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Goff JL, Szink EG, Durrence KL, Lui LM, Nielsen TN, Kuehl JV, Hunt KA, Chandonia JM, Huang J, Thorgersen MP, Poole FL, Stahl DA, Chakraborty R, Deutschbauer AM, Arkin AP, Adams MWW. Genomic and environmental controls on Castellaniella biogeography in an anthropogenically disturbed subsurface. ENVIRONMENTAL MICROBIOME 2024; 19:26. [PMID: 38671539 PMCID: PMC11046850 DOI: 10.1186/s40793-024-00570-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/03/2024] [Accepted: 04/19/2024] [Indexed: 04/28/2024]
Abstract
Castellaniella species have been isolated from a variety of mixed-waste environments including the nitrate and multiple metal-contaminated subsurface at the Oak Ridge Reservation (ORR). Previous studies examining microbial community composition and nitrate removal at ORR during biostimulation efforts reported increased abundances of members of the Castellaniella genus concurrent with increased denitrification rates. Thus, we asked how genomic and abiotic factors control the Castellaniella biogeography at the site to understand how these factors may influence nitrate transformation in an anthropogenically impacted setting. We report the isolation and characterization of several Castellaniella strains from the ORR subsurface. Five of these isolates match at 100% identity (at the 16S rRNA gene V4 region) to two Castellaniella amplicon sequence variants (ASVs), ASV1 and ASV2, that have persisted in the ORR subsurface for at least 2 decades. However, ASV2 has consistently higher relative abundance in samples taken from the site and was also the dominant blooming denitrifier population during a prior biostimulation effort. We found that the ASV2 representative strain has greater resistance to mixed metal stress than the ASV1 representative strains. We attribute this resistance, in part, to the large number of unique heavy metal resistance genes identified on a genomic island in the ASV2 representative genome. Additionally, we suggest that the relatively lower fitness of ASV1 may be connected to the loss of the nitrous oxide reductase (nos) operon (and associated nitrous oxide reductase activity) due to the insertion at this genomic locus of a mobile genetic element carrying copper resistance genes. This study demonstrates the value of integrating genomic, environmental, and phenotypic data to characterize the biogeography of key microorganisms in contaminated sites.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer L Goff
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, 30602, USA
- State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry, Syracuse, NY, USA
| | - Elizabeth G Szink
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, 30602, USA
| | - Konnor L Durrence
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, 30602, USA
| | - Lauren M Lui
- Environmental Genomics and Systems Biology, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Torben N Nielsen
- Environmental Genomics and Systems Biology, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Jennifer V Kuehl
- Environmental Genomics and Systems Biology, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Kristopher A Hunt
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - John-Marc Chandonia
- Environmental Genomics and Systems Biology, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Jiawen Huang
- Earth and Environmental Science Area, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Michael P Thorgersen
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, 30602, USA
| | - Farris L Poole
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, 30602, USA
| | - David A Stahl
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Romy Chakraborty
- Earth and Environmental Science Area, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Adam M Deutschbauer
- Environmental Genomics and Systems Biology, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Adam P Arkin
- Environmental Genomics and Systems Biology, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, USA
- Department of Bioengineering, University of California-Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Michael W W Adams
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, 30602, USA.
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Goff JL, Lui LM, Nielsen TN, Poole FL, Smith HJ, Walker KF, Hazen TC, Fields MW, Arkin AP, Adams MWW. Mixed waste contamination selects for a mobile genetic element population enriched in multiple heavy metal resistance genes. ISME COMMUNICATIONS 2024; 4:ycae064. [PMID: 38800128 PMCID: PMC11128244 DOI: 10.1093/ismeco/ycae064] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/22/2023] [Revised: 03/11/2024] [Indexed: 05/29/2024]
Abstract
Mobile genetic elements (MGEs) like plasmids, viruses, and transposable elements can provide fitness benefits to their hosts for survival in the presence of environmental stressors. Heavy metal resistance genes (HMRGs) are frequently observed on MGEs, suggesting that MGEs may be an important driver of adaptive evolution in environments contaminated with heavy metals. Here, we report the meta-mobilome of the heavy metal-contaminated regions of the Oak Ridge Reservation subsurface. This meta-mobilome was compared with one derived from samples collected from unimpacted regions of the Oak Ridge Reservation subsurface. We assembled 1615 unique circularized DNA elements that we propose to be MGEs. The circular elements from the highly contaminated subsurface were enriched in HMRG clusters relative to those from the nearby unimpacted regions. Additionally, we found that these HMRGs were associated with Gamma and Betaproteobacteria hosts in the contaminated subsurface and potentially facilitate the persistence and dominance of these taxa in this region. Finally, the HMRGs were associated with conjugative elements, suggesting their potential for future lateral transfer. We demonstrate how our understanding of MGE ecology, evolution, and function can be enhanced through the genomic context provided by completed MGE assemblies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer L Goff
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, United States
- Department of Chemistry, State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry, Syracuse, NY 13210, United States
| | - Lauren M Lui
- Environmental Genomics and Systems Biology Division, E.O. Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720, United States
| | - Torben N Nielsen
- Environmental Genomics and Systems Biology Division, E.O. Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720, United States
| | - Farris L Poole
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, United States
| | - Heidi J Smith
- Center for Biofilm Engineering, Montana State University, Bozeman, MT 59717, United States
- Department of Microbiology and Cell Biology, Montana State University, Bozeman, MT 59717, United States
| | - Kathleen F Walker
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37916, United States
| | - Terry C Hazen
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37916, United States
- Genome Sciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, TN 37830, United States
| | - Matthew W Fields
- Center for Biofilm Engineering, Montana State University, Bozeman, MT 59717, United States
- Department of Microbiology and Cell Biology, Montana State University, Bozeman, MT 59717, United States
| | - Adam P Arkin
- Environmental Genomics and Systems Biology Division, E.O. Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720, United States
- Department of Bioengineering, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720, United States
| | - Michael W W Adams
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, United States
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Goff JL, Chen Y, Thorgersen MP, Hoang LT, Poole FL, Szink EG, Siuzdak G, Petzold CJ, Adams MWW. Mixed heavy metal stress induces global iron starvation response. THE ISME JOURNAL 2023; 17:382-392. [PMID: 36572723 PMCID: PMC9938188 DOI: 10.1038/s41396-022-01351-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/05/2022] [Revised: 12/08/2022] [Accepted: 12/13/2022] [Indexed: 12/28/2022]
Abstract
Multiple heavy metal contamination is an increasingly common global problem. Heavy metals have the potential to disrupt microbially mediated biogeochemical cycling. However, systems-level studies on the effects of combinations of heavy metals on bacteria are lacking. For this study, we focused on the Oak Ridge Reservation (ORR; Oak Ridge, TN, USA) subsurface which is contaminated with several heavy metals and high concentrations of nitrate. Using a native Bacillus cereus isolate that represents a dominant species at this site, we assessed the combined impact of eight metal contaminants, all at site-relevant concentrations, on cell processes through an integrated multi-omics approach that included discovery proteomics, targeted metabolomics, and targeted gene-expression profiling. The combination of eight metals impacted cell physiology in a manner that could not have been predicted from summing phenotypic responses to the individual metals. Exposure to the metal mixture elicited a global iron starvation response not observed during individual metal exposures. This disruption of iron homeostasis resulted in decreased activity of the iron-cofactor-containing nitrate and nitrite reductases, both of which are important in biological nitrate removal at the site. We propose that the combinatorial effects of simultaneous exposure to multiple heavy metals is an underappreciated yet significant form of cell stress in the environment with the potential to disrupt global nutrient cycles and to impede bioremediation efforts at mixed waste sites. Our work underscores the need to shift from single- to multi-metal studies for assessing and predicting the impacts of complex contaminants on microbial systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer L. Goff
- grid.213876.90000 0004 1936 738XDepartment of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA USA
| | - Yan Chen
- grid.184769.50000 0001 2231 4551Biological Systems and Engineering, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA USA
| | - Michael P. Thorgersen
- grid.213876.90000 0004 1936 738XDepartment of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA USA
| | - Linh T. Hoang
- grid.214007.00000000122199231Scripps Center for Metabolomics, Scripps Research, La Jolla, CA USA
| | - Farris L. Poole
- grid.213876.90000 0004 1936 738XDepartment of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA USA
| | - Elizabeth G. Szink
- grid.213876.90000 0004 1936 738XDepartment of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA USA
| | - Gary Siuzdak
- grid.214007.00000000122199231Scripps Center for Metabolomics, Scripps Research, La Jolla, CA USA
| | - Christopher J. Petzold
- grid.184769.50000 0001 2231 4551Biological Systems and Engineering, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA USA
| | - Michael W. W. Adams
- grid.213876.90000 0004 1936 738XDepartment of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA USA
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