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Liao T, Wang S, Zhang H, Stüeken EE, Luo H. Dating Ammonia-Oxidizing Bacteria with Abundant Eukaryotic Fossils. Mol Biol Evol 2024; 41:msae096. [PMID: 38776415 PMCID: PMC11135946 DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msae096] [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: 01/09/2024] [Revised: 04/21/2024] [Accepted: 05/14/2024] [Indexed: 05/25/2024] Open
Abstract
Evolution of a complete nitrogen (N) cycle relies on the onset of ammonia oxidation, which aerobically converts ammonia to nitrogen oxides. However, accurate estimation of the antiquity of ammonia-oxidizing bacteria (AOB) remains challenging because AOB-specific fossils are absent and bacterial fossils amenable to calibrate molecular clocks are rare. Leveraging the ancient endosymbiosis of mitochondria and plastid, as well as using state-of-the-art Bayesian sequential dating approach, we obtained a timeline of AOB evolution calibrated largely by eukaryotic fossils. We show that the first AOB evolved in marine Gammaproteobacteria (Gamma-AOB) and emerged between 2.1 and 1.9 billion years ago (Ga), thus postdating the Great Oxidation Event (GOE; 2.4 to 2.32 Ga). To reconcile the sedimentary N isotopic signatures of ammonia oxidation occurring near the GOE, we propose that ammonia oxidation likely occurred at the common ancestor of Gamma-AOB and Gammaproteobacterial methanotrophs, or the actinobacterial/verrucomicrobial methanotrophs which are known to have ammonia oxidation activities. It is also likely that nitrite was transported from the terrestrial habitats where ammonia oxidation by archaea took place. Further, we show that the Gamma-AOB predated the anaerobic ammonia-oxidizing (anammox) bacteria, implying that the emergence of anammox was constrained by the availability of dedicated ammonia oxidizers which produce nitrite to fuel anammox. Our work supports a new hypothesis that N redox cycle involving nitrogen oxides evolved rather late in the ocean.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tianhua Liao
- Simon F. S. Li Marine Science Laboratory, School of Life Sciences and State Key Laboratory of Agrobiotechnology, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, Hong Kong SAR
| | - Sishuo Wang
- Simon F. S. Li Marine Science Laboratory, School of Life Sciences and State Key Laboratory of Agrobiotechnology, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, Hong Kong SAR
| | - Hao Zhang
- Simon F. S. Li Marine Science Laboratory, School of Life Sciences and State Key Laboratory of Agrobiotechnology, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, Hong Kong SAR
| | - Eva E Stüeken
- School of Earth and Environmental Sciences and Centre for Exoplanet Science, University of St Andrews, Queen's Terrace, KY16 9TS, UK
| | - Haiwei Luo
- Simon F. S. Li Marine Science Laboratory, School of Life Sciences and State Key Laboratory of Agrobiotechnology, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, Hong Kong SAR
- Earth and Environmental Sciences Programme, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, Hong Kong SAR
- Institute of Environment, Energy and Sustainability, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, Hong Kong SAR
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Liu X, Wang H, Wang W, Cheng X, Wang Y, Li Q, Li L, Ma L, Lu X, Tuovinen OH. Nitrate determines the bacterial habitat specialization and impacts microbial functions in a subsurface karst cave. Front Microbiol 2023; 14:1115449. [PMID: 36846803 PMCID: PMC9947541 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2023.1115449] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/04/2022] [Accepted: 01/19/2023] [Indexed: 02/11/2023] Open
Abstract
Karst caves are usually considered as natural laboratories to study pristine microbiomes in subsurface biosphere. However, effects of the increasingly detected nitrate in underground karst ecosystem due to the acid rain impact on microbiota and their functions in subsurface karst caves have remained largely unknown. In this study, samples of weathered rocks and sediments were collected from the Chang Cave, Hubei province and subjected to high-throughput sequencing of 16S rRNA genes. The results showed that nitrate significantly impacted bacterial compositions, interactions, and functions in different habitats. Bacterial communities clustered according to their habitats with distinguished indicator groups identified for each individual habitat. Nitrate shaped the overall bacterial communities across two habitats with a contribution of 27.2%, whereas the pH and TOC, respectively, structured bacterial communities in weathered rocks and sediments. Alpha and beta diversities of bacterial communities increased with nitrate concentration in both habitats, with nitrate directly affecting alpha diversity in sediments, but indirectly on weathered rocks by lowering pH. Nitrate impacted more on bacterial communities in weathered rocks at the genus level than in sediments because more genera significantly correlated with nitrate concentration in weathered rocks. Diverse keystone taxa involved in nitrogen cycling were identified in the co-occurrence networks such as nitrate reducers, ammonium-oxidizers, and N2-fixers. Tax4Fun2 analysis further confirmed the dominance of genes involved in nitrogen cycling. Genes of methane metabolism and carbon fixation were also dominant. The dominance of dissimilatory and assimilatory nitrate reduction in nitrogen cycling substantiated nitrate impact on bacterial functions. Our results for the first time revealed the impact of nitrate on subsurface karst ecosystem in terms of bacterial compositions, interactions, and functions, providing an important reference for further deciphering the disturbance of human activities on the subsurface biosphere.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaoyan Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Geobiology and Environmental Geology, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, China
- School of Environmental Studies, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, China
| | - Hongmei Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Geobiology and Environmental Geology, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, China
- School of Environmental Studies, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, China
| | - Weiqi Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Geobiology and Environmental Geology, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, China
- School of Environmental Studies, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, China
| | - Xiaoyu Cheng
- State Key Laboratory of Geobiology and Environmental Geology, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, China
- School of Environmental Studies, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, China
| | - Yiheng Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Geobiology and Environmental Geology, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, China
| | - Qing Li
- State Key Laboratory of Geobiology and Environmental Geology, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, China
| | - Lu Li
- State Key Laboratory of Geobiology and Environmental Geology, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, China
| | - Liyuan Ma
- School of Environmental Studies, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, China
| | - Xiaolu Lu
- School of Environmental Studies, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan, China
| | - Olli H. Tuovinen
- Department of Microbiology, Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, United States
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Soils and sediments host Thermoplasmata archaea encoding novel copper membrane monooxygenases (CuMMOs). THE ISME JOURNAL 2022; 16:1348-1362. [PMID: 34987183 PMCID: PMC9038741 DOI: 10.1038/s41396-021-01177-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/26/2021] [Revised: 12/02/2021] [Accepted: 12/10/2021] [Indexed: 01/22/2023]
Abstract
Copper membrane monooxygenases (CuMMOs) play critical roles in the global carbon and nitrogen cycles. Organisms harboring these enzymes perform the first, and rate limiting, step in aerobic oxidation of ammonia, methane, or other simple hydrocarbons. Within archaea, only organisms in the order Nitrososphaerales (Thaumarchaeota) encode CuMMOs, which function exclusively as ammonia monooxygenases. From grassland and hillslope soils and aquifer sediments, we identified 20 genomes from distinct archaeal species encoding divergent CuMMO sequences. These archaea are phylogenetically clustered in a previously unnamed Thermoplasmatota order, herein named the Ca. Angelarchaeales. The CuMMO proteins in Ca. Angelarchaeales are more similar in structure to those in Nitrososphaerales than those of bacteria, and contain all functional residues required for general monooxygenase activity. Ca. Angelarchaeales genomes are significantly enriched in blue copper proteins (BCPs) relative to sibling lineages, including plastocyanin-like electron carriers and divergent nitrite reductase-like (nirK) 2-domain cupredoxin proteins co-located with electron transport machinery. Ca. Angelarchaeales also encode significant capacity for peptide/amino acid uptake and degradation and share numerous electron transport mechanisms with the Nitrososphaerales. Ca. Angelarchaeales are detected at high relative abundance in some of the environments where their genomes originated from. While the exact substrate specificities of the novel CuMMOs identified here have yet to be determined, activity on ammonia is possible given their metabolic and ecological context. The identification of an archaeal CuMMO outside of the Nitrososphaerales significantly expands the known diversity of CuMMO enzymes in archaea and suggests previously unaccounted organisms contribute to critical global nitrogen and/or carbon cycling functions.
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Liu L, Schubert DM, Könneke M, Berg IA. ( S)-3-Hydroxybutyryl-CoA Dehydrogenase From the Autotrophic 3-Hydroxypropionate/4-Hydroxybutyrate Cycle in Nitrosopumilus maritimus. Front Microbiol 2021; 12:712030. [PMID: 34290692 PMCID: PMC8287830 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2021.712030] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/19/2021] [Accepted: 06/11/2021] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Ammonia-oxidizing archaea of the phylum Thaumarchaeota are among the most abundant organisms that exert primary control of oceanic and soil nitrification and are responsible for a large part of dark ocean primary production. They assimilate inorganic carbon via an energetically efficient version of the 3-hydroxypropionate/4-hydroxybutyrate cycle. In this cycle, acetyl-CoA is carboxylated to succinyl-CoA, which is then converted to two acetyl-CoA molecules with 4-hydroxybutyrate as the key intermediate. This conversion includes the (S)-3-hydroxybutyryl-CoA dehydrogenase reaction. Here, we heterologously produced the protein Nmar_1028 catalyzing this reaction in thaumarchaeon Nitrosopumilus maritimus, characterized it biochemically and performed its phylogenetic analysis. This NAD-dependent dehydrogenase is highly active with its substrate, (S)-3-hydroxybutyryl-CoA, and its low Km value suggests that the protein is adapted to the functioning in the 3-hydroxypropionate/4-hydroxybutyrate cycle. Nmar_1028 is homologous to the dehydrogenase domain of crotonyl-CoA hydratase/(S)-3-hydroxybutyryl-CoA dehydrogenase that is present in many Archaea. Apparently, the loss of the dehydratase domain of the fusion protein in the course of evolution was accompanied by lateral gene transfer of 3-hydroxypropionyl-CoA dehydratase/crotonyl-CoA hydratase from Bacteria. Although (S)-3-hydroxybutyryl-CoA dehydrogenase studied here is neither unique nor characteristic for the HP/HB cycle, Nmar_1028 appears to be the only (S)-3-hydroxybutyryl-CoA dehydrogenase in N. maritimus and is thus essential for the functioning of the 3-hydroxypropionate/4-hydroxybutyrate cycle and for the biology of this important marine archaeon.
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Affiliation(s)
- Li Liu
- Institute for Molecular Microbiology and Biotechnology, University of Münster, Münster, Germany
| | - Daniel M Schubert
- Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Biology, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Martin Könneke
- Marine Archaea Group, MARUM Center for Marine Environmental Sciences, University of Bremen, Bremen, Germany.,Benthic Microbiology, Institute for Chemistry and Biology of the Marine Environments, University of Oldenburg, Oldenburg, Germany
| | - Ivan A Berg
- Institute for Molecular Microbiology and Biotechnology, University of Münster, Münster, Germany
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Yang Y, Zhang C, Lenton TM, Yan X, Zhu M, Zhou M, Tao J, Phelps TJ, Cao Z. The evolution pathway of ammonia-oxidizing archaea shaped by major geological events. Mol Biol Evol 2021; 38:3637-3648. [PMID: 33993308 PMCID: PMC8382903 DOI: 10.1093/molbev/msab129] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Primordial nitrification processes have been studied extensively using geochemical approaches, but the biological origination of nitrification remains unclear. Ammonia-oxidizing archaea (AOA) are widely distributed nitrifiers and implement the rate-limiting step in nitrification. They are hypothesized to have been important players in the global nitrogen cycle in Earth’s early history. We performed systematic phylogenomic and marker gene analyses to elucidate the diversification timeline of AOA evolution. Our results suggested that the AOA ancestor experienced terrestrial geothermal environments at ∼1,165 Ma (1,928–880 Ma), and gradually evolved into mesophilic soil at ∼652 Ma (767–554 Ma) before diversifying into marine settings at ∼509 Ma (629–412 Ma) and later into shallow and deep oceans, respectively. Corroborated by geochemical evidence and modeling, the timing of key diversification nodes can be linked to the global magmatism and glaciation associated with the assembly and breakup of the supercontinent Rodinia, and the later oxygenation of the deep ocean. Results of this integrated study shed light on the geological forces that may have shaped the evolutionary pathways of the AOA, which played an important role in the ancient global nitrogen cycle.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yiyan Yang
- Department of Gastroenterology, Shanghai 10th People's Hospital, School of Life Sciences and Technology, Tongji University, Shanghai, 200092, China
| | - Chuanlun Zhang
- Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Marine Archaea Geo-Omics, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, 518055, P.R. China.,Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Guangzhou), Guangzhou, 510000, China.,Shanghai Sheshan National Geophysical Observatory, Shanghai, 201602, China
| | - Timothy M Lenton
- Global Systems Institute, University of Exeter, Exeter, EX4 4QE, United Kingdom
| | - Xinmiao Yan
- Department of Gastroenterology, Shanghai 10th People's Hospital, School of Life Sciences and Technology, Tongji University, Shanghai, 200092, China
| | - Maoyan Zhu
- State Key Laboratory of Palaeobiology and Stratigraphy & Center for Excellence in Life and Paleoenvironment, Nanjing Institute of Geology and Palaeontology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing, 210008, P.R. China.,College of Earth and Planetary Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, P.R. China
| | - Mengdi Zhou
- Department of Gastroenterology, Shanghai 10th People's Hospital, School of Life Sciences and Technology, Tongji University, Shanghai, 200092, China
| | - Jianchang Tao
- Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Marine Archaea Geo-Omics, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, 518055, P.R. China
| | - Tommy J Phelps
- Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Marine Archaea Geo-Omics, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, 518055, P.R. China
| | - Zhiwei Cao
- Department of Gastroenterology, Shanghai 10th People's Hospital, School of Life Sciences and Technology, Tongji University, Shanghai, 200092, China
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Shafiee RT, Diver PJ, Snow JT, Zhang Q, Rickaby REM. Marine ammonia-oxidising archaea and bacteria occupy distinct iron and copper niches. ISME COMMUNICATIONS 2021; 1:1. [PMID: 37938628 PMCID: PMC9723733 DOI: 10.1038/s43705-021-00001-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2020] [Revised: 12/11/2020] [Accepted: 01/06/2021] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
Ammonia oxidation by archaea and bacteria (AOA and AOB), is the first step of nitrification in the oceans. As AOA have an ammonium affinity 200-fold higher than AOB isolates, the chemical niche allowing AOB to persist in the oligotrophic ocean remains unclear. Here we show that marine isolates, Nitrosopumilus maritimus strain SCM1 (AOA) and Nitrosococcus oceani strain C-107 (AOB) have contrasting physiologies in response to the trace metals iron (Fe) and copper (Cu), holding potential implications for their niche separation in the oceans. A greater affinity for unchelated Fe may allow AOB to inhabit shallower, euphotic waters where ammonium supply is high, but competition for Fe is rife. In contrast to AOB, AOA isolates have a greater affinity and toxicity threshold for unchelated Cu providing additional explanation to the greater success of AOA in the marine environment where Cu availability can be highly variable. Using comparative genomics, we predict that the proteomic and metal transport basis giving rise to contrasting physiologies in isolates is widespread across phylogenetically diverse marine AOA and AOB that are not yet available in pure culture. Our results develop the testable hypothesis that ammonia oxidation may be limited by Cu in large tracts of the open ocean and suggest a relatively earlier emergence of AOB than AOA when considered in the context of evolving trace metal availabilities over geologic time.
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Affiliation(s)
- Roxana T Shafiee
- Department of Earth Sciences, University of Oxford, Oxfordshire, UK.
| | - Poppy J Diver
- Department of Earth Sciences, University of Oxford, Oxfordshire, UK
| | - Joseph T Snow
- Department of Earth Sciences, University of Oxford, Oxfordshire, UK
| | - Qiong Zhang
- Department of Earth Sciences, University of Oxford, Oxfordshire, UK
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Ward LM, Lingappa UF, Grotzinger JP, Fischer WW. Microbial mats in the Turks and Caicos Islands reveal diversity and evolution of phototrophy in the Chloroflexota order Aggregatilineales. ENVIRONMENTAL MICROBIOME 2020; 15:9. [PMID: 33902735 PMCID: PMC8067394 DOI: 10.1186/s40793-020-00357-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/21/2020] [Accepted: 03/19/2020] [Indexed: 05/03/2023]
Abstract
Genome-resolved metagenomic sequencing approaches have led to a substantial increase in the recognized diversity of microorganisms; this included the discovery of novel metabolic pathways in previously recognized clades, and has enabled a more accurate determination of the extant distribution of key metabolisms and how they evolved over Earth history. Here, we present metagenome-assembled genomes of members of the Chloroflexota (formerly Chloroflexi or Green Nonsulfur Bacteria) order Aggregatilineales (formerly SBR1031 or Thermofonsia) discovered from sequencing of thick and expansive microbial mats present in an intertidal lagoon on Little Ambergris Cay in the Turks and Caicos Islands. These taxa included multiple new lineages of Type 2 reaction center-containing phototrophs that were not closely related to previously described phototrophic Chloroflexota-revealing a rich and intricate history of horizontal gene transfer and the evolution of phototrophy and other core metabolic pathways within this widespread phylum.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lewis M Ward
- Department of Earth & Planetary Sciences, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, 02138, USA.
| | - Usha F Lingappa
- Division of Geological & Planetary Sciences, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, 91125, USA
| | - John P Grotzinger
- Division of Geological & Planetary Sciences, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, 91125, USA
| | - Woodward W Fischer
- Division of Geological & Planetary Sciences, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, 91125, USA
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