Distribution of acI-Actinorhodopsin genes in Baltic Sea salinity gradients indicates adaptation of facultative freshwater photoheterotrophs to brackish waters

Adaptive genetic traits in pelagic freshwater microbes

Pelagic microbes have adopted distinct strategies to inhabit the pelagial of lakes and oceans and can be broadly categorized in two groups: free-living, specialized oligotrophs and patch-associated generalists or copiotrophs. In this review, we aim to identify genomic traits that enable pelagic freshwater microbes to thrive in their habitat. To do so, we discuss the main genetic differences of pelagic marine and freshwater microbes that are both dominated by specialized oligotrophs and the difference to freshwater sediment microbes, where copiotrophs are more prevalent. We phylogenomically analysed a collection of >7700 metagenome-assembled genomes, classified habitat preferences on different taxonomic levels, and compared the metabolic traits of pelagic freshwater, marine, and freshwater sediment microbes. Metabolic differences are mainly associated with transport functions, environmental information processing, components of the electron transport chain, osmoregulation and the isoelectric point of proteins. Several lineages with known habitat transitions (Nitrososphaeria, SAR11, Methylophilaceae, Synechococcales, Flavobacteriaceae, Planctomycetota) and the underlying mechanisms in this process are discussed in this review. Additionally, the distribution, ecology and genomic make-up of the most abundant freshwater prokaryotes are described in details in separate chapters for Actinobacteriota, Bacteroidota, Burkholderiales, Verrucomicrobiota, Chloroflexota, and 'Ca. Patescibacteria'.

The impact of heterotrophic bacteria on recalcitrant dissolved organic carbon formation in a typical karstic river

Recalcitrant dissolved organic carbon (RDOC) resulting from microbial carbon (MCPs) holds promise as a relatively long-term natural carbon sink in marine environments. However, the RDOC formation mechanism remains uncertain in terrestrial aquatic systems. To determine the microbial impacts on autochthonous dissolved organic carbon (DOC), RDOC formation, and the critical influencing bacteria species, spatial changes in hydrochemistry, carbon isotopes, and microbial diversity were investigated in water samples from the karstic Lijiang River, southwest China. Samples were collected at various locations along the river system in May and July 2017. The biodegradable DOC (BDOC), RDOC, soil sourced DOC (SDOC), submerged aquatic vascular plant sourced DOC (PDOC) and microbial sourced DOC (MDOC) were calculated using the in-situ microbial incubation method, stable carbon isotopes and C/N ratio. RDOC accounted for 67% to 93% of DOC concentrations, measuring 1.3 mg/L and 1.2 mg/L in May and July, respectively. In May, BDOC concentrations increased by 0.05 mg/L from 0.18 mg/L to 0.23 mg/L, but decreased by 0.43 mg/L from 0.66 mg/L to 0.23 mg/L in July. The spatiotemporal variation of BDOC indicated photosynthesis was the main BDOC source and induced high autochthonous DOC formation, especially in May. However, RDOC was the dominant accumulation component in Lijiang River. MDOC increased by 0.86 mg/L from 0 to 0.86 mg/L in May and 0.78 mg/L from 0.10 mg/L to 0.88 mg/L in July, which was the dominant accumulated DOC and RDOC component. The abundance of Sporichthyaceae accounted for 3.4%-22.6% in May and Novosphingobium accounted for 3.5%-34.0% in July. These were the critical bacteria species induced MDOC formation, which were confirmed by their abundances in KEGG pathway modules determined by PICRUAST2. These results demonstrate that heterotrophic bacteria dominate autochthonous DOC and RDOC formation in the karst surface river, which is valuable for understanding organic carbon cycling in karstic aquatic systems.

Distribution and Diversity of Rhodopsin-Producing Microbes in the Chesapeake Bay

Although sunlight is an abundant source of energy in surface environments, less than 0.5% of the available photons are captured by (bacterio)chlorophyll-dependent photosynthesis in plants and bacteria. Metagenomic data indicate that 30 to 60% of the bacterial genomes in some environments encode rhodopsins, retinal-based photosystems found in heterotrophs, suggesting that sunlight may provide energy for more life than previously suspected. However, quantitative data on the number of cells that produce rhodopsins in environmental systems are limited. Here, we use total internal reflection fluorescence microscopy to show that the number of free-living microbes that produce rhodopsins increases along the salinity gradient in the Chesapeake Bay. We correlate this functional data with environmental data to show that rhodopsin abundance is positively correlated with salinity and with indicators of active heterotrophy during the day. Metagenomic and metatranscriptomic data suggest that the microbial rhodopsins in the low-salinity samples are primarily found in Actinobacteria and Bacteroidetes, while those in the high-salinity samples are associated with SAR-11 type AlphaproteobacteriaIMPORTANCE Microbial rhodopsins are common light-activated ion pumps in heterotrophs, and previous work has proposed that heterotrophic microbes use them to conserve energy when organic carbon is limiting. If this hypothesis is correct, rhodopsin-producing cells should be most abundant where nutrients are most limited. Our results indicate that in the Chesapeake Bay, rhodopsin gene abundance is correlated with salinity, and functional rhodopsin production is correlated with nitrate, bacterial production, and chlorophyll a We propose that in this environment, where carbon and nitrogen are likely not limiting, heterotrophs do not need to use rhodopsins to supplement ATP synthesis. Rather, the light-generated proton motive force in nutrient-rich environments could be used to power energy-dependent membrane-associated processes, such as active transport of organic carbon and cofactors, enabling these organisms to more efficiently utilize exudates from primary producers.

Diversity and Distribution of Freshwater Aerobic Anoxygenic Phototrophic Bacteria across a Wide Latitudinal Gradient

Aerobic anoxygenic phototrophs (AAPs) have been shown to exist in numerous marine and brackish environments where they are hypothesized to play important ecological roles. Despite their potential significance, the study of freshwater AAPs is in its infancy and limited to local investigations. Here, we explore the occurrence, diversity and distribution of AAPs in lakes covering a wide latitudinal gradient: Mongolian and German lakes located in temperate regions of Eurasia, tropical Great East African lakes, and polar permanently ice-covered Antarctic lakes. Our results show a widespread distribution of AAPs in lakes with contrasting environmental conditions and confirm that this group is composed of different members of the Alpha- and Betaproteobacteria. While latitude does not seem to strongly influence AAP abundance, clear patterns of community structure and composition along geographic regions were observed as indicated by a strong macro-geographical signal in the taxonomical composition of AAPs. Overall, our results suggest that the distribution patterns of freshwater AAPs are likely driven by a combination of small-scale environmental conditions (specific of each lake and region) and large-scale geographic factors (climatic regions across a latitudinal gradient).

Diversity of Phototrophic Genes Suggests Multiple Bacteria May Be Able to Exploit Sunlight in Exposed Soils from the Sør Rondane Mountains, East Antarctica

Microbial life in exposed terrestrial surface layers in continental Antarctica is faced with extreme environmental conditions, including scarcity of organic matter. Bacteria in these exposed settings can therefore be expected to use alternative energy sources such as solar energy, abundant during the austral summer. Using Illumina MiSeq sequencing, we assessed the diversity and abundance of four conserved protein encoding genes involved in different key steps of light-harvesting pathways dependent on (bacterio)chlorophyll (pufM, bchL/chlL, and bchX genes) and rhodopsins (actinorhodopsin genes), in exposed soils from the Sør Rondane Mountains, East Antarctica. Analysis of pufM genes, encoding a subunit of the type 2 photochemical reaction center found in anoxygenic phototrophic bacteria, revealed a broad diversity, dominated by Roseobacter- and Loktanella-like sequences. The bchL and chlL, involved in (bacterio)chlorophyll synthesis, on the other hand, showed a high relative abundance of either cyanobacterial or green algal trebouxiophyceael chlL reads, depending on the sample, while most bchX sequences belonged mostly to previously unidentified phylotypes. Rhodopsin-containing phototrophic bacteria could not be detected in the samples. Our results, while suggesting that Cyanobacteria and green algae are the main phototrophic groups, show that light-harvesting bacteria are nevertheless very diverse in microbial communities in Antarctic soils.

Marine Bacterial and Archaeal Ion-Pumping Rhodopsins: Genetic Diversity, Physiology, and Ecology

The recognition of a new family of rhodopsins in marine planktonic bacteria, proton-pumping proteorhodopsin, expanded the known phylogenetic range, environmental distribution, and sequence diversity of retinylidene photoproteins. At the time of this discovery, microbial ion-pumping rhodopsins were known solely in haloarchaea inhabiting extreme hypersaline environments. Shortly thereafter, proteorhodopsins and other light-activated energy-generating rhodopsins were recognized to be widespread among marine bacteria. The ubiquity of marine rhodopsin photosystems now challenges prior understanding of the nature and contributions of "heterotrophic" bacteria to biogeochemical carbon cycling and energy fluxes. Subsequent investigations have focused on the biophysics and biochemistry of these novel microbial rhodopsins, their distribution across the tree of life, evolutionary trajectories, and functional expression in nature. Later discoveries included the identification of proteorhodopsin genes in all three domains of life, the spectral tuning of rhodopsin variants to wavelengths prevailing in the sea, variable light-activated ion-pumping specificities among bacterial rhodopsin variants, and the widespread lateral gene transfer of biosynthetic genes for bacterial rhodopsins and their associated photopigments. Heterologous expression experiments with marine rhodopsin genes (and associated retinal chromophore genes) provided early evidence that light energy harvested by rhodopsins could be harnessed to provide biochemical energy. Importantly, some studies with native marine bacteria show that rhodopsin-containing bacteria use light to enhance growth or promote survival during starvation. We infer from the distribution of rhodopsin genes in diverse genomic contexts that different marine bacteria probably use rhodopsins to support light-dependent fitness strategies somewhere between these two extremes.

Near-Bottom Hypoxia Impacts Dynamics of Bacterioplankton Assemblage throughout Water Column of the Gulf of Finland (Baltic Sea)

Over the past century the spread of hypoxia in the Baltic Sea has been drastic, reaching its ‘arm’ into the easternmost sub-basin, the Gulf of Finland. The hydrographic and climatological properties of the gulf offer a broad suite of discrete niches for microbial communities. The current study explores spatiotemporal dynamics of bacterioplankton community in the Gulf of Finland using massively parallel sequencing of 16S rRNA fragments obtained by amplifying community DNA from spring to autumn period. The presence of redoxcline and drastic seasonal changes make spatiotemporal dynamics of bacterioplankton community composition (BCC) and abundances in such estuary remarkably complex. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study that analyses spatiotemporal dynamics of BCC in relation to phytoplankton bloom throughout the water column (and redoxcline), not only at the surface layer. We conclude that capability to survive (or benefit from) shifts between oxic and hypoxic conditions is vital adaptation for bacteria to thrive in such environments. Our results contribute to the understanding of emerging patterns in BCCs that occupy hydrographically similar estuaries dispersed all over the world, and we suggest the presence of a global redox- and salinity-driven metacommunity. These results have important implications for understanding long-term ecological and biogeochemical impacts of hypoxia expansion in the Baltic Sea (and similar ecosystems), as well as global biogeography of bacteria specialized inhabiting similar ecosystems.

Winter diversity and expression of proteorhodopsin genes in a polar ocean

Mixotrophy is a valuable functional trait used by microbes when environmental conditions vary broadly or resources are limited. In the sunlit waters of the ocean, photoheterotrophy, a form of mixotrophy, is often mediated by proteorhodopsin (PR), a seven helices transmembrane protein binding the retinal chromophore. Altogether, they allow bacteria to capture photic energy for sensory and proton gradient formation cell functions. The seasonal occurrence and diversity of the gene coding for PR in cold oligotrophic polar oceans is not known and PR expression has not yet been reported. Here we show that PR is widely distributed among bacterial taxa, and that PR expression decreased markedly during the winter months in the Arctic Ocean. Gammaproteobacteria-like PR sequences were always dominant. However, within the second most common affiliation, there was a transition from Flavobacteria-like PR in early winter to Alphaproteobacteria-like PR in late winter. The phylogenetic shifts followed carbon dynamics, where patterns in expression were consistent with community succession, as identified by DNA community fingerprinting. Although genes for PR were always present, the trend in decreasing transcripts from January to February suggested reduced functional utility of PR during winter. Under winter darkness, sustained expression suggests that PR may continue to be useful for non-ATP forming functions, such as environmental sensing or small solute transport. The persistence of PR expression in winter among some bacterial groups may offer a competitive advantage, where its multifunctionality enhances microbial survival under harsh polar conditions.

Agarose gel purification of PCR products for denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis results in GC-clamp deletion

The 16S ribosomal RNA (rRNA) gene of marine archaeal samples was amplified using a nested PCR approach, and the V3 region of 16S rRNA gene of crab gut microbiota (CGM) was amplified using the V3 universal primer pair with a guanine and cytosine (GC)-clamp. Unpurified PCR products (UPPs), products purified from reaction solution (PPFSs), and products purified from gel (PPFGs) of above two DNA samples were used for denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) analysis, respectively. In contrast to almost identical band patterns shared by both the UPP and PPFS, the PPFGs were barely observed on the DGGE gel for both the marine archaea and CGM samples. Both PPFS and PPFG of CGM V3 regions were subjected to cloning. A small amount of positive clones was obtained for PPFS, but no positive clones were observed for PPFG. The melt curve and direct sequencing analysis of PPFS and PPFG of E. coli V3 region indicated that the Tm value of PPFG (82.35 ± 0.19 °C) was less than that of PPFS (83.81 ± 0.11 °C), and the number of shorter GC-clamps was significant higher in PPFG than in PPFS. The ultraviolet exposure experiment indicated that the ultraviolet was not responsible for the deletion of the GC-clamps. We conclude that the gel purification method is not suitable for DGGE PCR products or even other GC-rich DNA samples.

Comparative single-cell genomics reveals potential ecological niches for the freshwater acI Actinobacteria lineage

Members of the acI lineage of Actinobacteria are the most abundant microorganisms in most freshwater lakes; however, our understanding of the keys to their success and their role in carbon and nutrient cycling in freshwater systems has been hampered by the lack of pure cultures and genomes. We obtained draft genome assemblies from 11 single cells representing three acI tribes (acI-A1, acI-A7, acI-B1) from four temperate lakes in the United States and Europe. Comparative analysis of acI SAGs and other available freshwater bacterial genomes showed that acI has more gene content directed toward carbohydrate acquisition as compared to Polynucleobacter and LD12 Alphaproteobacteria, which seem to specialize more on carboxylic acids. The acI genomes contain actinorhodopsin as well as some genes involved in anaplerotic carbon fixation indicating the capacity to supplement their known heterotrophic lifestyle. Genome-level differences between the acI-A and acI-B clades suggest specialization at the clade level for carbon substrate acquisition. Overall, the acI genomes appear to be highly streamlined versions of Actinobacteria that include some genes allowing it to take advantage of sunlight and N-rich organic compounds such as polyamines, di- and oligopeptides, branched-chain amino acids and cyanophycin. This work significantly expands the known metabolic potential of the cosmopolitan freshwater acI lineage and its ecological and genetic traits.