dynamics compared to the aerobic counterpart. The anoxic community's assembly was more stochastic, so it may be less subject to changes in environmental variables.
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Affiliation(s)
- Huanqi He
- Department of Civil and Environmental EngineeringUniversity of MichiganAnn ArborMichiganUSA
| | - Avery L. Carlson
- Department of Civil and Environmental EngineeringUniversity of MichiganAnn ArborMichiganUSA
| | - Per Halkjær Nielsen
- Center for Microbial Communities, Department of Chemistry and BioscienceAalborg UniversityAalborgDenmark
| | - Jizhong Zhou
- Institute for Environmental Genomics, Department of Microbiology and Plant Biology, School of Civil Engineering and Environmental Sciences, and School of Computer ScienceUniversity of OklahomaNormanOklahomaUSA
| | - Glen T. Daigger
- Department of Civil and Environmental EngineeringUniversity of MichiganAnn ArborMichiganUSA
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