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Costa P, Pereira C, Romalde JL, Almeida A. A game of resistance: War between bacteria and phages and how phage cocktails can be the solution. Virology 2024; 599:110209. [PMID: 39186863 DOI: 10.1016/j.virol.2024.110209] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/29/2024] [Revised: 08/12/2024] [Accepted: 08/14/2024] [Indexed: 08/28/2024]
Abstract
While phages hold promise as an antibiotic alternative, they encounter significant challenges in combating bacterial infections, primarily due to the emergence of phage-resistant bacteria. Bacterial defence mechanisms like superinfection exclusion, CRISPR, and restriction-modification systems can hinder phage effectiveness. Innovative strategies, such as combining different phages into cocktails, have been explored to address these challenges. This review delves into these defence mechanisms and their impact at each stage of the infection cycle, their challenges, and the strategies phages have developed to counteract them. Additionally, we examine the role of phage cocktails in the evolving landscape of antibacterial treatments and discuss recent studies that highlight the effectiveness of diverse phage cocktails in targeting essential bacterial receptors and combating resistant strains.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pedro Costa
- CESAM, Department of Biology, University of Aveiro, Campus Universitário de Santiago, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal.
| | - Carla Pereira
- CESAM, Department of Biology, University of Aveiro, Campus Universitário de Santiago, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal.
| | - Jesús L Romalde
- Department of Microbiology and Parasitology, CRETUS & CIBUS - Faculty of Biology, University of Santiago de Compostela, CP 15782 Santiago de Compostela, Spain.
| | - Adelaide Almeida
- CESAM, Department of Biology, University of Aveiro, Campus Universitário de Santiago, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal.
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2
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Zhang Q, Xiong Y, Zhang J, Liu B, Chen T, Liu S, Dang C, Xu WD, Ahmad HA, Liu T. Eutrophication impacts the distribution and functional traits of viral communities in lakes. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2024; 946:174339. [PMID: 38960155 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.174339] [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: 05/04/2024] [Revised: 06/25/2024] [Accepted: 06/26/2024] [Indexed: 07/05/2024]
Abstract
Viruses play a crucial role in aquatic ecosystems by regulating microbial composition and impacting biogeochemical cycling. While the response of viral diversity to the trophic status has been preliminarily explored in lake ecosystems, there is limited integrated exploration of the biogeography of viruses, host associations, and the auxiliary metabolic genes (AMGs), particularly for plateau lakes. Therefore, this research investigated the viral biogeography, virus-host association, and AMGs in the surface waters of 11 lakes varying in trophic levels (eutrophic and oligo-mesotrophic) in the Yunnan-Guizhou plateau region of China. A total of 73,105 viral operational taxonomic units were obtained from 11 samples, with 84.8 % remaining unannotated at the family level, indicating a predominance of novel viruses within these lakes. The most abundant viral family was Kyanoviridae (24.4 %), recognized as a common cyanophage. The vast majority of cyanobacteria and several eukaryotic algae were predicted as hosts for the viruses, with a lytic lifestyle predominating the life strategy of these cyanophages, implying the potential influence of the virus on algae. The viral community structure significantly correlated with both trophic status and the bacterial community. The structure equation model analysis revealed chlorophyll a was the primary factor affecting viral communities. Moreover, numerous AMGs linked to carbon metabolism, phosphorus metabolism, sulfur metabolism, and photosynthesis were found in these lakes, some of which showed virus preference for the trophic statuses, suggesting a vital role of the virus in driving biogeochemical cycling in the lake crossing different nutrient levels. In addition, a restricted presence of viruses was found to infect humans or harbor antibiotic resistance genes in the lakes, suggesting a subtle yet potential link to human health. Overall, these findings offer insights into the response of viral communities to eutrophication and their potential role in biogeochemical cycling and controlling algal propagation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qiue Zhang
- Environmental Microbiome Engineering and Innovative Genomics Laboratory, College of Chemistry and Environmental Engineering, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen 518060, PR China
| | - Yanxuan Xiong
- Environmental Microbiome Engineering and Innovative Genomics Laboratory, College of Chemistry and Environmental Engineering, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen 518060, PR China
| | - Jinhong Zhang
- Environmental Microbiome Engineering and Innovative Genomics Laboratory, College of Chemistry and Environmental Engineering, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen 518060, PR China
| | - Boya Liu
- Environmental Microbiome Engineering and Innovative Genomics Laboratory, College of Chemistry and Environmental Engineering, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen 518060, PR China
| | - Tianyi Chen
- School of Environment and Energy, Peking University Shenzhen Graduate School, Shenzhen 518055, PR China
| | - Shufeng Liu
- College of Resources and Environmental Sciences, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100083, PR China
| | - Chenyuan Dang
- School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430074, PR China
| | - Wei D Xu
- Changjiang Institute of Survey, Planning, Design and Research, Wuhan, Hubei 430010, PR China
| | - Hafiz Adeel Ahmad
- Environmental Microbiome Engineering and Innovative Genomics Laboratory, College of Chemistry and Environmental Engineering, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen 518060, PR China; School of Biomedical Engineering, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen 518060, PR China.
| | - Tang Liu
- Environmental Microbiome Engineering and Innovative Genomics Laboratory, College of Chemistry and Environmental Engineering, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen 518060, PR China.
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Jia P, Liang JL, Lu JL, Zhong SJ, Xiong T, Feng SW, Wang Y, Wu ZH, Yi XZ, Gao SM, Zheng J, Wen P, Li F, Li Y, Liao B, Shu WS, Li JT. Soil keystone viruses are regulators of ecosystem multifunctionality. ENVIRONMENT INTERNATIONAL 2024; 191:108964. [PMID: 39173234 DOI: 10.1016/j.envint.2024.108964] [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: 05/27/2024] [Revised: 08/14/2024] [Accepted: 08/16/2024] [Indexed: 08/24/2024]
Abstract
Ecosystem multifunctionality reflects the capacity of ecosystems to simultaneously maintain multiple functions which are essential bases for human sustainable development. Whereas viruses are a major component of the soil microbiome that drive ecosystem functions across biomes, the relationships between soil viral diversity and ecosystem multifunctionality remain under-studied. To address this critical knowledge gap, we employed a combination of amplicon and metagenomic sequencing to assess prokaryotic, fungal and viral diversity, and to link viruses to putative hosts. We described the features of viruses and their potential hosts in 154 soil samples from 29 farmlands and 25 forests distributed across China. Although 4,460 and 5,207 viral populations (vOTUs) were found in the farmlands and forests respectively, the diversity of specific vOTUs rather than overall soil viral diversity was positively correlated with ecosystem multifunctionality in both ecosystem types. Furthermore, the diversity of these keystone vOTUs, despite being 10-100 times lower than prokaryotic or fungal diversity, was a better predictor of ecosystem multifunctionality and more strongly associated with the relative abundances of prokaryotic genes related to soil nutrient cycling. Gemmatimonadota and Actinobacteria dominated the host community of soil keystone viruses in the farmlands and forests respectively, but were either absent or showed a significantly lower relative abundance in that of soil non-keystone viruses. These findings provide novel insights into the regulators of ecosystem multifunctionality and have important implications for the management of ecosystem functioning.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pu Jia
- Institute of Ecological Science, Guangzhou Key Laboratory of Subtropical Biodiversity and Biomonitoring, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Biotechnology for Plant Development, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510631, PR China
| | - Jie-Liang Liang
- Institute of Ecological Science, Guangzhou Key Laboratory of Subtropical Biodiversity and Biomonitoring, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Biotechnology for Plant Development, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510631, PR China
| | - Jing-Li Lu
- Institute of Ecological Science, Guangzhou Key Laboratory of Subtropical Biodiversity and Biomonitoring, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Biotechnology for Plant Development, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510631, PR China
| | - Sheng-Ji Zhong
- Institute of Ecological Science, Guangzhou Key Laboratory of Subtropical Biodiversity and Biomonitoring, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Biotechnology for Plant Development, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510631, PR China
| | - Tian Xiong
- Institute of Ecological Science, Guangzhou Key Laboratory of Subtropical Biodiversity and Biomonitoring, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Biotechnology for Plant Development, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510631, PR China
| | - Shi-Wei Feng
- Institute of Ecological Science, Guangzhou Key Laboratory of Subtropical Biodiversity and Biomonitoring, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Biotechnology for Plant Development, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510631, PR China
| | - Yutao Wang
- Institute of Ecological Science, Guangzhou Key Laboratory of Subtropical Biodiversity and Biomonitoring, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Biotechnology for Plant Development, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510631, PR China
| | - Zhuo-Hui Wu
- Institute of Ecological Science, Guangzhou Key Laboratory of Subtropical Biodiversity and Biomonitoring, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Biotechnology for Plant Development, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510631, PR China
| | - Xin-Zhu Yi
- Institute of Ecological Science, Guangzhou Key Laboratory of Subtropical Biodiversity and Biomonitoring, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Biotechnology for Plant Development, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510631, PR China
| | - Shao-Ming Gao
- School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510275, PR China
| | - Jin Zheng
- Institute of Ecological Science, Guangzhou Key Laboratory of Subtropical Biodiversity and Biomonitoring, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Biotechnology for Plant Development, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510631, PR China
| | - Ping Wen
- Institute of Ecological Science, Guangzhou Key Laboratory of Subtropical Biodiversity and Biomonitoring, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Biotechnology for Plant Development, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510631, PR China
| | - Fenglin Li
- Institute of Ecological Science, Guangzhou Key Laboratory of Subtropical Biodiversity and Biomonitoring, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Biotechnology for Plant Development, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510631, PR China
| | - Yanying Li
- Institute of Ecological Science, Guangzhou Key Laboratory of Subtropical Biodiversity and Biomonitoring, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Biotechnology for Plant Development, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510631, PR China
| | - Bin Liao
- School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510275, PR China
| | - Wen-Sheng Shu
- Institute of Ecological Science, Guangzhou Key Laboratory of Subtropical Biodiversity and Biomonitoring, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Biotechnology for Plant Development, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510631, PR China
| | - Jin-Tian Li
- Institute of Ecological Science, Guangzhou Key Laboratory of Subtropical Biodiversity and Biomonitoring, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Biotechnology for Plant Development, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou 510631, PR China.
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Zhu HX, Wright BW, Logel DY, Needham P, Yehl K, Molloy MP, Jaschke PR. IbpAB small heat shock proteins are not host factors for bacteriophage ϕX174 replication. Virology 2024; 597:110169. [PMID: 38996611 DOI: 10.1016/j.virol.2024.110169] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/01/2024] [Revised: 06/20/2024] [Accepted: 07/02/2024] [Indexed: 07/14/2024]
Abstract
Bacteriophage ϕX174 is a small icosahedral virus of the Microviridae with a rapid replication cycle. Previously, we found that in ϕX174 infections of Escherichia coli, the most highly upregulated host proteins are two small heat shock proteins, IbpA and IbpB, belonging to the HSP20 family, which is a universally conserved group of stress-induced molecular chaperones that prevent irreversible aggregation of proteins. Heat shock proteins were found to protect against ϕX174 lysis, but IbpA/B have not been studied. In this work, we disrupted the ibpA and ibpB genes and measured the effects on ϕX174 replication. We found that in contrast to other E. coli heat shock proteins, they are not necessary for ϕX174 replication; moreover, their absence has no discernible effect on ϕX174 fecundity. These results suggest IbpA/B upregulation is a response to ϕX174 protein expression but does not play a role in phage replication, and they are not Microviridae host factors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hannah X Zhu
- School of Natural Sciences, Macquarie University, Sydney, NSW, Australia; ARC Centre of Excellence in Synthetic Biology, Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia
| | - Bradley W Wright
- School of Natural Sciences, Macquarie University, Sydney, NSW, Australia; ARC Centre of Excellence in Synthetic Biology, Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia
| | - Dominic Y Logel
- School of Natural Sciences, Macquarie University, Sydney, NSW, Australia; ARC Centre of Excellence in Synthetic Biology, Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia
| | - Patrick Needham
- Miami University, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Oxford, 45056, USA
| | - Kevin Yehl
- Miami University, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Oxford, 45056, USA
| | - Mark P Molloy
- School of Natural Sciences, Macquarie University, Sydney, NSW, Australia; Kolling Institute, School of Medical Sciences, The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia
| | - Paul R Jaschke
- School of Natural Sciences, Macquarie University, Sydney, NSW, Australia; ARC Centre of Excellence in Synthetic Biology, Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia.
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Wang D, Liu L, Xu X, Wang C, Wang Y, Deng Y, Zhang T. Distributions, interactions, and dynamics of prokaryotes and phages in a hybrid biological wastewater treatment system. MICROBIOME 2024; 12:134. [PMID: 39039555 PMCID: PMC11265110 DOI: 10.1186/s40168-024-01853-6] [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: 09/22/2023] [Accepted: 06/03/2024] [Indexed: 07/24/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Understanding the interactions and dynamics of microbiotas within biological wastewater treatment systems is essential for ensuring their stability and long-term sustainability. In this study, we developed a systematic framework employing multi-omics and Hi-C sequencing to extensively investigate prokaryotic and phage communities within a hybrid biofilm and activated sludge system. RESULTS We uncovered distinct distribution patterns, metabolic capabilities, and activities of functional prokaryotes through the analysis of 454 reconstructed prokaryotic genomes. Additionally, we reconstructed a phage catalog comprising 18,645 viral operational taxonomic units (vOTUs) with high length and contiguity using hybrid assembly, and a distinct distribution of phages was depicted between activated sludge (AS) and biofilm. Importantly, 1340 host-phage pairs were established using Hi-C and conventional in silico methods, unveiling the host-determined phage prevalence. The majority of predicted hosts were found to be involved in various crucial metabolic processes, highlighting the potential vital roles of phages in influencing substance metabolism within this system. Moreover, auxiliary metabolic genes (AMGs) related to various categories (e.g., carbohydrate degradation, sulfur metabolism, transporter) were predicted. Subsequent activity analysis emphasized their potential ability to mediate host metabolism during infection. We also profiled the temporal dynamics of phages and their associated hosts using 13-month time-series metagenomic data, further demonstrating their tight interactions. Notably, we observed lineage-specific infection patterns, such as potentially host abundance- or phage/host ratio-driven phage population changes. CONCLUSIONS The insights gained from this research contribute to the growing body of knowledge surrounding interactions and dynamics of host-phage and pave the way for further exploration and potential applications in the field of microbial ecology. Video Abstract.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dou Wang
- Environmental Microbiome Engineering and Biotechnology Laboratory, Center for Environmental Engineering Research, Department of Civil Engineering, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China
| | - Lei Liu
- Environmental Microbiome Engineering and Biotechnology Laboratory, Center for Environmental Engineering Research, Department of Civil Engineering, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China
| | - Xiaoqing Xu
- Environmental Microbiome Engineering and Biotechnology Laboratory, Center for Environmental Engineering Research, Department of Civil Engineering, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China
| | - Chunxiao Wang
- Environmental Microbiome Engineering and Biotechnology Laboratory, Center for Environmental Engineering Research, Department of Civil Engineering, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China
| | - Yulin Wang
- Environmental Microbiome Engineering and Biotechnology Laboratory, Center for Environmental Engineering Research, Department of Civil Engineering, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China
| | - Yu Deng
- Environmental Microbiome Engineering and Biotechnology Laboratory, Center for Environmental Engineering Research, Department of Civil Engineering, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China
| | - Tong Zhang
- Environmental Microbiome Engineering and Biotechnology Laboratory, Center for Environmental Engineering Research, Department of Civil Engineering, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China.
- School of Public Health, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China.
- Macau Institute for Applied Research in Medicine and Health, Macau University of Science and Technology, Macau SAR, China.
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Sun CL, Pratama AA, Gazitúa MC, Cronin D, McGivern BB, Wainaina JM, Vik DR, Zayed AA, Bolduc B, Wrighton KC, Rich VI, Sullivan MB. Virus ecology and 7-year temporal dynamics across a permafrost thaw gradient. Environ Microbiol 2024; 26:e16665. [PMID: 39101434 DOI: 10.1111/1462-2920.16665] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/01/2024] [Accepted: 05/16/2024] [Indexed: 08/06/2024]
Abstract
Soil microorganisms are pivotal in the global carbon cycle, but the viruses that affect them and their impact on ecosystems are less understood. In this study, we explored the diversity, dynamics, and ecology of soil viruses through 379 metagenomes collected annually from 2010 to 2017. These samples spanned the seasonally thawed active layer of a permafrost thaw gradient, which included palsa, bog, and fen habitats. We identified 5051 virus operational taxonomic units (vOTUs), doubling the known viruses for this site. These vOTUs were largely ephemeral within habitats, suggesting a turnover at the vOTU level from year to year. While the diversity varied by thaw stage and depth-related patterns were specific to each habitat, the virus communities did not significantly change over time. The abundance ratios of virus to host at the phylum level did not show consistent trends across the thaw gradient, depth, or time. To assess potential ecosystem impacts, we predicted hosts in silico and found viruses linked to microbial lineages involved in the carbon cycle, such as methanotrophy and methanogenesis. This included the identification of viruses of Candidatus Methanoflorens, a significant global methane contributor. We also detected a variety of potential auxiliary metabolic genes, including 24 carbon-degrading glycoside hydrolases, six of which are uniquely terrestrial. In conclusion, these long-term observations enhance our understanding of soil viruses in the context of climate-relevant processes and provide opportunities to explore their role in terrestrial carbon cycling.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christine L Sun
- Department of Microbiology, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA
- Center of Microbiome Science, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA
- National Science Foundation EMERGE Biology Integration Institute, The Ohio State University, Columbus, USA
| | - Akbar Adjie Pratama
- Department of Microbiology, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA
- Center of Microbiome Science, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA
- National Science Foundation EMERGE Biology Integration Institute, The Ohio State University, Columbus, USA
| | | | - Dylan Cronin
- Department of Microbiology, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA
- Center of Microbiome Science, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA
- National Science Foundation EMERGE Biology Integration Institute, The Ohio State University, Columbus, USA
| | - Bridget B McGivern
- National Science Foundation EMERGE Biology Integration Institute, The Ohio State University, Columbus, USA
- Soil and Crop Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado, USA
| | - James M Wainaina
- Department of Microbiology, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA
- Center of Microbiome Science, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA
| | - Dean R Vik
- Department of Microbiology, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA
- Center of Microbiome Science, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA
- National Science Foundation EMERGE Biology Integration Institute, The Ohio State University, Columbus, USA
| | - Ahmed A Zayed
- Department of Microbiology, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA
- Center of Microbiome Science, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA
- National Science Foundation EMERGE Biology Integration Institute, The Ohio State University, Columbus, USA
| | - Benjamin Bolduc
- Department of Microbiology, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA
- Center of Microbiome Science, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA
- National Science Foundation EMERGE Biology Integration Institute, The Ohio State University, Columbus, USA
| | - Kelly C Wrighton
- National Science Foundation EMERGE Biology Integration Institute, The Ohio State University, Columbus, USA
- Soil and Crop Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, Colorado, USA
| | - Virginia I Rich
- Department of Microbiology, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA
- Center of Microbiome Science, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA
- National Science Foundation EMERGE Biology Integration Institute, The Ohio State University, Columbus, USA
- Byrd Polar and Climate Research Center, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA
| | - Matthew B Sullivan
- Department of Microbiology, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA
- Center of Microbiome Science, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA
- National Science Foundation EMERGE Biology Integration Institute, The Ohio State University, Columbus, USA
- Byrd Polar and Climate Research Center, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA
- Department of Civil, Environmental and Geodetic Engineering, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA
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Chen PWY, Olivia M, Gong GC, Jan S, Tsai AY. Viral Dynamics in the Tropical Pacific Ocean: A Comparison between Within and Outside a Warm Eddy. Viruses 2024; 16:937. [PMID: 38932229 PMCID: PMC11209615 DOI: 10.3390/v16060937] [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: 03/30/2024] [Revised: 06/02/2024] [Accepted: 06/06/2024] [Indexed: 06/28/2024] Open
Abstract
In mesoscale eddies, the chemical properties and biological composition are different from those in the surrounding water due to their unique physical processes. The mechanism of physical-biological coupling in warm-core eddies is unclear, especially because no studies have examined the effects of environmental factors on bacteria and viruses. The purpose of the present study was to examine the influence of an anticyclonic warm eddy on the relationship between bacterial and viral abundances, as well as viral activity (viral production), at different depths. At the core of the warm eddy, the bacterial abundance (0.48 to 2.82 × 105 cells mL-1) fluctuated less than that outside the eddy (1.12 to 7.03 × 105 cells mL-1). In particular, there was a four-fold higher viral-bacterial abundance ratio (VBR) estimated within the eddy, below the layer of the deep chlorophyll maximum, than outside the eddy. An anticyclonic warm eddy with downwelling at its center may contribute to viruses being transmitted directly into the deep ocean through adsorption on particulate organic matter while sinking. Overall, our findings provide valuable insights into the interaction between bacterial and viral abundances and their ecological mechanisms within a warm eddy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patrichka Wei-Yi Chen
- Institute of Marine Environment and Ecology, National Taiwan Ocean University, Keelung 202-24, Taiwan; (P.W.-Y.C.); (M.O.); (G.-C.G.)
- Doctoral Degree Program in Ocean Resource and Environmental Changes, National Taiwan Ocean University, Keelung 202-24, Taiwan
| | - Madeline Olivia
- Institute of Marine Environment and Ecology, National Taiwan Ocean University, Keelung 202-24, Taiwan; (P.W.-Y.C.); (M.O.); (G.-C.G.)
- Doctoral Degree Program in Ocean Resource and Environmental Changes, National Taiwan Ocean University, Keelung 202-24, Taiwan
| | - Gwo-Ching Gong
- Institute of Marine Environment and Ecology, National Taiwan Ocean University, Keelung 202-24, Taiwan; (P.W.-Y.C.); (M.O.); (G.-C.G.)
- Doctoral Degree Program in Ocean Resource and Environmental Changes, National Taiwan Ocean University, Keelung 202-24, Taiwan
- Center of Excellence for the Oceans, National Taiwan Ocean University, Keelung 202-24, Taiwan
| | - Sen Jan
- Institute of Oceanography, National Taiwan University, Taipei 106319, Taiwan;
| | - An-Yi Tsai
- Institute of Marine Environment and Ecology, National Taiwan Ocean University, Keelung 202-24, Taiwan; (P.W.-Y.C.); (M.O.); (G.-C.G.)
- Doctoral Degree Program in Ocean Resource and Environmental Changes, National Taiwan Ocean University, Keelung 202-24, Taiwan
- Center of Excellence for the Oceans, National Taiwan Ocean University, Keelung 202-24, Taiwan
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8
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Wu LY, Wijesekara Y, Piedade GJ, Pappas N, Brussaard CPD, Dutilh BE. Benchmarking bioinformatic virus identification tools using real-world metagenomic data across biomes. Genome Biol 2024; 25:97. [PMID: 38622738 PMCID: PMC11020464 DOI: 10.1186/s13059-024-03236-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/06/2023] [Accepted: 04/01/2024] [Indexed: 04/17/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND As most viruses remain uncultivated, metagenomics is currently the main method for virus discovery. Detecting viruses in metagenomic data is not trivial. In the past few years, many bioinformatic virus identification tools have been developed for this task, making it challenging to choose the right tools, parameters, and cutoffs. As all these tools measure different biological signals, and use different algorithms and training and reference databases, it is imperative to conduct an independent benchmarking to give users objective guidance. RESULTS We compare the performance of nine state-of-the-art virus identification tools in thirteen modes on eight paired viral and microbial datasets from three distinct biomes, including a new complex dataset from Antarctic coastal waters. The tools have highly variable true positive rates (0-97%) and false positive rates (0-30%). PPR-Meta best distinguishes viral from microbial contigs, followed by DeepVirFinder, VirSorter2, and VIBRANT. Different tools identify different subsets of the benchmarking data and all tools, except for Sourmash, find unique viral contigs. Performance of tools improved with adjusted parameter cutoffs, indicating that adjustment of parameter cutoffs before usage should be considered. CONCLUSIONS Together, our independent benchmarking facilitates selecting choices of bioinformatic virus identification tools and gives suggestions for parameter adjustments to viromics researchers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ling-Yi Wu
- Theoretical Biology and Bioinformatics, Science4Life, Utrecht University, Padualaan 8, Utrecht, 3584 CH, The Netherlands
| | - Yasas Wijesekara
- Institute of Bioinformatics, University Medicine Greifswald, Felix Hausdorff Str. 8, 17475, Greifswald, Germany
| | - Gonçalo J Piedade
- Department Marine Microbiology and Biogeochemistry, NIOZ Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research, Den Burg, PO Box 59, Texel, 1790 AB, The Netherlands
- Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Nikolaos Pappas
- Theoretical Biology and Bioinformatics, Science4Life, Utrecht University, Padualaan 8, Utrecht, 3584 CH, The Netherlands
| | - Corina P D Brussaard
- Department Marine Microbiology and Biogeochemistry, NIOZ Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research, Den Burg, PO Box 59, Texel, 1790 AB, The Netherlands
- Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Bas E Dutilh
- Theoretical Biology and Bioinformatics, Science4Life, Utrecht University, Padualaan 8, Utrecht, 3584 CH, The Netherlands.
- Institute of Biodiversity, Faculty of Biological Sciences, Cluster of Excellence Balance of the Microverse, Friedrich Schiller University Jena, 07743, Jena, Germany.
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9
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Beavogui A, Lacroix A, Wiart N, Poulain J, Delmont TO, Paoli L, Wincker P, Oliveira PH. The defensome of complex bacterial communities. Nat Commun 2024; 15:2146. [PMID: 38459056 PMCID: PMC10924106 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-46489-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/13/2023] [Accepted: 02/28/2024] [Indexed: 03/10/2024] Open
Abstract
Bacteria have developed various defense mechanisms to avoid infection and killing in response to the fast evolution and turnover of viruses and other genetic parasites. Such pan-immune system (defensome) encompasses a growing number of defense lines that include well-studied innate and adaptive systems such as restriction-modification, CRISPR-Cas and abortive infection, but also newly found ones whose mechanisms are still poorly understood. While the abundance and distribution of defense systems is well-known in complete and culturable genomes, there is a void in our understanding of their diversity and richness in complex microbial communities. Here we performed a large-scale in-depth analysis of the defensomes of 7759 high-quality bacterial population genomes reconstructed from soil, marine, and human gut environments. We observed a wide variation in the frequency and nature of the defensome among large phyla, which correlated with lifestyle, genome size, habitat, and geographic background. The defensome's genetic mobility, its clustering in defense islands, and genetic variability was found to be system-specific and shaped by the bacterial environment. Hence, our results provide a detailed picture of the multiple immune barriers present in environmentally distinct bacterial communities and set the stage for subsequent identification of novel and ingenious strategies of diversification among uncultivated microbes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Angelina Beavogui
- Génomique Métabolique, Genoscope, Institut François Jacob, Commissariat à l'Energie Atomique (CEA), CNRS, Université Evry, Université Paris-Saclay, 2 Rue Gaston Crémieux, 91057, Evry, France
| | - Auriane Lacroix
- Génomique Métabolique, Genoscope, Institut François Jacob, Commissariat à l'Energie Atomique (CEA), CNRS, Université Evry, Université Paris-Saclay, 2 Rue Gaston Crémieux, 91057, Evry, France
| | - Nicolas Wiart
- Genoscope, Institut François Jacob, CEA, Université Paris-Saclay, 2 Rue Gaston Crémieux, 91057, Evry, France
| | - Julie Poulain
- Génomique Métabolique, Genoscope, Institut François Jacob, Commissariat à l'Energie Atomique (CEA), CNRS, Université Evry, Université Paris-Saclay, 2 Rue Gaston Crémieux, 91057, Evry, France
- Research Federation for the Study of Global Ocean Systems Ecology and Evolution, FR2022 / Tara GOsee, Paris, France
| | - Tom O Delmont
- Génomique Métabolique, Genoscope, Institut François Jacob, Commissariat à l'Energie Atomique (CEA), CNRS, Université Evry, Université Paris-Saclay, 2 Rue Gaston Crémieux, 91057, Evry, France
- Research Federation for the Study of Global Ocean Systems Ecology and Evolution, FR2022 / Tara GOsee, Paris, France
| | - Lucas Paoli
- Department of Biology, Institute of Microbiology and Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics, ETH Zürich, Zürich, 8093, Switzerland
- Institut Pasteur, Université Paris Cité, INSERM U1284, Molecular Diversity of Microbes lab, Paris, France
| | - Patrick Wincker
- Génomique Métabolique, Genoscope, Institut François Jacob, Commissariat à l'Energie Atomique (CEA), CNRS, Université Evry, Université Paris-Saclay, 2 Rue Gaston Crémieux, 91057, Evry, France
- Research Federation for the Study of Global Ocean Systems Ecology and Evolution, FR2022 / Tara GOsee, Paris, France
| | - Pedro H Oliveira
- Génomique Métabolique, Genoscope, Institut François Jacob, Commissariat à l'Energie Atomique (CEA), CNRS, Université Evry, Université Paris-Saclay, 2 Rue Gaston Crémieux, 91057, Evry, France.
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10
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Nweze JE, Schweichhart JS, Angel R. Viral communities in millipede guts: Insights into the diversity and potential role in modulating the microbiome. Environ Microbiol 2024; 26:e16586. [PMID: 38356108 DOI: 10.1111/1462-2920.16586] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/08/2023] [Accepted: 01/22/2024] [Indexed: 02/16/2024]
Abstract
Millipedes are important detritivores harbouring a diverse microbiome. Previous research focused on bacterial and archaeal diversity, while the virome remained neglected. We elucidated the DNA and RNA viral diversity in the hindguts of two model millipede species with distinct microbiomes: the tropical Epibolus pulchripes (methanogenic, dominated by Bacillota) and the temperate Glomeris connexa (non-methanogenic, dominated by Pseudomonadota). Based on metagenomic and metatranscriptomic assembled viral genomes, the viral communities differed markedly and preferentially infected the most abundant prokaryotic taxa. The majority of DNA viruses were Caudoviricetes (dsDNA), Cirlivirales (ssDNA) and Microviridae (ssDNA), while RNA viruses consisted of Leviviricetes (ssRNA), Potyviridae (ssRNA) and Eukaryotic viruses. A high abundance of subtypes I-C, I-B and II-C CRISPR-Cas systems was found, primarily from Pseudomonadota, Bacteroidota and Bacillota. In addition, auxiliary metabolic genes that modulate chitin degradation, vitamins and amino acid biosynthesis and sulphur metabolism were also detected. Lastly, we found low virus-to-microbe-ratios and a prevalence of lysogenic viruses, supporting a Piggyback-the-Winner dynamic in both hosts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julius Eyiuche Nweze
- Institute of Soil Biology and Biogeochemistry, Biology Centre CAS, České Budějovice, Czechia
- Department of Ecosystem Biology, Faculty of Science, University of South Bohemia in České Budějovice, České Budějovice, Czechia
| | - Johannes Sergej Schweichhart
- Institute of Soil Biology and Biogeochemistry, Biology Centre CAS, České Budějovice, Czechia
- Department of Ecosystem Biology, Faculty of Science, University of South Bohemia in České Budějovice, České Budějovice, Czechia
| | - Roey Angel
- Institute of Soil Biology and Biogeochemistry, Biology Centre CAS, České Budějovice, Czechia
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11
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Miao Y, Sun Z, Ma C, Lin C, Wang G, Yang C. VirGrapher: a graph-based viral identifier for long sequences from metagenomes. Brief Bioinform 2024; 25:bbae036. [PMID: 38343326 PMCID: PMC10859693 DOI: 10.1093/bib/bbae036] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/13/2023] [Revised: 01/15/2024] [Accepted: 01/18/2024] [Indexed: 02/15/2024] Open
Abstract
Viruses are the most abundant biological entities on earth and are important components of microbial communities. A metagenome contains all microorganisms from an environmental sample. Correctly identifying viruses from these mixed sequences is critical in viral analyses. It is common to identify long viral sequences, which has already been passed thought pipelines of assembly and binning. Existing deep learning-based methods divide these long sequences into short subsequences and identify them separately. This makes the relationships between them be omitted, leading to poor performance on identifying long viral sequences. In this paper, VirGrapher is proposed to improve the identification performance of long viral sequences by constructing relationships among short subsequences from long ones. VirGrapher see a long sequence as a graph and uses a Graph Convolutional Network (GCN) model to learn multilayer connections between nodes from sequences after a GCN-based node embedding model. VirGrapher achieves a better AUC value and accuracy on validation set, which is better than three benchmark methods.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yan Miao
- College of Computer and Control Engineering, Northeast Forestry University, Hexing Road, 150040, Heilongjiang Province, China
| | - Zhenyuan Sun
- College of Computer and Control Engineering, Northeast Forestry University, Hexing Road, 150040, Heilongjiang Province, China
| | - Chenjing Ma
- College of Computer and Control Engineering, Northeast Forestry University, Hexing Road, 150040, Heilongjiang Province, China
| | - Chen Lin
- National Institute for Data Science in Health and Medicine, Xiamen University, Xiangannan Road, 361104, Fujian Province, China
| | - Guohua Wang
- College of Computer and Control Engineering, Northeast Forestry University, Hexing Road, 150040, Heilongjiang Province, China
| | - Chunxue Yang
- College of Landscape Architecture, Northeast Forestry University, Hexing Road, 150040, Heilongjiang Province, China
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12
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Heinrichs ME, Piedade GJ, Popa O, Sommers P, Trubl G, Weissenbach J, Rahlff J. Breaking the Ice: A Review of Phages in Polar Ecosystems. Methods Mol Biol 2024; 2738:31-71. [PMID: 37966591 DOI: 10.1007/978-1-0716-3549-0_3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2023]
Abstract
Bacteriophages, or phages, are viruses that infect and replicate within bacterial hosts, playing a significant role in regulating microbial populations and ecosystem dynamics. However, phages from extreme environments such as polar regions remain relatively understudied due to challenges such as restricted ecosystem access and low biomass. Understanding the diversity, structure, and functions of polar phages is crucial for advancing our knowledge of the microbial ecology and biogeochemistry of these environments. In this review, we will explore the current state of knowledge on phages from the Arctic and Antarctic, focusing on insights gained from -omic studies, phage isolation, and virus-like particle abundance data. Metagenomic studies of polar environments have revealed a high diversity of phages with unique genetic characteristics, providing insights into their evolutionary and ecological roles. Phage isolation studies have identified novel phage-host interactions and contributed to the discovery of new phage species. Virus-like particle abundance and lysis rate data, on the other hand, have highlighted the importance of phages in regulating bacterial populations and nutrient cycling in polar environments. Overall, this review aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the current state of knowledge about polar phages, and by synthesizing these different sources of information, we can better understand the diversity, dynamics, and functions of polar phages in the context of ongoing climate change, which will help to predict how polar ecosystems and residing phages may respond to future environmental perturbations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mara Elena Heinrichs
- Institute for Chemistry and Biology of the Marine Environment, Carl von Ossietzky University, Oldenburg, Germany
| | - Gonçalo J Piedade
- Department of Marine Microbiology and Biogeochemistry, NIOZ Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research, 't Horntje, The Netherlands
- Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics (IBED), University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Ovidiu Popa
- Institute of Quantitative and Theoretical Biology Heinrich-Heine University Duesseldorf, Duesseldorf, Germany
| | | | - Gareth Trubl
- Physical and Life Sciences Directorate, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Livermore, CA, USA
| | - Julia Weissenbach
- Centre for Ecology and Evolution in Microbial Model Systems (EEMiS), Department of Biology and Environmental Science, Linnaeus University, Kalmar, Sweden
| | - Janina Rahlff
- Centre for Ecology and Evolution in Microbial Model Systems (EEMiS), Department of Biology and Environmental Science, Linnaeus University, Kalmar, Sweden.
- Aero-Aquatic Virus Research Group, Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Jena, Germany.
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13
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Rossi FPN, Flores VS, Uceda-Campos G, Amgarten DE, Setubal JC, da Silva AM. Comparative Analyses of Bacteriophage Genomes. Methods Mol Biol 2024; 2802:427-453. [PMID: 38819567 DOI: 10.1007/978-1-0716-3838-5_14] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/01/2024]
Abstract
Bacterial viruses (bacteriophages or phages) are the most abundant and diverse biological entities on Earth. There is a renewed worldwide interest in phage-centered research motivated by their enormous potential as antimicrobials to cope with multidrug-resistant pathogens. An ever-growing number of complete phage genomes are becoming available, derived either from newly isolated phages (cultivated phages) or recovered from metagenomic sequencing data (uncultivated phages). Robust comparative analysis is crucial for a comprehensive understanding of genotypic variations of phages and their related evolutionary processes, and to investigate the interaction mechanisms between phages and their hosts. In this chapter, we present a protocol for phage comparative genomics employing tools selected out of the many currently available, focusing on complete genomes of phages classified in the class Caudoviricetes. This protocol provides accurate identification of similarities, differences, and patterns among new and previously known complete phage genomes as well as phage clustering and taxonomic classification.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Vinicius Sousa Flores
- Departamento de Bioquímica, Instituto de Química, Universidade de São Paulo, Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil
| | - Guillermo Uceda-Campos
- Departamento de Bioquímica, Instituto de Química, Universidade de São Paulo, Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil
| | | | - João Carlos Setubal
- Departamento de Bioquímica, Instituto de Química, Universidade de São Paulo, Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil
| | - Aline Maria da Silva
- Departamento de Bioquímica, Instituto de Química, Universidade de São Paulo, Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil.
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14
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Fujiki J, Schnabl B. Phage therapy: Targeting intestinal bacterial microbiota for the treatment of liver diseases. JHEP Rep 2023; 5:100909. [PMID: 37965159 PMCID: PMC10641246 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhepr.2023.100909] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/11/2023] [Revised: 08/16/2023] [Accepted: 08/22/2023] [Indexed: 11/16/2023] Open
Abstract
Phage therapy has been overshadowed by antibiotics for decades. However, it is being revisited as a powerful approach against antimicrobial-resistant bacteria. As bacterial microbiota have been mechanistically linked to gastrointestinal and liver diseases, precise editing of the gut microbiota via the selective bactericidal action of phages has prompted renewed interest in phage therapy. In this review, we summarise the basic virological properties of phages and the latest findings on the composition of the intestinal phageome and the changes associated with liver diseases. We also review preclinical and clinical studies assessing phage therapy for the treatment of gastrointestinal and liver diseases, as well as future prospects and challenges.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jumpei Fujiki
- Department of Medicine, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
- Department of Veterinary Medicine, Rakuno Gakuen University, Ebetsu, Hokkaido, Japan
| | - Bernd Schnabl
- Department of Medicine, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
- Department of Medicine, VA San Diego Healthcare System, San Diego, CA, USA
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15
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Lai D, Hedlund BP, Mau RL, Jiao JY, Li J, Hayer M, Dijkstra P, Schwartz E, Li WJ, Dong H, Palmer M, Dodsworth JA, Zhou EM, Hungate BA. Resource partitioning and amino acid assimilation in a terrestrial geothermal spring. THE ISME JOURNAL 2023; 17:2112-2122. [PMID: 37741957 PMCID: PMC10579274 DOI: 10.1038/s41396-023-01517-7] [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: 05/24/2023] [Revised: 08/31/2023] [Accepted: 09/13/2023] [Indexed: 09/25/2023]
Abstract
High-temperature geothermal springs host simplified microbial communities; however, the activities of individual microorganisms and their roles in the carbon cycle in nature are not well understood. Here, quantitative stable isotope probing (qSIP) was used to track the assimilation of 13C-acetate and 13C-aspartate into DNA in 74 °C sediments in Gongxiaoshe Hot Spring, Tengchong, China. This revealed a community-wide preference for aspartate and a tight coupling between aspartate incorporation into DNA and the proliferation of aspartate utilizers during labeling. Both 13C incorporation into DNA and changes in the abundance of taxa during incubations indicated strong resource partitioning and a significant phylogenetic signal for aspartate incorporation. Of the active amplicon sequence variants (ASVs) identified by qSIP, most could be matched with genomes from Gongxiaoshe Hot Spring or nearby springs with an average nucleotide similarity of 99.4%. Genomes corresponding to aspartate primary utilizers were smaller, near-universally encoded polar amino acid ABC transporters, and had codon preferences indicative of faster growth rates. The most active ASVs assimilating both substrates were not abundant, suggesting an important role for the rare biosphere in the community response to organic carbon addition. The broad incorporation of aspartate into DNA over acetate by the hot spring community may reflect dynamic cycling of cell lysis products in situ or substrates delivered during monsoon rains and may reflect N limitation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dengxun Lai
- School of Life Sciences, University of Nevada Las Vegas, Las Vegas, NV, USA
| | - Brian P Hedlund
- School of Life Sciences, University of Nevada Las Vegas, Las Vegas, NV, USA.
- Nevada Institute for Personalized Medicine, University of Nevada Las Vegas, Las Vegas, NV, USA.
| | - Rebecca L Mau
- Center for Ecosystem Science and Society, Northern Arizona University and Department of Biological Sciences, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ, USA
| | - Jian-Yu Jiao
- State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Resources and Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Zhuhai), School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Junhui Li
- Center for Ecosystem Science and Society, Northern Arizona University and Department of Biological Sciences, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ, USA
| | - Michaela Hayer
- Center for Ecosystem Science and Society, Northern Arizona University and Department of Biological Sciences, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ, USA
| | - Paul Dijkstra
- Center for Ecosystem Science and Society, Northern Arizona University and Department of Biological Sciences, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ, USA
| | - Egbert Schwartz
- Center for Ecosystem Science and Society, Northern Arizona University and Department of Biological Sciences, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ, USA
| | - Wen-Jun Li
- State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Resources and Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Zhuhai), School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Hailiang Dong
- State Key Laboratory of Biogeology and Environmental Geology, China University of Geosciences, Beijing, China and Department of Geology and Environmental Earth Science, Miami University, Oxford, OH, USA
| | - Marike Palmer
- School of Life Sciences, University of Nevada Las Vegas, Las Vegas, NV, USA
| | - Jeremy A Dodsworth
- Department of Biology, California State University, San Bernardino, CA, USA
| | - En-Min Zhou
- School of Life Sciences, University of Nevada Las Vegas, Las Vegas, NV, USA
- State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Resources and Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Zhuhai), School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, China
- School of Resource Environment and Earth Science, Yunnan University, Kunming, China
| | - Bruce A Hungate
- Center for Ecosystem Science and Society, Northern Arizona University and Department of Biological Sciences, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ, USA.
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16
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Fujiki J, Nakamura K, Nakamura T, Iwano H. Fitness Trade-Offs between Phage and Antibiotic Sensitivity in Phage-Resistant Variants: Molecular Action and Insights into Clinical Applications for Phage Therapy. Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:15628. [PMID: 37958612 PMCID: PMC10650657 DOI: 10.3390/ijms242115628] [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: 10/06/2023] [Revised: 10/23/2023] [Accepted: 10/23/2023] [Indexed: 11/15/2023] Open
Abstract
In recent decades, phage therapy has been overshadowed by the widespread use of antibiotics in Western countries. However, it has been revitalized as a powerful approach due to the increasing prevalence of antimicrobial-resistant bacteria. Although bacterial resistance to phages has been reported in clinical cases, recent studies on the fitness trade-offs between phage and antibiotic resistance have revealed new avenues in the field of phage therapy. This strategy aims to restore the antibiotic susceptibility of antimicrobial-resistant bacteria, even if phage-resistant variants develop. Here, we summarize the basic virological properties of phages and their applications within the context of antimicrobial resistance. In addition, we review the occurrence of phage resistance in clinical cases, and examine fitness trade-offs between phage and antibiotic sensitivity, exploring the potential of an evolutionary fitness cost as a countermeasure against phage resistance in therapy. Finally, we discuss future strategies and directions for phage-based therapy from the aspect of fitness trade-offs. This approach is expected to provide robust options when combined with antibiotics in this era of phage 're'-discovery.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jumpei Fujiki
- Laboratory of Veterinary Biochemistry, School of Veterinary Medicine, Rakuno Gakuen University, Ebetsu 069-8501, Japan
- Department of Medicine, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093, USA
| | - Keisuke Nakamura
- Laboratory of Veterinary Biochemistry, School of Veterinary Medicine, Rakuno Gakuen University, Ebetsu 069-8501, Japan
| | - Tomohiro Nakamura
- Laboratory of Veterinary Biochemistry, School of Veterinary Medicine, Rakuno Gakuen University, Ebetsu 069-8501, Japan
- Phage Therapy Institute, Waseda University, Tokyo 169-8050, Japan
- Research Center for Drug and Vaccine Development, National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Tokyo 208-0011, Japan
- Department of Veterinary Medicine, Azabu University, Sagamihara 252-5201, Japan
| | - Hidetomo Iwano
- Laboratory of Veterinary Biochemistry, School of Veterinary Medicine, Rakuno Gakuen University, Ebetsu 069-8501, Japan
- Phage Therapy Institute, Waseda University, Tokyo 169-8050, Japan
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17
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Burian A, Gruber-Dorninger M, Schweichart J, Yasindi A, Bulling M, Jirsa F, Winter C, Muia AW, Schagerl M. Drivers of microbial food-web structure along productivity gradients. Proc Biol Sci 2023; 290:20231531. [PMID: 37876193 PMCID: PMC10598424 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2023.1531] [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: 08/29/2022] [Accepted: 09/26/2023] [Indexed: 10/26/2023] Open
Abstract
Ratios between viruses, heterotrophic prokaryotes and chlorophyll a are key indicators of microbial food structure and both virus-prokaryote and prokaryote-chlorophyll ratios have been proposed to decrease with system productivity. However, the mechanisms underlying these responses are still insufficiently resolved and their consistency across aquatic ecosystem types requires critical evaluation. We assessed microbial community ratios in highly productive African soda-lakes and used our data from naturally hypereutrophic systems which are largely underrepresented in literature, to complement earlier across-system meta-analyses. In contrast to marine and freshwater systems, prokaryote-chlorophyll ratios in African soda-lakes did not decrease along productivity gradients. High-resolution time series from two soda-lakes indicated that this lack of response could be driven by a weakened top-down control of heterotrophic prokaryotes. Our analysis of virus-prokaryote relationships, revealed a reduction of virus-prokaryote ratios by high suspended particle concentrations in soda-lakes. This effect, likely driven by the adsorption of free-living viruses, was also found in three out of four additionally analysed marine datasets. However, the decrease of virus-prokaryote ratios previously reported in highly productive marine systems, was neither detectable in soda-lakes nor freshwaters. Hence, our study demonstrates that system-specific analyses can reveal the diversity of mechanisms that structure microbial food-webs and shape their response to productivity increases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alfred Burian
- Department of Computational Landscape Ecology, UFZ– Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research, Leipzig, Germany
- Marine Ecology Department, Lurio University, Nampula, Mozambique
| | | | - Johannes Schweichart
- Biology Centre, University of South Bohemia in České, České Budějovice, Czech Republic
| | - Andrew Yasindi
- Department of Biological Sciences, Egerton University, Njoro, Kenya
| | - Mark Bulling
- Environmental Sustainability Research Centre, University of Derby, Derby, UK
| | - Franz Jirsa
- Institute of Inorganic Chemistry, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
- Department of Zoology, University of Johannesburg, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Christian Winter
- Department of Functional and Evolutionary Ecology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | | | - Michael Schagerl
- Department of Functional and Evolutionary Ecology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
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18
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Chen T, Deng C, Wu Z, Liu T, Zhang Y, Xu X, Zhao X, Li J, Li S, Xu N, Yu K. Metagenomic analysis unveils the underexplored roles of prokaryotic viruses in a full-scale landfill leachate treatment plant. WATER RESEARCH 2023; 245:120611. [PMID: 37722141 DOI: 10.1016/j.watres.2023.120611] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/16/2023] [Revised: 09/06/2023] [Accepted: 09/09/2023] [Indexed: 09/20/2023]
Abstract
Enormous viral populations have been identified in activated sludge systems, but their ecological and biochemical roles in landfill leachate treatment plants remain poorly understood. To address this knowledge gap, we conducted an in-depth analysis using 36 metagenomic datasets that we collected and sequenced during a half-year time-series sampling campaign at six sites in a full-scale landfill leachate treatment plant (LLTP), elucidating viral distribution, virus‒host dynamics, virus-encoded auxiliary metabolic genes (AMGs), and viral contributions to the spread of virulence and antibiotic resistance genes. Our findings demonstrated that viral and prokaryotic communities differed widely among different treatment units, with stability over time. LLTP viruses were linked to various prokaryotic hosts, spanning 35 bacterial phyla and one archaeal phylum, which included the core microbes involved in biological treatments, as well as some of the less well-characterized microbial dark matter phyla. By encoding 2364 auxiliary metabolic genes (AMGs), viruses harbored the potential to regulate microbial nucleotide metabolism, facilitate the biodegradation of complex organic matter, and enhance flocculation and settling in biological treatment plants. The abundance distribution of AMGs varied considerably across treatment units and showed a lifestyle-dependent pattern with temperate virus-associated AMGs exhibiting a higher average abundance in downstream biological treatment units and effluent water. Meanwhile, temperate viruses tended to carry a higher load of virulence factor genes (VFGs), antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs), and biotic and metal resistance genes (BMRGs), and engaged in more frequent gene exchanges with prokaryotes than lytic viruses, thus acting as a pivotal contributor to the dissemination of pathogenicity and resistance genes in downstream LLTP units. This study provided a comprehensive profile of viral and prokaryotic communities in the LLTP and unveiled the varying roles of different-lifestyle viruses in biochemical processes and water quality safety.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tianyi Chen
- Eco-environment and Resource Efficiency Research Laboratory, School of Environment and Energy, Peking University Shenzhen Graduate School, Shenzhen 518055, China; Environmental Microbiome and Innovative Genomics Laboratory, College of Environmental Sciences and Engineering, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
| | - Chunfang Deng
- Eco-environment and Resource Efficiency Research Laboratory, School of Environment and Energy, Peking University Shenzhen Graduate School, Shenzhen 518055, China; Environmental Microbiome and Innovative Genomics Laboratory, College of Environmental Sciences and Engineering, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China.
| | - Zongzhi Wu
- Environmental Microbiome and Innovative Genomics Laboratory, College of Environmental Sciences and Engineering, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
| | - Tang Liu
- Environmental Microbiome Engineering and Innovative Genomics Laboratory, College of Chemistry and Environmental Engineering, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen 518060, China
| | - Yuanyan Zhang
- Jiangxi Academy of Eco-Environmental Sciences & Planning, Nanchang 330029, China
| | - Xuming Xu
- Department of Water Ecology and Environment, China Institute of Water Resources and Hydropower Research, Beijing 100038, China
| | - Xiaohui Zhao
- Environmental Microbiome and Innovative Genomics Laboratory, College of Environmental Sciences and Engineering, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
| | - Jiarui Li
- Environmental Microbiome and Innovative Genomics Laboratory, College of Environmental Sciences and Engineering, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
| | - Shaoyang Li
- Eco-environment and Resource Efficiency Research Laboratory, School of Environment and Energy, Peking University Shenzhen Graduate School, Shenzhen 518055, China
| | - Nan Xu
- Eco-environment and Resource Efficiency Research Laboratory, School of Environment and Energy, Peking University Shenzhen Graduate School, Shenzhen 518055, China
| | - Ke Yu
- Eco-environment and Resource Efficiency Research Laboratory, School of Environment and Energy, Peking University Shenzhen Graduate School, Shenzhen 518055, China
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López-García P, Gutiérrez-Preciado A, Krupovic M, Ciobanu M, Deschamps P, Jardillier L, López-Pérez M, Rodríguez-Valera F, Moreira D. Metagenome-derived virus-microbe ratios across ecosystems. THE ISME JOURNAL 2023; 17:1552-1563. [PMID: 37169871 PMCID: PMC10504350 DOI: 10.1038/s41396-023-01431-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/19/2023] [Revised: 04/20/2023] [Accepted: 05/03/2023] [Indexed: 05/13/2023]
Abstract
It is generally assumed that viruses outnumber cells on Earth by at least tenfold. Virus-to-microbe ratios (VMR) are largely based on counts of fluorescently labelled virus-like particles. However, these exclude intracellular viruses and potentially include false positives (DNA-containing vesicles, gene-transfer agents, unspecifically stained inert particles). Here, we develop a metagenome-based VMR estimate (mVRM) that accounts for DNA viruses across all stages of their replication cycles (virion, intracellular lytic and lysogenic) by using normalised RPKM (reads per kilobase of gene sequence per million of mapped metagenome reads) counts of the major capsid protein (MCP) genes and cellular universal single-copy genes (USCGs) as proxies for virus and cell counts, respectively. After benchmarking this strategy using mock metagenomes with increasing VMR, we inferred mVMR across different biomes. To properly estimate mVMR in aquatic ecosystems, we generated metagenomes from co-occurring cellular and viral fractions (>50 kDa-200 µm size-range) in freshwater, seawater and solar saltern ponds (10 metagenomes, 2 control metaviromes). Viruses outnumbered cells in freshwater by ~13 fold and in plankton from marine and saline waters by ~2-4 fold. However, across an additional set of 121 diverse non-aquatic metagenomes including microbial mats, microbialites, soils, freshwater and marine sediments and metazoan-associated microbiomes, viruses, on average, outnumbered cells by barely two-fold. Although viruses likely are the most diverse biological entities on Earth, their global numbers might be closer to those of cells than previously estimated.
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Affiliation(s)
- Purificación López-García
- Ecologie Systématique Evolution, CNRS, Université Paris-Saclay, AgroParisTech, Gif-sur-Yvette, France.
| | - Ana Gutiérrez-Preciado
- Ecologie Systématique Evolution, CNRS, Université Paris-Saclay, AgroParisTech, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - Mart Krupovic
- Institut Pasteur, Université Paris Cité, CNRS UMR6047, Archaeal Virology Unit, Paris, France
| | - Maria Ciobanu
- Ecologie Systématique Evolution, CNRS, Université Paris-Saclay, AgroParisTech, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - Philippe Deschamps
- Ecologie Systématique Evolution, CNRS, Université Paris-Saclay, AgroParisTech, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - Ludwig Jardillier
- Ecologie Systématique Evolution, CNRS, Université Paris-Saclay, AgroParisTech, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - Mario López-Pérez
- Departamento de Producción Vegetal y Microbiología, Universidad Miguel Hernández, Alicante, Spain
| | | | - David Moreira
- Ecologie Systématique Evolution, CNRS, Université Paris-Saclay, AgroParisTech, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
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Sabbagh EI, Calleja ML, Daffonchio D, Morán XAG. Seasonality of top-down control of bacterioplankton at two central Red Sea sites with different trophic status. Environ Microbiol 2023; 25:2002-2019. [PMID: 37286523 DOI: 10.1111/1462-2920.16439] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/17/2022] [Accepted: 05/22/2023] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
The role of bottom-up (nutrient availability) and top-down (grazers and viruses mortality) controls on tropical bacterioplankton have been rarely investigated simultaneously from a seasonal perspective. We have assessed them through monthly samplings over 2 years in inshore and offshore waters of the central Red Sea differing in trophic status. Flow cytometric analysis allowed us to distinguish five groups of heterotrophic bacteria based on physiological properties (nucleic acid content, membrane integrity and active respiration), three groups of cyanobacteria (two populations of Synechococcus and Prochlorococcus), heterotrophic nanoflagellates (HNFs) and three groups of viruses based on nucleic acid content. The dynamics of bacterioplankton and their top-down controls varied with season and location, being more pronounced in inshore waters. HNFs abundances showed a strong preference for larger prey inshore (r = -0.62 to -0.59, p = 0.001-0.002). Positive relationships between viruses and heterotrophic bacterioplankton abundances were more marked inshore (r = 0.67, p < 0.001) than offshore (r = 0.44, p = 0.03). The negative correlation between HNFs and viruses abundances (r = -0.47, p = 0.02) in shallow waters indicates a persistent seasonal switch between protistan grazing and viral lysis that maintains the low bacterioplankton stocks in the central Red Sea area.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eman I Sabbagh
- Red Sea Research Center (RSRC), Division of Biological and Environmental Sciences and Engineering (BESE), King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Thuwal, Saudi Arabia
| | - Maria Ll Calleja
- Red Sea Research Center (RSRC), Division of Biological and Environmental Sciences and Engineering (BESE), King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Thuwal, Saudi Arabia
- Department of Climate Geochemistry, Max Plank Institute for Chemistry (MPIC), Mainz, Germany
| | - Daniele Daffonchio
- Red Sea Research Center (RSRC), Division of Biological and Environmental Sciences and Engineering (BESE), King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Thuwal, Saudi Arabia
| | - Xosé Anxelu G Morán
- Red Sea Research Center (RSRC), Division of Biological and Environmental Sciences and Engineering (BESE), King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Thuwal, Saudi Arabia
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Carlson HK, Piya D, Moore ML, Magar RT, Elisabeth NH, Deutschbauer AM, Arkin AP, Mutalik VK. Geochemical constraints on bacteriophage infectivity in terrestrial environments. ISME COMMUNICATIONS 2023; 3:78. [PMID: 37596312 PMCID: PMC10439110 DOI: 10.1038/s43705-023-00297-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/23/2023] [Revised: 07/26/2023] [Accepted: 08/10/2023] [Indexed: 08/20/2023]
Abstract
Lytic phages can be potent and selective inhibitors of microbial growth and can have profound impacts on microbiome composition and function. However, there is uncertainty about the biogeochemical conditions under which phage predation modulates microbial ecosystem function, particularly in terrestrial systems. Ionic strength is critical for infection of bacteria by many phages, but quantitative data is limited on the ion thresholds for phage infection that can be compared with environmental ion concentrations. Similarly, while carbon composition varies in the environment, we do not know how this variability influences the impact of phage predation on microbiome function. Here, we measured the half-maximal effective concentrations (EC50) of 80 different inorganic ions for the infection of E. coli with two canonical dsDNA and ssRNA phages, T4 and MS2, respectively. Many alkaline earth metals and alkali metals enabled lytic infection but the ionic strength thresholds varied for different ions between phages. Additionally, using a freshwater nitrate-reducing microbiome, we found that the ability of lytic phages to influence nitrate reduction end-products depended upon the carbon source as well as ionic strength. For all phage:host pairs, the ion EC50s for phage infection exceeded the ion concentrations found in many terrestrial freshwater systems. Thus, our findings support a model where phages most influence terrestrial microbial functional ecology in hot spots and hot moments such as metazoan guts, drought influenced soils, or biofilms where ion concentration is locally or transiently elevated and nutrients are available to support the growth of specific phage hosts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hans K Carlson
- Environmental Genomics and Systems Biology Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Lab, Berkeley, CA, 94720, USA.
| | - Denish Piya
- Department of Bioengineering, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, 94720, USA
| | - Madeline L Moore
- Environmental Genomics and Systems Biology Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Lab, Berkeley, CA, 94720, USA
| | - Roniya T Magar
- Environmental Genomics and Systems Biology Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Lab, Berkeley, CA, 94720, USA
| | - Nathalie H Elisabeth
- Molecular Biophysics and Integrated Bioimaging Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Lab, Berkeley, CA, 94720, USA
| | - Adam M Deutschbauer
- Environmental Genomics and Systems Biology Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Lab, Berkeley, CA, 94720, USA
- Department of Plant and Microbial Biology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, 94720, USA
| | - Adam P Arkin
- Environmental Genomics and Systems Biology Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Lab, Berkeley, CA, 94720, USA
- Department of Bioengineering, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, 94720, USA
| | - Vivek K Mutalik
- Environmental Genomics and Systems Biology Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Lab, Berkeley, CA, 94720, USA.
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22
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Trubl G, Stedman KM, Bywaters KF, Matula EE, Sommers P, Roux S, Merino N, Yin J, Kaelber JT, Avila-Herrera A, Johnson PA, Johnson JC, Borges S, Weber PK, Pett-Ridge J, Boston PJ. Astrovirology: how viruses enhance our understanding of life in the Universe. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ASTROBIOLOGY 2023; 22:247-271. [PMID: 38046673 PMCID: PMC10691837 DOI: 10.1017/s1473550423000058] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/05/2023]
Abstract
Viruses are the most numerically abundant biological entities on Earth. As ubiquitous replicators of molecular information and agents of community change, viruses have potent effects on the life on Earth, and may play a critical role in human spaceflight, for life-detection missions to other planetary bodies and planetary protection. However, major knowledge gaps constrain our understanding of the Earth's virosphere: (1) the role viruses play in biogeochemical cycles, (2) the origin(s) of viruses and (3) the involvement of viruses in the evolution, distribution and persistence of life. As viruses are the only replicators that span all known types of nucleic acids, an expanded experimental and theoretical toolbox built for Earth's viruses will be pivotal for detecting and understanding life on Earth and beyond. Only by filling in these knowledge and technical gaps we will obtain an inclusive assessment of how to distinguish and detect life on other planetary surfaces. Meanwhile, space exploration requires life-support systems for the needs of humans, plants and their microbial inhabitants. Viral effects on microbes and plants are essential for Earth's biosphere and human health, but virus-host interactions in spaceflight are poorly understood. Viral relationships with their hosts respond to environmental changes in complex ways which are difficult to predict by extrapolating from Earth-based proxies. These relationships should be studied in space to fully understand how spaceflight will modulate viral impacts on human health and life-support systems, including microbiomes. In this review, we address key questions that must be examined to incorporate viruses into Earth system models, life-support systems and life detection. Tackling these questions will benefit our efforts to develop planetary protection protocols and further our understanding of viruses in astrobiology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gareth Trubl
- Physical and Life Sciences Directorate, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Livermore, CA, USA
| | - Kenneth M. Stedman
- Center for Life in Extreme Environments, Department of Biology, Portland State University, Portland, OR, USA
| | | | | | | | - Simon Roux
- DOE Joint Genome Institute, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Nancy Merino
- Physical and Life Sciences Directorate, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Livermore, CA, USA
| | - John Yin
- Chemical and Biological Engineering, Wisconsin Institute for Discovery, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA
| | - Jason T. Kaelber
- Institute for Quantitative Biomedicine, Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey, Piscataway, NJ, USA
| | - Aram Avila-Herrera
- Computing Directorate, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Livermore, CA, USA
| | - Peter Anto Johnson
- Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada
| | | | | | - Peter K. Weber
- Physical and Life Sciences Directorate, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Livermore, CA, USA
| | - Jennifer Pett-Ridge
- Physical and Life Sciences Directorate, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Livermore, CA, USA
- Life & Environmental Sciences Department, University of California Merced, Merced, CA, USA
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23
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Lobb B, Shapter A, Doxey AC, Nissimov JI. Functional Profiling and Evolutionary Analysis of a Marine Microalgal Virus Pangenome. Viruses 2023; 15:v15051116. [PMID: 37243202 DOI: 10.3390/v15051116] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/12/2023] [Accepted: 05/04/2023] [Indexed: 05/28/2023] Open
Abstract
Phycodnaviridae are large double-stranded DNA viruses, which facilitate studies of host-virus interactions and co-evolution due to their prominence in algal infection and their role in the life cycle of algal blooms. However, the genomic interpretation of these viruses is hampered by a lack of functional information, stemming from the surprising number of hypothetical genes of unknown function. It is also unclear how many of these genes are widely shared within the clade. Using one of the most extensively characterized genera, Coccolithovirus, as a case study, we combined pangenome analysis, multiple functional annotation tools, AlphaFold structural modeling, and literature analysis to compare the core and accessory pangenome and assess support for novel functional predictions. We determined that the Coccolithovirus pangenome shares 30% of its genes with all 14 strains, making up the core. Notably, 34% of its genes were found in at most three strains. Core genes were enriched in early expression based on a transcriptomic dataset of Coccolithovirus EhV-201 algal infection, were more likely to be similar to host proteins than the non-core set, and were more likely to be involved in vital functions such as replication, recombination, and repair. In addition, we generated and collated annotations for the EhV representative EhV-86 from 12 different annotation sources, building up information for 142 previously hypothetical and putative membrane proteins. AlphaFold was further able to predict structures for 204 EhV-86 proteins with a modelling accuracy of good-high. These functional clues, combined with generated AlphaFold structures, provide a foundational framework for the future characterization of this model genus (and other giant viruses) and a further look into the evolution of the Coccolithovirus proteome.
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Affiliation(s)
- Briallen Lobb
- Department of Biology, University of Waterloo, 200 University Ave. West., Waterloo, ON N2L 3G1, Canada
| | - Anson Shapter
- Department of Biology, University of Waterloo, 200 University Ave. West., Waterloo, ON N2L 3G1, Canada
| | - Andrew C Doxey
- Department of Biology, University of Waterloo, 200 University Ave. West., Waterloo, ON N2L 3G1, Canada
| | - Jozef I Nissimov
- Department of Biology, University of Waterloo, 200 University Ave. West., Waterloo, ON N2L 3G1, Canada
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Abstract
Soil viruses are highly abundant and have important roles in the regulation of host dynamics and soil ecology. Climate change is resulting in unprecedented changes to soil ecosystems and the life forms that reside there, including viruses. In this Review, we explore our current understanding of soil viral diversity and ecology, and we discuss how climate change (such as extended and extreme drought events or more flooding and altered precipitation patterns) is influencing soil viruses. Finally, we provide our perspective on future research needs to better understand how climate change will impact soil viral ecology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Janet K Jansson
- Biological Sciences Division, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, WA, USA.
| | - Ruonan Wu
- Biological Sciences Division, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, WA, USA
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25
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Ho SFS, Wheeler NE, Millard AD, van Schaik W. Gauge your phage: benchmarking of bacteriophage identification tools in metagenomic sequencing data. MICROBIOME 2023; 11:84. [PMID: 37085924 PMCID: PMC10120246 DOI: 10.1186/s40168-023-01533-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/11/2022] [Accepted: 03/22/2023] [Indexed: 05/03/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The prediction of bacteriophage sequences in metagenomic datasets has become a topic of considerable interest, leading to the development of many novel bioinformatic tools. A comparative analysis of ten state-of-the-art phage identification tools was performed to inform their usage in microbiome research. METHODS Artificial contigs generated from complete RefSeq genomes representing phages, plasmids, and chromosomes, and a previously sequenced mock community containing four phage species, were used to evaluate the precision, recall, and F1 scores of the tools. We also generated a dataset of randomly shuffled sequences to quantify false-positive calls. In addition, a set of previously simulated viromes was used to assess diversity bias in each tool's output. RESULTS VIBRANT and VirSorter2 achieved the highest F1 scores (0.93) in the RefSeq artificial contigs dataset, with several other tools also performing well. Kraken2 had the highest F1 score (0.86) in the mock community benchmark by a large margin (0.3 higher than DeepVirFinder in second place), mainly due to its high precision (0.96). Generally, k-mer-based tools performed better than reference similarity tools and gene-based methods. Several tools, most notably PPR-Meta, called a high number of false positives in the randomly shuffled sequences. When analysing the diversity of the genomes that each tool predicted from a virome set, most tools produced a viral genome set that had similar alpha- and beta-diversity patterns to the original population, with Seeker being a notable exception. CONCLUSIONS This study provides key metrics used to assess performance of phage detection tools, offers a framework for further comparison of additional viral discovery tools, and discusses optimal strategies for using these tools. We highlight that the choice of tool for identification of phages in metagenomic datasets, as well as their parameters, can bias the results and provide pointers for different use case scenarios. We have also made our benchmarking dataset available for download in order to facilitate future comparisons of phage identification tools. Video Abstract.
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Affiliation(s)
- Siu Fung Stanley Ho
- Institute of Microbiology and Infection, College of Medical and Dental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK
| | - Nicole E. Wheeler
- Institute of Microbiology and Infection, College of Medical and Dental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK
| | - Andrew D. Millard
- Department of Genetics and Genome Biology, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK
| | - Willem van Schaik
- Institute of Microbiology and Infection, College of Medical and Dental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK
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26
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Korajkic A, McMinn BR, Harwood VJ. The Effect of Protozoa Indigenous to Lakewater and Wastewater on Decay of Fecal Indicator Bacteria and Coliphage. Pathogens 2023; 12:pathogens12030378. [PMID: 36986300 PMCID: PMC10053992 DOI: 10.3390/pathogens12030378] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/11/2023] [Revised: 02/20/2023] [Accepted: 02/23/2023] [Indexed: 03/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Fecal indicator bacteria (FIB: Escherichia coli and enterococci) are used to assess recreational water quality. Viral indicators (i.e., somatic and F+ coliphage), could improve the prediction of viral pathogens in recreational waters, however, the impact of environmental factors, including the effect of predatory protozoa source, on their survival in water is poorly understood. We investigated the effect of lakewater or wastewater protozoa, on the decay (decreasing concentrations over time) of culturable FIB and coliphages under sunlight and shaded conditions. FIB decay was generally greater than the coliphages and was more rapid when indicators were exposed to lake vs. wastewater protozoa. F+ coliphage decay was the least affected by experimental variables. Somatic coliphage decayed fastest in the presence of wastewater protozoa and sunlight, though their decay under shaded conditions was-10-fold less than F+ after 14 days. The protozoa source consistently contributed significantly to the decay of FIB, and somatic, though not the F+ coliphage. Sunlight generally accelerated decay, and shade reduced somatic coliphage decay to the lowest level among all the indicators. Differential responses of FIB, somatic, and F+ coliphages to environmental factors support the need for studies that address the relationship between the decay of coliphages and viral pathogens under environmentally relevant conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Asja Korajkic
- United States Environmental Protection Agency, 26W Martin Luther King Jr. Drive, Cincinnati, OH 45268, USA
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +1-513-569-7306
| | - Brian R. McMinn
- United States Environmental Protection Agency, 26W Martin Luther King Jr. Drive, Cincinnati, OH 45268, USA
| | - Valerie J. Harwood
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of South Florida, 4202 E Fowler Avenue, Tampa, FL 33620, USA
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27
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Yang K, Wang X, Hou R, Lu C, Fan Z, Li J, Wang S, Xu Y, Shen Q, Friman VP, Wei Z. Rhizosphere phage communities drive soil suppressiveness to bacterial wilt disease. MICROBIOME 2023; 11:16. [PMID: 36721270 PMCID: PMC9890766 DOI: 10.1186/s40168-023-01463-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/07/2022] [Accepted: 01/09/2023] [Indexed: 05/28/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Bacterial viruses, phages, play a key role in nutrient turnover and lysis of bacteria in terrestrial ecosystems. While phages are abundant in soils, their effects on plant pathogens and rhizosphere bacterial communities are poorly understood. Here, we used metagenomics and direct experiments to causally test if differences in rhizosphere phage communities could explain variation in soil suppressiveness and bacterial wilt plant disease outcomes by plant-pathogenic Ralstonia solanacearum bacterium. Specifically, we tested two hypotheses: (1) that healthy plants are associated with stronger top-down pathogen control by R. solanacearum-specific phages (i.e. 'primary phages') and (2) that 'secondary phages' that target pathogen-inhibiting bacteria play a stronger role in diseased plant rhizosphere microbiomes by indirectly 'helping' the pathogen. RESULTS Using a repeated sampling of tomato rhizosphere soil in the field, we show that healthy plants are associated with distinct phage communities that contain relatively higher abundances of R. solanacearum-specific phages that exert strong top-down pathogen density control. Moreover, 'secondary phages' that targeted pathogen-inhibiting bacteria were more abundant in the diseased plant microbiomes. The roles of R. solanacearum-specific and 'secondary phages' were directly validated in separate greenhouse experiments where we causally show that phages can reduce soil suppressiveness, both directly and indirectly, via top-down control of pathogen densities and by alleviating interference competition between pathogen-inhibiting bacteria and the pathogen. CONCLUSIONS Together, our findings demonstrate that soil suppressiveness, which is most often attributed to bacteria, could be driven by rhizosphere phage communities that regulate R. solanacearum densities and strength of interference competition with pathogen-suppressing bacteria. Rhizosphere phage communities are hence likely to be important in determining bacterial wilt disease outcomes and soil suppressiveness in agricultural fields. Video Abstract.
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Affiliation(s)
- Keming Yang
- Joint International Research Laboratory of Soil Health, Jiangsu Provincial Key Lab of Solid Organic Waste Utilization, Jiangsu Collaborative Innovation Center of Solid Organic Wastes, Educational Ministry Engineering Center of Resource-saving fertilizers, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing, 210095, Jiangsu, China
| | - Xiaofang Wang
- Joint International Research Laboratory of Soil Health, Jiangsu Provincial Key Lab of Solid Organic Waste Utilization, Jiangsu Collaborative Innovation Center of Solid Organic Wastes, Educational Ministry Engineering Center of Resource-saving fertilizers, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing, 210095, Jiangsu, China
| | - Rujiao Hou
- Joint International Research Laboratory of Soil Health, Jiangsu Provincial Key Lab of Solid Organic Waste Utilization, Jiangsu Collaborative Innovation Center of Solid Organic Wastes, Educational Ministry Engineering Center of Resource-saving fertilizers, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing, 210095, Jiangsu, China
| | - Chunxia Lu
- Joint International Research Laboratory of Soil Health, Jiangsu Provincial Key Lab of Solid Organic Waste Utilization, Jiangsu Collaborative Innovation Center of Solid Organic Wastes, Educational Ministry Engineering Center of Resource-saving fertilizers, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing, 210095, Jiangsu, China
| | - Zhe Fan
- Joint International Research Laboratory of Soil Health, Jiangsu Provincial Key Lab of Solid Organic Waste Utilization, Jiangsu Collaborative Innovation Center of Solid Organic Wastes, Educational Ministry Engineering Center of Resource-saving fertilizers, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing, 210095, Jiangsu, China
| | - Jingxuan Li
- Joint International Research Laboratory of Soil Health, Jiangsu Provincial Key Lab of Solid Organic Waste Utilization, Jiangsu Collaborative Innovation Center of Solid Organic Wastes, Educational Ministry Engineering Center of Resource-saving fertilizers, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing, 210095, Jiangsu, China
| | - Shuo Wang
- Joint International Research Laboratory of Soil Health, Jiangsu Provincial Key Lab of Solid Organic Waste Utilization, Jiangsu Collaborative Innovation Center of Solid Organic Wastes, Educational Ministry Engineering Center of Resource-saving fertilizers, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing, 210095, Jiangsu, China
| | - Yangchun Xu
- Joint International Research Laboratory of Soil Health, Jiangsu Provincial Key Lab of Solid Organic Waste Utilization, Jiangsu Collaborative Innovation Center of Solid Organic Wastes, Educational Ministry Engineering Center of Resource-saving fertilizers, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing, 210095, Jiangsu, China
| | - Qirong Shen
- Joint International Research Laboratory of Soil Health, Jiangsu Provincial Key Lab of Solid Organic Waste Utilization, Jiangsu Collaborative Innovation Center of Solid Organic Wastes, Educational Ministry Engineering Center of Resource-saving fertilizers, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing, 210095, Jiangsu, China
| | - Ville-Petri Friman
- Joint International Research Laboratory of Soil Health, Jiangsu Provincial Key Lab of Solid Organic Waste Utilization, Jiangsu Collaborative Innovation Center of Solid Organic Wastes, Educational Ministry Engineering Center of Resource-saving fertilizers, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing, 210095, Jiangsu, China.
- Department of Biology, University of York, Wentworth Way, York, YO10 5DD, UK.
- Department of Microbiology, University of Helsinki, 00014, Helsinki, Finland.
| | - Zhong Wei
- Joint International Research Laboratory of Soil Health, Jiangsu Provincial Key Lab of Solid Organic Waste Utilization, Jiangsu Collaborative Innovation Center of Solid Organic Wastes, Educational Ministry Engineering Center of Resource-saving fertilizers, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing, 210095, Jiangsu, China.
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28
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Yang G, Lin A, Wu X, Lin C, Zhu S, Zhuang L. Geobacter-associated prophages confer beneficial effect on dissimilatory reduction of Fe(III) oxides. FUNDAMENTAL RESEARCH 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.fmre.2022.10.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
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29
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Greenrod STE, Stoycheva M, Elphinstone J, Friman VP. Global diversity and distribution of prophages are lineage-specific within the Ralstonia solanacearum species complex. BMC Genomics 2022; 23:689. [PMID: 36199029 PMCID: PMC9535894 DOI: 10.1186/s12864-022-08909-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/18/2022] [Accepted: 09/23/2022] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Ralstonia solanacearum species complex (RSSC) strains are destructive plant pathogenic bacteria and the causative agents of bacterial wilt disease, infecting over 200 plant species worldwide. In addition to chromosomal genes, their virulence is mediated by mobile genetic elements including integrated DNA of bacteriophages, i.e., prophages, which may carry fitness-associated auxiliary genes or modulate host gene expression. Although experimental studies have characterised several prophages that shape RSSC virulence, the global diversity, distribution, and wider functional gene content of RSSC prophages are unknown. In this study, prophages were identified in a diverse collection of 192 RSSC draft genome assemblies originating from six continents. Results Prophages were identified bioinformatically and their diversity investigated using genetic distance measures, gene content, GC, and total length. Prophage distributions were characterised using metadata on RSSC strain geographic origin and lineage classification (phylotypes), and their functional gene content was assessed by identifying putative prophage-encoded auxiliary genes. In total, 313 intact prophages were identified, forming ten genetically distinct clusters. These included six prophage clusters with similarity to the Inoviridae, Myoviridae, and Siphoviridae phage families, and four uncharacterised clusters, possibly representing novel, previously undescribed phages. The prophages had broad geographical distributions, being present across multiple continents. However, they were generally host phylogenetic lineage-specific, and overall, prophage diversity was proportional to the genetic diversity of their hosts. The prophages contained many auxiliary genes involved in metabolism and virulence of both phage and bacteria. Conclusions Our results show that while RSSC prophages are highly diverse globally, they make lineage-specific contributions to the RSSC accessory genome, which could have resulted from shared coevolutionary history. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12864-022-08909-7.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - John Elphinstone
- Fera Science Ltd, National Agri-Food Innovation Campus, Sand Hutton, York, UK
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Ezzedine JA, Janicot A, Rasconi S, Domaizon I, Jacquet S. Short-Term Dynamics of Bdellovibrio and Like Organisms in Lake Geneva in Response to a Simulated Climatic Extreme Event. MICROBIAL ECOLOGY 2022; 84:717-729. [PMID: 34623462 DOI: 10.1007/s00248-021-01875-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/25/2021] [Accepted: 09/18/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
The short time-scale dynamics of three families of Bdellovibrio and like organisms (i.e. Bdellovibrionaceae, Peredibacteraceae, and Bacteriovoracaceae) were studied on the surface waters of Lake Geneva in summer. Using mesocosms deployed nearshore in July 2019, we simulated an extreme climatic event (an input of carbon from the watershed in response to runoff from the catchment, light reduction, and mixing in response to stormy conditions) and aimed to study the impact of both abiotic and biotic factors on their dynamics. The three families of Bdellovibrio and like organisms (BALOs) showed different dynamics during the experiment. Peredibacteraceae was the most abundant group, whereas Bacteriovoracaceae was the least abundant. Compared with the other two families, the abundance of Bdellovibrionaceae did not fluctuate, remaining relatively stable over time. Environmental variables only partially explained the dynamics of these families; in particular, temperature, pH, and chloride concentrations were positively correlated with Bacteriovoracaceae, Bdellovibrionaceae, and Peredibacteraceae abundance, respectively. Prokaryote-like particles (PLPs), such as those with high DNA content (HDNA), were strongly and positively correlated with Peredibacteraceae and Bacteriovoracaceae. In contrast, no relationships were found between Bdellovibrionaceae and PLP abundance, nor between the virus-like particles (VLPs) and the different BALOs. Overall, the experiment revealed that predation was stable in the face of the simulated climatic events. In addition, we observed that Peredibacteraceae and Bacteriovoracaceae share common traits, while Bdellovibrionaceae seems to constitute a distinct category.
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Affiliation(s)
- J A Ezzedine
- Université Savoie Mont-Blanc, INRAE, UMR CARRTEL, Thonon-les-Bains, France
- Laboratoire de Physiologie Cellulaire et Végétale, CNRS, CEA, INRAE, IRIG, Université Grenoble Alpes, Grenoble, France
| | - A Janicot
- Université Savoie Mont-Blanc, INRAE, UMR CARRTEL, Thonon-les-Bains, France
| | - S Rasconi
- Université Savoie Mont-Blanc, INRAE, UMR CARRTEL, Thonon-les-Bains, France
| | - I Domaizon
- Université Savoie Mont-Blanc, INRAE, UMR CARRTEL, Thonon-les-Bains, France
| | - S Jacquet
- Université Savoie Mont-Blanc, INRAE, UMR CARRTEL, Thonon-les-Bains, France.
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Che R, Bai M, Xiao W, Zhang S, Wang Y, Cui X. Nutrient levels and prokaryotes affect viral communities in plateau lakes. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2022; 839:156033. [PMID: 35597355 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.156033] [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: 01/23/2022] [Revised: 04/30/2022] [Accepted: 05/13/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Viruses are the most abundant organisms in aquatic environments. Recent advances of viral metagenomic have greatly expanded our understanding of aquatic viral communities. However, little is known about the difference of viral communities and driving factors in freshwater lake. This study seeks to understand the spatio-temporal variation, differences, and driving factors of viral communities in two plateau lakes (Dianchi and Fuxian Lakes) with significant nutritional differences. The viral communities exhibited apparent seasonal variation in Dianchi Lake, while seasonal influences on the viral communities were greater than location-based influences. Two-thirds of all detected viral taxa were shared in two lakes, but there was variation in the composition of viral communities. Correlations between prokaryotic communities, environmental factors and viral communities were analyzed. The nutrients, chlorophyll a were primarily environmental parameters affecting viral communities, and the prokaryotic community was significantly correlated with the viral community. In addition, several viruses infecting humans were identified in two lakes, with the most abundant being Herpesviridae and Poxviridae. Overall, these findings provide information on the dynamics, composition, and differences of viral and prokaryotic communities in plateau lakes with different nutrient levels. These results suggest that nutritional levels and prokaryotic communities could play an important role in shaping viral communities in freshwater lakes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Raoqiong Che
- Yunnan Institute of Microbiology, School of Life Sciences, Yunnan University, Kunming 650091, China
| | - Meng Bai
- Yunnan Institute of Microbiology, School of Life Sciences, Yunnan University, Kunming 650091, China
| | - Wei Xiao
- Yunnan Institute of Microbiology, School of Life Sciences, Yunnan University, Kunming 650091, China.
| | - Shiying Zhang
- Yunnan Engineering Laboratory of Soil Fertility and Pollution Remediation, Yunnan Agricultural University, Kunming 650201, China
| | - Yongxia Wang
- Yunnan Institute of Microbiology, School of Life Sciences, Yunnan University, Kunming 650091, China
| | - Xiaolong Cui
- Yunnan Institute of Microbiology, School of Life Sciences, Yunnan University, Kunming 650091, China.
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Harilanto AF, Christelle D, Philippe C, Bettarel Y. Viral life strategies in a heavily anthropized tropical lagoon. FEMS Microbiol Lett 2022; 369:6698716. [DOI: 10.1093/femsle/fnac091] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/01/2022] [Revised: 08/25/2022] [Accepted: 08/30/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Abstract
Ecological traits of aquatic microorganisms have been poorly investigated in tropical latitudes, especially in lagoons, which are often subjected to strong anthropogenic influence, conducive to microbial development. In this study, we examined the abundance of both viral and bacterial communities, as well as their interactions (lytic and lysogenic infections) in the water and sediment of seven main stations of the Ebrié Lagoon (Ivory Coast) with contrasting levels of eutrophication. The highest bacterial and viral concentrations in both planktonic and benthic samples were found in the most eutrophicated stations, where viral lytic infections also exhibited their highest values. Conversely, the highest fractions of inducible lysogens were measured in the most oligotrophic stations, suggesting that these two main viral life strategies are mutually exclusive in this lagoon. Our findings also revealed the importance that nutrients (especially ammonium) play as drivers of the interactions between viruses and their bacterial hosts in tropical lagoons.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrianjakarivony Felana Harilanto
- Microbes, Evolution, Phylogeny, and Infection (MEФI) , IHU - Méditerranée Infection, 19–21 Boulevard Jean Moulin, 13005, Marseille , France
- Microbiologie Environnementale Biotechnologie (MEB), Mediterranean Institute of Oceanography (MIO) , 163 avenue de Luminy 13009, Marseille , France
| | - Desnues Christelle
- Microbes, Evolution, Phylogeny, and Infection (MEФI) , IHU - Méditerranée Infection, 19–21 Boulevard Jean Moulin, 13005, Marseille , France
- Microbiologie Environnementale Biotechnologie (MEB), Mediterranean Institute of Oceanography (MIO) , 163 avenue de Luminy 13009, Marseille , France
| | - Cecchi Philippe
- MARBEC, Marine Biodiversity, Exploitation & Conservation, Univ. Montpellier , CNRS, Ifremer, IRD, 093 Place Eugène Bataillon 34090, Montpellier , France
| | - Yvan Bettarel
- MARBEC, Marine Biodiversity, Exploitation & Conservation, Univ. Montpellier , CNRS, Ifremer, IRD, 093 Place Eugène Bataillon 34090, Montpellier , France
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Li JT, Jia P, Wang XJ, Ou SN, Yang TT, Feng SW, Lu JL, Fang Z, Liu J, Liao B, Shu WS, Liang JL. Metagenomic and metatranscriptomic insights into sulfate-reducing bacteria in a revegetated acidic mine wasteland. NPJ Biofilms Microbiomes 2022; 8:71. [PMID: 36068230 PMCID: PMC9448743 DOI: 10.1038/s41522-022-00333-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/21/2022] [Accepted: 08/12/2022] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
The widespread occurrence of sulfate-reducing microorganisms (SRMs) in temporarily oxic/hypoxic aquatic environments indicates an intriguing possibility that SRMs can prevail in constantly oxic/hypoxic terrestrial sulfate-rich environments. However, little attention has been given to this possibility, leading to an incomplete understanding of microorganisms driving the terrestrial part of the global sulfur (S) cycle. In this study, genome-centric metagenomics and metatranscriptomics were employed to explore the diversity, metabolic potential, and gene expression profile of SRMs in a revegetated acidic mine wasteland under constantly oxic/hypoxic conditions. We recovered 16 medium- to high-quality metagenome-assembled genomes (MAGs) containing reductive dsrAB. Among them, 12 and four MAGs belonged to Acidobacteria and Deltaproteobacteria, respectively, harboring three new SRM genera. Comparative genomic analysis based on seven high-quality MAGs (completeness >90% and contamination <10%; including six acidobacterial and one deltaproteobacterial) and genomes of three additional cultured model species showed that Acidobacteria-related SRMs had more genes encoding glycoside hydrolases, oxygen-tolerant hydrogenases, and cytochrome c oxidases than Deltaproteobacteria-related SRMs. The opposite pattern was observed for genes encoding superoxide reductases and thioredoxin peroxidases. Using VirSorter, viral genome sequences were found in five of the 16 MAGs and in all three cultured model species. These prophages encoded enzymes involved in glycoside hydrolysis and antioxidation in their hosts. Moreover, metatranscriptomic analysis revealed that 15 of the 16 SRMs reported here were active in situ. An acidobacterial MAG containing a prophage dominated the SRM transcripts, expressing a large number of genes involved in its response to oxidative stress and competition for organic matter.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jin-Tian Li
- Institute of Ecological Science, Guangzhou Key Laboratory of Subtropical Biodiversity and Biomonitoring, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Biotechnology for Plant Development, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, PR China.,School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, 510275, PR China
| | - Pu Jia
- Institute of Ecological Science, Guangzhou Key Laboratory of Subtropical Biodiversity and Biomonitoring, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Biotechnology for Plant Development, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, PR China
| | - Xiao-Juan Wang
- Institute of Ecological Science, Guangzhou Key Laboratory of Subtropical Biodiversity and Biomonitoring, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Biotechnology for Plant Development, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, PR China
| | - Shu-Ning Ou
- Institute of Ecological Science, Guangzhou Key Laboratory of Subtropical Biodiversity and Biomonitoring, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Biotechnology for Plant Development, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, PR China
| | - Tao-Tao Yang
- School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, 510275, PR China
| | - Shi-Wei Feng
- Institute of Ecological Science, Guangzhou Key Laboratory of Subtropical Biodiversity and Biomonitoring, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Biotechnology for Plant Development, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, PR China
| | - Jing-Li Lu
- Institute of Ecological Science, Guangzhou Key Laboratory of Subtropical Biodiversity and Biomonitoring, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Biotechnology for Plant Development, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, PR China
| | - Zhou Fang
- Institute of Ecological Science, Guangzhou Key Laboratory of Subtropical Biodiversity and Biomonitoring, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Biotechnology for Plant Development, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, PR China
| | - Jun Liu
- School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, 510275, PR China
| | - Bin Liao
- School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, 510275, PR China
| | - Wen-Sheng Shu
- Institute of Ecological Science, Guangzhou Key Laboratory of Subtropical Biodiversity and Biomonitoring, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Biotechnology for Plant Development, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, PR China
| | - Jie-Liang Liang
- Institute of Ecological Science, Guangzhou Key Laboratory of Subtropical Biodiversity and Biomonitoring, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Biotechnology for Plant Development, School of Life Sciences, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, PR China.
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Climate-Endangered Arctic Epishelf Lake Harbors Viral Assemblages with Distinct Genetic Repertoires. Appl Environ Microbiol 2022; 88:e0022822. [PMID: 36005820 PMCID: PMC9469726 DOI: 10.1128/aem.00228-22] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Milne Fiord, located on the coastal margin of the Last Ice Area (LIA) in the High Arctic (82°N, Canada), harbors an epishelf lake, a rare type of ice-dependent ecosystem in which a layer of freshwater overlies marine water connected to the open ocean. This microbe-dominated ecosystem faces catastrophic change due to the deterioration of its ice environment related to warming temperatures. We produced the first assessment of viral abundance, diversity, and distribution in this vulnerable ecosystem and explored the niches available for viral taxa and the functional genes underlying their distribution. We found that the viral community in the freshwater layer was distinct from, and more diverse than, the community in the underlying seawater and contained a different set of putative auxiliary metabolic genes, including the sulfur starvation-linked gene tauD and the gene coding for patatin-like phospholipase. The halocline community resembled the freshwater more than the marine community, but harbored viral taxa unique to this layer. We observed distinct viral assemblages immediately below the halocline, at a depth that was associated with a peak of prasinophyte algae and the viral family Phycodnaviridae. We also assembled 15 complete circular genomes, including a putative Pelagibacter phage with a marine distribution. It appears that despite its isolated and precarious situation, the varied niches in this epishelf lake support a diverse viral community, highlighting the importance of characterizing underexplored microbiota in the Last Ice Area before these ecosystems undergo irreversible change. IMPORTANCE Viruses are key to understanding polar aquatic ecosystems, which are dominated by microorganisms. However, studies of viral communities are challenging to interpret because the vast majority of viruses are known only from sequence fragments, and their taxonomy, hosts, and genetic repertoires are unknown. Our study establishes a basis for comparison that will advance understanding of viral ecology in diverse global environments, particularly in the High Arctic. Rising temperatures in this region mean that researchers have limited time remaining to understand the biodiversity and biogeochemical cycles of ice-dependent environments and the consequences of these rapid, irreversible changes. The case of the Milne Fiord epishelf lake has special urgency because of the rarity of this type of “floating lake” ecosystem and its location in the Last Ice Area, a region of thick sea ice with global importance for conservation efforts.
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Eissler Y, Castillo-Reyes A, Dorador C, Cornejo-D'Ottone M, Celis-Plá PSM, Aguilar P, Molina V. Virus-to-prokaryote ratio in the Salar de Huasco and different ecosystems of the Southern hemisphere and its relationship with physicochemical and biological parameters. Front Microbiol 2022; 13:938066. [PMID: 36060762 PMCID: PMC9434117 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2022.938066] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/06/2022] [Accepted: 07/31/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The virus-to-prokaryote ratio (VPR) has been used in many ecosystems to study the relationship between viruses and their hosts. While high VPR values indicate a high rate of prokaryotes' cell lysis, low values are interpreted as a decrease in or absence of viral activity. Salar de Huasco is a high-altitude wetland characterized by a rich microbial diversity associated with aquatic sites like springs, ponds, streams and a lagoon with variable physicochemical conditions. Samples from two ponds, Poza Rosada (PR) and Poza Verde (PV), were analyzed by epifluorescence microscopy to determine variability of viral and prokaryotic abundance and to calculate the VPR in a dry season. In addition, to put Salar de Huasco results into perspective, a compilation of research articles on viral and prokaryotic abundance, VPR, and metadata from various Southern hemisphere ecosystems was revised. The ecosystems were grouped into six categories: high-altitude wetlands, Pacific, Atlantic, Indian, and Southern Oceans and Antarctic lakes. Salar de Huasco ponds recorded similar VPR values (an average of 7.4 and 1.7 at PR and PV, respectively), ranging from 3.22 to 15.99 in PR. The VPR variability was associated with VA and chlorophyll a, when considering all data available for this ecosystem. In general, high-altitude wetlands recorded the highest VPR average (53.22 ± 95.09), followed by the Oceans, Southern (21.91 ± 25.72), Atlantic (19.57 ± 15.77) and Indian (13.43 ± 16.12), then Antarctic lakes (11.37 ± 15.82) and the Pacific Ocean (6.34 ± 3.79). Physicochemical variables, i.e., temperature, conductivity, nutrients (nitrate, ammonium, and phosphate) and chlorophyll a as a biological variable, were found to drive the VPR in the ecosystems analyzed. Thus, the viral activity in the Wetland followed similar trends of previous reports based on larger sets of metadata analyses. In total, this study highlights the importance of including viruses as a biological variable to study microbial temporal dynamics in wetlands considering their crucial role in the carbon budgets of these understudied ecosystems in the southern hemisphere.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yoanna Eissler
- Instituto de Química y Bioquímica, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Valparaíso, Valparaíso, Chile
- *Correspondence: Yoanna Eissler
| | - Alonso Castillo-Reyes
- Escuela de Biología Marina, Facultad de Ciencias del Mar y de Recursos Naturales, Universidad de Valparaíso, Viña del Mar, Chile
| | - Cristina Dorador
- Laboratorio de Complejidad Microbiana y Ecología Funcional, Instituto de Antofagasta, Departamento de Biotecnología, Facultad de Ciencias del Mar y Recursos Biológicos, Universidad de Antofagasta, Antofagasta, Chile
- Centre for Biotechnology and Bioengineering, Universidad de Chile, Santiago, Chile
| | - Marcela Cornejo-D'Ottone
- Escuela de Ciencias del Mar e Instituto Milenio de Oceanografía, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Valparaíso, Valparaíso, Chile
| | - Paula S. M. Celis-Plá
- Laboratory of Aquatic Environmental Research, Centro de Estudios Avanzados, Universidad de Playa Ancha, Viña del Mar, Chile
- HUB Ambiental UPLA, Universidad de Playa Ancha, Valparaíso, Chile
| | - Polette Aguilar
- HUB Ambiental UPLA, Universidad de Playa Ancha, Valparaíso, Chile
| | - Verónica Molina
- HUB Ambiental UPLA, Universidad de Playa Ancha, Valparaíso, Chile
- Departamento de Ciencias y Geografía, Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Exactas, Universidad de Playa Ancha, Valparaíso, Chile
- Centro de Investigación Oceanográfica COPAS COASTAL, Universidad de Concepción, Concepción, Chile
- Verónica Molina
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Wang J, Li H, Li C, Ding Y, Wang Y, Zhu W, Wang J, Shao Y, Pan H, Wang X. EIS biosensor based on a novel Myoviridae bacteriophage SEP37 for rapid and specific detection of Salmonella in food matrixes. Food Res Int 2022; 158:111479. [DOI: 10.1016/j.foodres.2022.111479] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/03/2022] [Revised: 06/01/2022] [Accepted: 06/04/2022] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
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Modin O, Fuad N, Abadikhah M, I'Ons D, Ossiansson E, Gustavsson DJ, Edefell E, Suarez C, Persson F, Wilén BM. A relationship between phages and organic carbon in wastewater treatment plant effluents. WATER RESEARCH X 2022; 16:100146. [PMID: 35761925 PMCID: PMC9233278 DOI: 10.1016/j.wroa.2022.100146] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/21/2022] [Revised: 05/27/2022] [Accepted: 06/15/2022] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
With stringent effluent requirements and the implementation of new processes for micropollutant removal, it is increasingly important for wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) to understand the factors affecting effluent quality. Phages (viruses infecting prokaryotes) are abundant in the biological treatment processes. They can contribute to organic carbon in the treated effluent both because they are organic in nature and occur in the effluent and because they cause lysis of microorganisms. Today very little is known about the effects of phages on effluent quality. The goal of this study was, therefore, to determine the relationship between phages and organic carbon in WWTP effluents. We also examined the diversity, taxonomy, and host-association of DNA phages using metagenomics. Effluent samples were collected from four WWTPs treating municipal wastewater. Significant differences in both organic carbon and virus-like particle concentrations were observed between the plants and there was a linear relationship between the two parameters. The phage communities were diverse with many members being taxonomically unclassified. Putative hosts were dominated by bacteria known to be abundant in activated sludge systems such as Comamonadaceae. The composition of phages differed between the WWTPs, suggesting that local conditions shape the communities. Overall, our findings suggest that the abundance and composition of phages are related to effluent quality. Thus, there is a need for further research clarifying the association between phage dynamics and WWTP function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Oskar Modin
- Division of Water Environment Technology, Department of Architecture and Civil Engineering, Chalmers University of Technology, Gothenburg SE-412 96, Sweden
| | - Nafis Fuad
- Division of Water Environment Technology, Department of Architecture and Civil Engineering, Chalmers University of Technology, Gothenburg SE-412 96, Sweden
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Connecticut, USA
| | - Marie Abadikhah
- Division of Water Environment Technology, Department of Architecture and Civil Engineering, Chalmers University of Technology, Gothenburg SE-412 96, Sweden
| | | | - Elin Ossiansson
- Division of Water Environment Technology, Department of Architecture and Civil Engineering, Chalmers University of Technology, Gothenburg SE-412 96, Sweden
- VA SYD, P.O. Box 191, Malmö SE-2021, Sweden
| | - David J.I. Gustavsson
- VA SYD, P.O. Box 191, Malmö SE-2021, Sweden
- Sweden Water Research, c/o Ideon Science Park, Scheelevägen 15, Lund SE-223 70, Sweden
| | - Ellen Edefell
- Sweden Water Research, c/o Ideon Science Park, Scheelevägen 15, Lund SE-223 70, Sweden
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Lund University, PO Box 124, Lund SE-221 00, Sweden
| | - Carolina Suarez
- Division of Water Resources Engineering, Faculty of Engineering LTH, Lund University, Box 118, Lund SE-221 00, Sweden
| | - Frank Persson
- Division of Water Environment Technology, Department of Architecture and Civil Engineering, Chalmers University of Technology, Gothenburg SE-412 96, Sweden
| | - Britt-Marie Wilén
- Division of Water Environment Technology, Department of Architecture and Civil Engineering, Chalmers University of Technology, Gothenburg SE-412 96, Sweden
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Reduced bacterial mortality and enhanced viral productivity during sinking in the ocean. THE ISME JOURNAL 2022; 16:1668-1675. [PMID: 35365738 PMCID: PMC9123201 DOI: 10.1038/s41396-022-01224-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/28/2021] [Revised: 01/14/2022] [Accepted: 03/14/2022] [Indexed: 12/03/2022]
Abstract
Particle sinking is an important process in the ocean, influencing the biogeochemical cycle and driving the long-term preservation of carbon into the deep sea via the biological pump. However, as an important component of marine ecosystems, the role of viruses during sinking is still poorly understood. Therefore, we performed a series of transplantation experiments in the South China Sea to simulate environmental changes during sinking and investigate their effects on viral eco-dynamics and life strategy. Our study demonstrated increased viral production but decreased virus-mediated bacterial mortality after transplantation. A larger burst size and switch from the lysogenic to lytic strategy were shown to contribute to enhanced viral productivity. We provide experimental evidence that surface viral ecological characteristics changed dramatically after transplantation into deep-sea waters, indicating a potential importance of viruses during vertical sinking in the ocean. This effect probably provides positive feedback on the efficiency of the biological pump.
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Karwautz C, Zhou Y, Kerros ME, Weinbauer MG, Griebler C. Bottom-Up Control of the Groundwater Microbial Food-Web in an Alpine Aquifer. Front Ecol Evol 2022. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2022.854228] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Groundwater ecosystems are typically poor in organic carbon and productivity sustaining a low standing stock of microbial biomass. In consequence, microbial food webs in oligotrophic groundwater are hypothesized to be bottom-up controlled. To date, quantitative information on groundwater microbial communities, food web interactions, and carbon flow is relatively lacking in comparison to that of surface waters. Studying a shallow, porous alpine aquifer we collected data on the numbers of prokaryotes, virus-like particles and heterotrophic nanoflagellates (HNFs), the concentration of dissolved (DOC) and assimilable organic carbon (AOC), bacterial carbon production (BCP), and physical-chemical conditions for a 1 year hydrological cycle. The potential effects of protozoan grazing and viral lysis onto the prokaryotic biomass was tested. Flow of organic carbon through the microbial food web was estimated based on data from the literature. The abundance of prokaryotes in groundwater was low with 6.1 ± 6.9 × 104 cells mL–1, seasonally influenced by the hydrological dynamics, with higher densities coinciding with a lower groundwater table. Overall, the variability in cell numbers was moderate, and so it was for HNFs (179 ± 103 HNFs mL–1) and virus-like particles (9.6 ± 5.7 × 105 VLPs mL–1). The virus to prokaryotes and prokaryote to HNF ratios ranged between 2–230 and 33–2,084, respectively. We found no evidence for a viral control of prokaryotic biomass, and the biomass of HNFs being bottom-up controlled. First estimations point at carbon use efficiencies of 0.2–4.2% with prokaryotic production, and carbon consumed and recycled by HNFs and phages to be of minor importance. This first groundwater microbial food web analysis strongly hints at a bottom-up control on productivity and standing stock in oligotrophic groundwater ecosystems. However, direct measurement of protozoan grazing and phage mediated lysis rates of prokaryotic cells are urgently needed to deepen our mechanistic understanding. The effect of microbial diversity on the population dynamics still needs to be addressed.
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Shi LD, Dong X, Liu Z, Yang Y, Lin JG, Li M, Gu JD, Zhu LZ, Zhao HP. A mixed blessing of viruses in wastewater treatment plants. WATER RESEARCH 2022; 215:118237. [PMID: 35245718 DOI: 10.1016/j.watres.2022.118237] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2021] [Revised: 02/23/2022] [Accepted: 02/24/2022] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Activated sludge of wastewater treatment plants harbors a very high diversity of both microorganisms and viruses, wherein the latter control microbial dynamics and metabolisms by infection and lysis of cells. However, it remains poorly understood how viruses impact the biochemical processes of activated sludge, for example in terms of treatment efficiency and pollutant removal. Using metagenomic and metatranscriptomic deep sequencing, the present study recovered thousands of viral sequences from activated sludge samples of three conventional wastewater treatment plants. Gene-sharing network indicated that most of viruses could not be assigned to known viral genera, implying activated sludge as an underexplored reservoir for new viruses and viral diversity. In silico predictions of virus-host linkages demonstrated that infected microbial hosts, mostly belonging to bacteria, were transcriptionally active and able to hydrolyze polymers including starches, celluloses, and proteins. Some viruses encode auxiliary metabolic genes (AMGs) involved in carbon, nitrogen, and sulfur cycling, and antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) for resistance to multiple drugs. The virus-encoded AMGs may enhance the biodegradation of contaminants like starches and celluloses, suggesting a positive role for viruses in strengthening the performance of activated sludge. However, ARGs would be disseminated to different microorganisms using viruses as gene shuttles, demonstrating the possibility for viruses to facilitate the spread of antibiotic resistance in the environment. Collectively, this study highlights the mixed blessing of viruses in wastewater treatment plants, and deciphers how they manipulate the biochemical processes in the activated sludge, with implications for both environmental protection and ecosystem security.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ling-Dong Shi
- MOE Key Lab of Environmental Remediation and Ecosystem Health, College of Environmental and Resource Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Xiyang Dong
- School of Marine Sciences, Sun Yat-Sen University, Zhuhai, China; Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Zhuhai), Zhuhai, China
| | - Zongbao Liu
- Archaeal Biology Center, Institute for Advanced Study, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen 518060, China
| | - Yuchun Yang
- State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, School of Ecology, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou 510275, China
| | - Jih-Gaw Lin
- Institute of Environmental Engineering, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University, 1001 University Road, Hsinchu 30010, Taiwan
| | - Meng Li
- Archaeal Biology Center, Institute for Advanced Study, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen 518060, China; Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Marine Microbiome Engineering, Institute for Advanced Study, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen 518060, China
| | - Ji-Dong Gu
- Environmental Science and Engineering Program, Guangdong Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, 241 Daxue Road, Shantou, Guangdong 515063, China
| | - Li-Zhong Zhu
- MOE Key Lab of Environmental Remediation and Ecosystem Health, College of Environmental and Resource Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - He-Ping Zhao
- MOE Key Lab of Environmental Remediation and Ecosystem Health, College of Environmental and Resource Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China.
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41
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Cao MM, Liu SY, Bi L, Chen SJ, Wu HY, Ge Y, Han B, Zhang LM, He JZ, Han LL. Distribution Characteristics of Soil Viruses Under Different Precipitation Gradients on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. Front Microbiol 2022; 13:848305. [PMID: 35464951 PMCID: PMC9022101 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2022.848305] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/04/2022] [Accepted: 02/07/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Viruses are extremely abundant in the soil environment and have potential roles in impacting on microbial population, evolution, and nutrient biogeochemical cycles. However, how environment and climate changes affect soil viruses is still poorly understood. Here, a metagenomic approach was used to investigate the distribution, diversity, and potential biogeochemical impacts of DNA viruses in 12 grassland soils under three precipitation gradients on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, which is one of the most sensitive areas to climate change. A total of 557 viral operational taxonomic units were obtained, spanning 152 viral families from the 30 metagenomes. Both virus-like particles (VLPs) and microbial abundance increased with average annual precipitation. A significant positive correlation of VLP counts was observed with soil water content, total carbon, total nitrogen, soil organic matter, and total phosphorus. Among these biological and abiotic factors, SWC mainly contributed to the variability in VLP abundance. The order Caudovirales (70.1% of the identified viral order) was the predominant viral type in soils from the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, with the Siphoviridae family being the most abundant. Remarkably, abundant auxiliary carbohydrate-active enzyme (CAZyme) genes represented by glycoside hydrolases were identified, indicating that soil viruses may play a potential role in the carbon cycle on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. There were more diverse hosts and abundant CAZyme genes in soil with moderate precipitation. Our study provides a strong evidence that changes in precipitation impact not only viral abundance and virus–host interactions in soil but also the viral functional potential, especially carbon cycling.
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Affiliation(s)
- Miao-Miao Cao
- State Key Laboratory of Urban and Regional Ecology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.,University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Si-Yi Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Urban and Regional Ecology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.,The Zhongke-Ji'an Institute for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Ji'an, China
| | - Li Bi
- Faculty of Veterinary and Agricultural Sciences, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC, Australia
| | - Shu-Jun Chen
- Information Technology Center, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China
| | - Hua-Yong Wu
- State Key Laboratory of Soil and Sustainable Agriculture, Institute of Soil Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing, China
| | - Yuan Ge
- State Key Laboratory of Urban and Regional Ecology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Bing Han
- State Key Laboratory of Urban and Regional Ecology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.,University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Li-Mei Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Urban and Regional Ecology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.,University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Ji-Zheng He
- Faculty of Veterinary and Agricultural Sciences, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC, Australia.,Key Laboratory for Humid Subtropical Eco-Geographical Processes of the Ministry of Education, Fujian Normal University, Fuzhou, China
| | - Li-Li Han
- State Key Laboratory of Urban and Regional Ecology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
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42
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Maffei E, Harms A. Messages from the dead protect bacteria from viral attack. EMBO J 2022; 41:e110382. [PMID: 34957575 PMCID: PMC8804935 DOI: 10.15252/embj.2021110382] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/07/2021] [Accepted: 12/09/2021] [Indexed: 02/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Bacterial populations are ubiquitously threatened by viral predation. In this issue, Tzipilevich and colleagues show that bacteria killed by viruses release a danger signal that warns neighboring cells to ramp up their defenses. This "message from the dead" thereby induces phenotypic tolerance to infections and slows down viral spread in the population.
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Affiliation(s)
- Enea Maffei
- BiozentrumUniversity of BaselBaselSwitzerland
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43
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Hatoum-Aslan A. The phages of staphylococci: critical catalysts in health and disease. Trends Microbiol 2021; 29:1117-1129. [PMID: 34030968 PMCID: PMC8578144 DOI: 10.1016/j.tim.2021.04.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/26/2021] [Revised: 04/26/2021] [Accepted: 04/28/2021] [Indexed: 01/21/2023]
Abstract
The phages that infect Staphylococcus species are dominant residents of the skin microbiome that play critical roles in health and disease. While temperate phages, which can integrate into the host genome, have the potential to promote staphylococcal pathogenesis, the strictly lytic variety are powerful antimicrobials that are being exploited for therapeutic applications. This article reviews recent insights into the diversity of staphylococcal phages and newly described mechanisms by which they influence host pathogenicity. The latest efforts to harness these viruses to eradicate staphylococcal infections are also highlighted. Decades of research has focused on the temperate phages of Staphylococcus aureus as model systems, thus underscoring the need to broaden basic research efforts to include diverse phages that infect other clinically relevant Staphylococcus species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Asma Hatoum-Aslan
- University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Department of Microbiology, Urbana, IL, 61801, USA.
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44
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Fillinger L, Hürkamp K, Stumpp C, Weber N, Forster D, Hausmann B, Schultz L, Griebler C. Spatial and Annual Variation in Microbial Abundance, Community Composition, and Diversity Associated With Alpine Surface Snow. Front Microbiol 2021; 12:781904. [PMID: 34912321 PMCID: PMC8667604 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2021.781904] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/23/2021] [Accepted: 11/08/2021] [Indexed: 01/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Understanding microbial community dynamics in the alpine cryosphere is an important step toward assessing climate change impacts on these fragile ecosystems and meltwater-fed environments downstream. In this study, we analyzed microbial community composition, variation in community alpha and beta diversity, and the number of prokaryotic cells and virus-like particles (VLP) in seasonal snowpack from two consecutive years at three high altitude mountain summits along a longitudinal transect across the European Alps. Numbers of prokaryotic cells and VLP both ranged around 104 and 105 per mL of snow meltwater on average, with variation generally within one order of magnitude between sites and years. VLP-to-prokaryotic cell ratios spanned two orders of magnitude, with median values close to 1, and little variation between sites and years in the majority of cases. Estimates of microbial community alpha diversity inferred from Hill numbers revealed low contributions of common and abundant microbial taxa to the total taxon richness, and thus low community evenness. Similar to prokaryotic cell and VLP numbers, differences in alpha diversity between years and sites were generally relatively modest. In contrast, community composition displayed strong variation between sites and especially between years. Analyses of taxonomic and phylogenetic community composition showed that differences between sites within years were mainly characterized by changes in abundances of microbial taxa from similar phylogenetic clades, whereas shifts between years were due to significant phylogenetic turnover. Our findings on the spatiotemporal dynamics and magnitude of variation of microbial abundances, community diversity, and composition in surface snow may help define baseline levels to assess future impacts of climate change on the alpine cryosphere.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lucas Fillinger
- Department of Functional and Evolutionary Ecology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Kerstin Hürkamp
- Institute of Radiation Medicine, Helmholtz Zentrum München, Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Christine Stumpp
- Institute of Groundwater Ecology, Helmholtz Zentrum München, Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Nina Weber
- Institute of Groundwater Ecology, Helmholtz Zentrum München, Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Dominik Forster
- Institute of Groundwater Ecology, Helmholtz Zentrum München, Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Bela Hausmann
- Joint Microbiome Facility of the Medical University of Vienna and the University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Lotta Schultz
- Department of Functional and Evolutionary Ecology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Christian Griebler
- Institute of Groundwater Ecology, Helmholtz Zentrum München, Neuherberg, Germany
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45
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Cui N, Yang F, Zhang JT, Sun H, Chen Y, Yu RC, Chen ZP, Jiang YL, Han SJ, Xu X, Li Q, Zhou CZ. Capsid Structure of Anabaena Cyanophage A-1(L). J Virol 2021; 95:e0135621. [PMID: 34549983 PMCID: PMC8610606 DOI: 10.1128/jvi.01356-21] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/12/2021] [Accepted: 09/19/2021] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
Abstract
A-1(L) is a freshwater cyanophage with a contractile tail that specifically infects Anabaena sp. PCC 7120, one of the model strains for molecular studies of cyanobacteria. Although isolated for half a century, its structure remains unknown, which limits our understanding on the interplay between A-1(L) and its host. Here we report the 3.35 Å cryo-EM structure of A-1(L) capsid, representing the first near-atomic resolution structure of a phage capsid with a T number of 9. The major capsid gp4 proteins assemble into 91 capsomers, including 80 hexons: 20 at the center of the facet and 60 at the facet edge, in addition to 11 identical pentons. These capsomers further assemble into the icosahedral capsid, via gradually increasing curvatures. Different from the previously reported capsids of known-structure, A-1(L) adopts a noncovalent chainmail structure of capsid stabilized by two kinds of mortise-and-tenon inter-capsomer interactions: a three-layered interface at the pseudo 3-fold axis combined with the complementarity in shape and electrostatic potential around the 2-fold axis. This unique capsomer construction enables A-1(L) to possess a rigid capsid, which is solely composed of the major capsid proteins with an HK97 fold. IMPORTANCE Cyanobacteria are the most abundant photosynthetic bacteria, contributing significantly to the biomass production, O2 generation, and CO2 consumption on our planet. Their community structure and homeostasis in natural aquatic ecosystems are largely regulated by the corresponding cyanophages. In this study, we solved the structure of cyanophage A-1(L) capsid at near-atomic resolution and revealed a unique capsid construction. This capsid structure provides the molecular details for better understanding the assembly of A-1(L), and a structural platform for future investigation and application of A-1(L) in combination with its host Anabaena sp. PCC 7120. As the first isolated freshwater cyanophage that infects the genetically tractable model cyanobacterium, A-1(L) should become an ideal template for the genetic engineering and synthetic biology studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ning Cui
- Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale and School of Life Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui, China
| | - Feng Yang
- Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale and School of Life Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui, China
| | - Jun-Tao Zhang
- Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale and School of Life Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui, China
| | - Hui Sun
- Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale and School of Life Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui, China
| | - Yu Chen
- Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale and School of Life Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui, China
| | - Rong-Cheng Yu
- Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale and School of Life Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui, China
| | - Zhi-Peng Chen
- Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale and School of Life Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui, China
| | - Yong-Liang Jiang
- Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale and School of Life Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui, China
| | - Shu-Jing Han
- Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale and School of Life Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui, China
| | - Xudong Xu
- State Key Laboratory of Freshwater Ecology and Biotechnology, Institute of Hydrobiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, Hubei, China
| | - Qiong Li
- Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale and School of Life Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui, China
| | - Cong-Zhao Zhou
- Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale and School of Life Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui, China
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46
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Hatoum-Aslan A. Prophages self-destruct to eliminate competitors. Cell Host Microbe 2021; 29:1603-1605. [PMID: 34762825 DOI: 10.1016/j.chom.2021.10.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
Abstract
Bacteria have evolved many immune systems to combat their viral parasites (i.e., phages). In this issue of Cell Host & Microbe, Owen et al. discover a mechanism of anti-phage immunity that is mediated by a phage-encoded protein, and thus provide an example of how inter-phage conflict can promote survival of the bacterial population.
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Affiliation(s)
- Asma Hatoum-Aslan
- University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Department of Microbiology, Urbana, IL 61801, USA
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47
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Liang X, Wang Y, Zhang Y, Li B, Radosevich M. Bacteriophage-host depth distribution patterns in soil are maintained after nutrient stimulation in vitro. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2021; 787:147589. [PMID: 33991924 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.147589] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/09/2021] [Revised: 04/16/2021] [Accepted: 05/01/2021] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Previous research has revealed the ecological importance of viruses in different ecosystems. However, bacteriophage-host distribution patterns in soil depth profiles have not been investigated. Environmental factors such as nutrient availability and physiological stress can impact the mode (either lytic or lysogenic) of viral reproduction and subsequent influence of virus infection on ecological processes. Soil depth profiles with distinct geochemical properties are ideal models to investigate the virus-host relationships as a function of environmental trophic status and cell abundance. Batch enrichment experiments using soil collected at varying depths (0-140 cm) as inoculum were performed to explore the interactions between viruses and co-occurring microbial hosts under nutrient stimulation. Both viral and bacterial abundance increased in the nutrient media compared with those in the original soils. Bacterial abundance was similar in mixed-cultures of soils regardless of sampling depth, whereas viral abundance was negatively correlated with the depth of soil samples which caused a decreasing virus-to-bacteria ratio. The lysogenetic fraction increased with soil depth in a similar manner as in the original soils assessed directly without nutrient stimulation. The bacterial diversity decreased with soil depth, and was influenced primarily by soil type, viral abundance, and virus-to-bacteria ratio. The bacterial communities were dominated by Bacilli, Beta-, Gamma-Proteobacteria, and Clostridia after nutrient stimulation. Viral and bacterial community structure also varied with soil horizons (i.e., depth). The results showed that the patterns for virus-host interactions shaped by the geochemical properties in the original environment were conserved or similar after in vitro nutrient stimulation. These findings suggest that short-term changes in trophic status alone may not significantly alter the balance of viral reproductive strategies in terrestrial ecosystems as in the antecedent environmental conditions that the host community has long adapted to, and other factors such as stress, host diversity or adaptation may be necessary to trigger community-level shifts in the interactions between viruses and hosts that responded most favorably to nutrient addition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaolong Liang
- Department of Biosystems Engineering and Soil Science, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA.
| | - Yusong Wang
- Department of Biosystems Engineering and Soil Science, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA
| | - Ying Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Pollution Ecology and Environmental Engineering, Institute of Applied Ecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenyang, Liaoning Province 110016, China
| | - Bingxue Li
- College of Land and Environment, Shenyang Agricultural University, Shenyang, Liaoning 110866, China
| | - Mark Radosevich
- Department of Biosystems Engineering and Soil Science, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA.
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48
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Sandaa RA, Saltvedt MR, Dahle H, Wang H, Våge S, Blanc-Mathieu R, Steen IH, Grimsley N, Edvardsen B, Ogata H, Lawrence J. Adaptive evolution of viruses infecting marine microalgae (haptophytes), from acute infections to stable coexistence. Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc 2021; 97:179-194. [PMID: 34514703 DOI: 10.1111/brv.12795] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/25/2021] [Revised: 08/27/2021] [Accepted: 09/01/2021] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Collectively known as phytoplankton, photosynthetic microbes form the base of the marine food web, and account for up to half of the primary production on Earth. Haptophytes are key components of this phytoplankton community, playing important roles both as primary producers and as mixotrophs that graze on bacteria and protists. Viruses influence the ecology and diversity of phytoplankton in the ocean, with the majority of microalgae-virus interactions described as 'boom and bust' dynamics, which are characteristic of acute virus-host systems. Most haptophytes are, however, part of highly diverse communities and occur at low densities, decreasing their chance of being infected by viruses with high host specificity. Viruses infecting these microalgae have been isolated in the laboratory, and there are several characteristics that distinguish them from acute viruses infecting bloom-forming haptophytes. Herein we synthesise what is known of viruses infecting haptophyte hosts in the ocean, discuss the adaptive evolution of haptophyte-infecting viruses -from those that cause acute infections to those that stably coexist with their host - and identify traits of importance for successful survival in the ocean.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ruth-Anne Sandaa
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Bergen, Postbox 7803, N-5020, Bergen, Norway
| | - Marius R Saltvedt
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Bergen, Postbox 7803, N-5020, Bergen, Norway
| | - Håkon Dahle
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Bergen, Postbox 7803, N-5020, Bergen, Norway
| | - Haina Wang
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Bergen, Postbox 7803, N-5020, Bergen, Norway
| | - Selina Våge
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Bergen, Postbox 7803, N-5020, Bergen, Norway
| | - Romain Blanc-Mathieu
- Laboratoire de Physiologie Cellulaire & Végétale, CEA, Université Grenoble Alpes, CNRS, INRA, IRIG, Grenoble, France
| | - Ida H Steen
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Bergen, Postbox 7803, N-5020, Bergen, Norway
| | - Nigel Grimsley
- Sorbonne Université, CNRS, UMR 7232 Biologie Intégrative des Organismes Marins (BIOM), Observatoire Océanologique, F-66650, Banyuls-sur-Mer, France
| | - Bente Edvardsen
- Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, Postbox 1066, N-0316, Oslo, Norway
| | - Hiroyuki Ogata
- Bioinformatics Center, Institute for Chemical Research, Kyoto University, Gokasho, Uji, Kyoto, 611-0011, Japan
| | - Janice Lawrence
- Biology Department, University of New Brunswick, PO Box 4400, Fredericton, NB, E3B 5A3, Canada
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49
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Sui B, Han L, Ren H, Liu W, Zhang C. A Novel Polyvalent Bacteriophage vB_EcoM_swi3 Infects Pathogenic Escherichia coli and Salmonella enteritidis. Front Microbiol 2021; 12:649673. [PMID: 34335489 PMCID: PMC8317433 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2021.649673] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/13/2021] [Accepted: 05/17/2021] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
A novel virulent bacteriophage vB_EcoM_swi3 (swi3), isolated from swine feces, lyzed 9% (6/65) of Escherichia coli and isolates 54% (39/72) of Salmonella enteritidis isolates, which were all clinically pathogenic multidrug-resistant strains. Morphological observation showed that phage swi3 belonged to the Myoviridae family with an icosahedral head (80 nm in diameter) and a contractile sheathed tail (120 nm in length). At the optimal multiplicity of infection of 1, the one-step growth analysis of swi3 showed a 25-min latent period with a burst size of 25-plaque-forming units (PFU)/infected cell. Phage swi3 remained stable both at pH 6.0–8.0 and at less than 50°C for at least 1 h. Genomic sequencing and bioinformatics analysis based on genomic sequences and the terminase large subunit showed that phage swi3 was a novel member that was most closely related to Salmonella phages and belonged to the Rosemountvirus genus. Phage swi3 harbored a 52-kb double-stranded DNA genome with 46.02% GC content. Seventy-two potential open reading frames were identified and annotated, only 15 of which had been assigned to functional genes. No gene associated with pathogenicity and virulence was identified. The effects of phage swi3 in treating pathologic E. coli infections in vivo were evaluated using a mouse model. The administration of a single intraperitoneal injection of swi3 (106 PFU) at 2 h after challenge with the E. coli strain (serotype K88) (108 colony-forming units) sufficiently protected all mice without toxic side effects. This finding highlighted that phage swi3 might be used as an effective antibacterial agent to prevent E. coli and S. enteritidis infection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bingrui Sui
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Qingdao Agricultural University, Qingdao, China
| | - Lili Han
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Qingdao Agricultural University, Qingdao, China
| | - Huiying Ren
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Qingdao Agricultural University, Qingdao, China
| | - Wenhua Liu
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Qingdao Agricultural University, Qingdao, China
| | - Can Zhang
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Qingdao Agricultural University, Qingdao, China
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50
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Ramos-Barbero MD, Viver T, Zabaleta A, Senel E, Gomariz M, Antigüedad I, Santos F, Martínez-García M, Rosselló-Móra R, Antón J. Ancient saltern metagenomics: tracking changes in microbes and their viruses from the underground to the surface. Environ Microbiol 2021; 23:3477-3498. [PMID: 34110059 DOI: 10.1111/1462-2920.15630] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/07/2021] [Revised: 05/26/2021] [Accepted: 06/06/2021] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Microbial communities in hypersaline underground waters derive from ancient organisms trapped within the evaporitic salt crystals and are part of the poorly known subterranean biosphere. Here, we characterized the viral and prokaryotic assemblages present in the hypersaline springs that dissolve Triassic-Keuper evaporite rocks and feed the Añana Salt Valley (Araba/Alava, Basque Country, Spain). Four underground water samples (around 23% total salinity) with different levels of exposure to the open air were analysed by means of microscopy and metagenomics. Cells and viruses in the spring water had lower concentrations than what are normally found in hypersaline environments and seemed to be mostly inactive. Upon exposure to the open air, there was an increase in activity of both cells and viruses as well as a selection of phylotypes. The underground water was inhabited by a rich community harbouring a diverse set of genes coding for retinal binding proteins. A total of 35 viral contigs from 15 to 104 kb, representing partial or total viral genomes, were assembled and their evolutionary changes through the spring system were followed by SNP analysis and metagenomic island tracking. Overall, both the viral and the prokaryotic assemblages changed quickly upon exposure to the open air conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mª Dolores Ramos-Barbero
- Department of Physiology, Genetics and Microbiology, University of Alicante, 03690 San Vicent del Raspeig, Alicante, Spain
| | - Tomeu Viver
- Marine Microbiology Group, Department of Animal and Microbial Diversity, Mediterranean Institute of Advanced Studies (IMEDEA; CSIC-UIB), Esporles, Illes Balears, 07190, Spain
| | - Ane Zabaleta
- Hydro-Environmental Processes Group, Geology Department, Science and Technology Faculty, University of the Basque Country UPV/EHU, Leioa, 48940, Spain
| | - Ece Senel
- Department of Physiology, Genetics and Microbiology, University of Alicante, 03690 San Vicent del Raspeig, Alicante, Spain.,Department of Biology, Institute of Graduate Programs, Eskisehir Technical University, Yunusemre Campus, Eskisehir, 26470, Turkey
| | - María Gomariz
- Department of Physiology, Genetics and Microbiology, University of Alicante, 03690 San Vicent del Raspeig, Alicante, Spain
| | - Iñaki Antigüedad
- Hydro-Environmental Processes Group, Geology Department, Science and Technology Faculty, University of the Basque Country UPV/EHU, Leioa, 48940, Spain
| | - Fernando Santos
- Department of Physiology, Genetics and Microbiology, University of Alicante, 03690 San Vicent del Raspeig, Alicante, Spain
| | - Manuel Martínez-García
- Department of Physiology, Genetics and Microbiology, University of Alicante, 03690 San Vicent del Raspeig, Alicante, Spain
| | - Ramon Rosselló-Móra
- Marine Microbiology Group, Department of Animal and Microbial Diversity, Mediterranean Institute of Advanced Studies (IMEDEA; CSIC-UIB), Esporles, Illes Balears, 07190, Spain
| | - Josefa Antón
- Department of Physiology, Genetics and Microbiology, University of Alicante, 03690 San Vicent del Raspeig, Alicante, Spain
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