Bacterial Analogs of Plant Tetrahydropyridine Alkaloids Mediate Microbial Interactions in a Rhizosphere Model System

Surface colonization by Flavobacterium johnsoniae promotes its survival in a model microbial community

Flavobacterium johnsoniae is a ubiquitous soil and rhizosphere bacterium, but despite its abundance, the factors contributing to its success in communities are poorly understood. Using a model microbial community, The Hitchhikers of the Rhizosphere (THOR), we determined the effects of colonization on the fitness of F. johnsoniae in the community. Insertion sequencing, a massively parallel transposon mutant screen, on sterile sand identified 25 genes likely to be important for surface colonization. We constructed in-frame deletions of candidate genes predicted to be involved in cell membrane biogenesis, motility, signal transduction, and transport of amino acids and lipids. All mutants poorly colonized sand, glass, and polystyrene and produced less biofilm than the wild type, indicating the importance of the targeted genes in surface colonization. Eight of the nine colonization-defective mutants were also unable to form motile biofilms or zorbs, thereby suggesting that the affected genes play a role in group movement and linking stationary and motile biofilm formation genetically. Furthermore, we showed that the deletion of colonization genes in F. johnsoniae affected its behavior and survival in THOR on surfaces, suggesting that the same traits are required for success in a multispecies microbial community. Our results provide insight into the mechanisms of surface colonization by F. johnsoniae and form the basis for further understanding its ecology in the rhizosphere.

IMPORTANCE

Microbial communities direct key environmental processes through multispecies interactions. Understanding these interactions is vital for manipulating microbiomes to promote health in human, environmental, and agricultural systems. However, microbiome complexity can hinder our understanding of the underlying mechanisms in microbial community interactions. As a first step toward unraveling these interactions, we explored the role of surface colonization in microbial community interactions using The Hitchhikers Of the Rhizosphere (THOR), a genetically tractable model community of three bacterial species, Flavobacterium johnsoniae, Pseudomonas koreensis, and Bacillus cereus. We identified F. johnsoniae genes important for surface colonization in solitary conditions and in the THOR community. Understanding the mechanisms that promote the success of bacteria in microbial communities brings us closer to targeted manipulations to achieve outcomes that benefit agriculture, the environment, and human health.

Responses of plant immune system and rhizosphere soil microbiome to the elicitor BAR11 in Arabidopsis thaliana

Microbial elicitors have been shown to boost plant immunity by inducing defense responses to reduce plant disease. However, little is known about the changes in plant microbiome and metabolism in the process of enhancing plant immunity with elicitors. The protein elicitor BAR11, from Saccharothrix yanglingensis Hhs.015, induces defense responses in Arabidopsis thaliana that enhances resistance to pathogens. In this study, bar11 was inserted into Col-0 A. thaliana to obtain BAR11-Trans plant by Agrobacterium-mediated immersion transformation. BAR11-Trans exhibited an elevated defense level against Pseudomonas syringae pv. tomato DC3000 while experiencing a decline in biomass production of above-ground parts. In the process, BAR11-Trans increased the activity of phenylalanine ammonia lyase (PAL) and catalase (CAT), and up-regulated genes related to plant defense pathways. Furthermore, BAR11-Trans decreased root tip reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels while increasing ROS burst in the leaves. Soil transplantation experiments showed that soil planted with BAR11-Trans could enhance the resistance of Col-0 A. thaliana to DC3000. Analysis of A. thaliana rhizosphere soil through 16S rRNA amplified sequencing revealed that BAR11-Trans increased the relative abundance and diversity of the rhizosphere microbial community, leading to the recruitment of more plant probiotics. Additionally, the accumulation of kaempferitrin and robinin in BAR11-Trans influenced the physicochemical properties of rhizosphere soil and the composition of the bacterial community. In summary, BAR11-Trans exhibited heightened defense levels compared to Col-0, leading to increased secretion of secondary metabolites and the recruitment of a greater number of microorganisms to adapt to the environment. These findings offer novel insights for the potential application of elicitors in agricultural disease control.

Natural transaminase fusions for biocatalysis

Biocatalytic approaches are used widely for the synthesis of amines from abundant or low cost starting materials. This is a fast-developing field where novel enzymes and enzyme combinations emerge quickly to enable the production of new and complex compounds. Natural multifunctional enzymes represent a part of multi-step biosynthetic pathways that ensure a one-way flux of reactants. In vivo, they confer a selective advantage via increased reaction rates and chemical stability or prevention of toxicity from reactive intermediates. Here we report the identification and analysis of a natural transaminase fusion, PP_2782, from Pseudomonas putida KT2440, as well as three of its thermophilic homologs from Thermaerobacter marianensis, Thermaerobacter subterraneus, and Thermincola ferriacetica. Both the fusions and their truncated transaminase-only derivatives showed good activity with unsubstituted aliphatic and aromatic aldehydes and amines, as well as with a range of α-keto acids, and l-alanine, l-glutamate, and l-glutamine. Through structural similarity, the fused domain was recognised as the acyl-[acyl-carrier-protein] reductase that affects reductive chain release. These natural transaminase fusions could have a great potential for industrial applications.

An antibiotic produced by Pseudomonas fluorescens CFBP2392 with antifungal activity against Rhizoctonia solani

Pseudomonas fluorescens CFBP2392 has been recognized as a potential biocontrol agent due to its ability to suppress damping-off and root rot disease. This isolate has antibacterial activity in vitro as many other strains from the Pseudomonas fluorescens complex. In this work, the antibacterial and antifungal activity of the strain were explored. Dual culture assays evidenced the antifungal activity of the strain against different phytopathogens: Alternaria sp., Pythium ultimun, Fusarium oxysporum, and Rhizoctonia solani. Purification of an antifungal fraction was performed by preparative HPLC from the chemical extraction of growth media. The fraction showed altered R. solani growth and ultrastructure. Transmission electron microscopy revealed the purified compound induced hypertrophied mitochondria, membranous vesicles, and a higher number of vacuoles in R. salani cytoplasm. In addition, co-cultivation of P. fluorescens CFBP2392 with R. solani resulted in an enlarged and deformed cell wall. To gain genomic insights on this inhibition, the complete genome of P. fluorescens CFBP2392 was obtained with Oxford Nanopore technology. Different biosynthetic gene clusters (BGCs) involved in specialized metabolites production including a lokisin-like and a koreenceine-like cluster were identified. In accordance with the putative BGCs identified, sequence phylogeny analysis of the MacB transporter in the lokisin-like cluster further supports the similarity with other transporters from the amphisin family. Our results give insights into the cellular effects of the purified microbial metabolite in R. solani ultrastructure and provide a genomic background to further explore the specialized metabolite potential.

De novo transcriptome assembly of Conium maculatum L. to identify candidate genes for coniine biosynthesis

Poison hemlock (Conium maculatum L.) is a notorious weed containing the potent alkaloid coniine. Only some of the enzymes in the coniine biosynthesis have so far been characterized. Here, we utilize the next-generation RNA sequencing approach to report the first-ever transcriptome sequencing of five organs of poison hemlock: developing fruit, flower, root, leaf, and stem. Using a de novo assembly approach, we derived a transcriptome assembly containing 123,240 transcripts. The assembly is deemed high quality, representing over 88% of the near-universal ortholog genes of the Eudicots clade. Nearly 80% of the transcripts were functionally annotated using a combination of three approaches. The current study focuses on describing the coniine pathway by identifying in silico transcript candidates for polyketide reductase, L-alanine:5-keto-octanal aminotransferase, γ-coniceine reductase, and S-adenosyl-L-methionine:coniine methyltransferase. In vitro testing will be needed to confirm the assigned functions of the selected candidates.

Microbiome composition modulates secondary metabolism in a multispecies bacterial community

Bacterial secondary metabolites are a major source of antibiotics and other bioactive compounds. In microbial communities, these molecules can mediate interspecies interactions and responses to environmental change. Despite the importance of secondary metabolites in human health and microbial ecology, little is known about their roles and regulation in the context of multispecies communities. In a simplified model of the rhizosphere composed of Bacillus cereus, Flavobacterium johnsoniae, and Pseudomonas koreensis, we show that the dynamics of secondary metabolism depend on community species composition and interspecies interactions. Comparative metatranscriptomics and metametabolomics reveal that the abundance of transcripts of biosynthetic gene clusters (BGCs) and metabolomic molecular features differ between monocultures or dual cultures and a tripartite community. In both two- and three-member cocultures, P. koreensis modified expression of BGCs for zwittermicin, petrobactin, and other secondary metabolites in B. cereus and F. johnsoniae, whereas the BGC transcriptional response to the community in P. koreensis itself was minimal. Pairwise and tripartite cocultures with P. koreensis displayed unique molecular features that appear to be derivatives of lokisin, suggesting metabolic handoffs between species. Deleting the BGC for koreenceine, another P. koreensis metabolite, altered transcript and metabolite profiles across the community, including substantial up-regulation of the petrobactin and bacillibactin BGCs in B. cereus, suggesting that koreenceine represses siderophore production. Results from this model community show that bacterial BGC expression and chemical output depend on the identity and biosynthetic capacity of coculture partners, suggesting community composition and microbiome interactions may shape the regulation of secondary metabolism in nature.

Coral and Seawater Metagenomes Reveal Key Microbial Functions to Coral Health and Ecosystem Functioning Shaped at Reef Scale

The coral holobiont is comprised of a highly diverse microbial community that provides key services to corals such as protection against pathogens and nutrient cycling. The coral surface mucus layer (SML) microbiome is very sensitive to external changes, as it constitutes the direct interface between the coral host and the environment. Here, we investigate whether the bacterial taxonomic and functional profiles in the coral SML are shaped by the local reef zone and explore their role in coral health and ecosystem functioning. The analysis was conducted using metagenomes and metagenome-assembled genomes (MAGs) associated with the coral Pseudodiploria strigosa and the water column from two naturally distinct reef environments in Bermuda: inner patch reefs exposed to a fluctuating thermal regime and the more stable outer reefs. The microbial community structure in the coral SML varied according to the local environment, both at taxonomic and functional levels. The coral SML microbiome from inner reefs provides more gene functions that are involved in nutrient cycling (e.g., photosynthesis, phosphorus metabolism, sulfur assimilation) and those that are related to higher levels of microbial activity, competition, and stress response. In contrast, the coral SML microbiome from outer reefs contained genes indicative of a carbohydrate-rich mucus composition found in corals exposed to less stressful temperatures and showed high proportions of microbial gene functions that play a potential role in coral disease, such as degradation of lignin-derived compounds and sulfur oxidation. The fluctuating environment in the inner patch reefs of Bermuda could be driving a more beneficial coral SML microbiome, potentially increasing holobiont resilience to environmental changes and disease.

THOR’s Hammer: the Antibiotic Koreenceine Drives Gene Expression in a Model Microbial Community

The diversity, ubiquity, and significance of microbial communities is clear. However, the predictable and reliable manipulation of microbiomes to impact human, environmental, and agricultural health remains a challenge.

Putting microbial interactions back into community contexts

Microbial interactions are key aspects of the biology of microbiomes. Recently, there has been a shift in the field towards studying interactions in more representative contexts, whether using multispecies model microbial communities or by looking at interactions in situ. Across diverse microbial systems, these studies have begun to identify common interaction mechanisms. These mechanisms include interactions related to toxic molecules, nutrient competition and cross-feeding, access to metals, signaling pathways, pH changes, and interactions within biofilms. Leveraging technological innovations, many of these studies have used an interdisciplinary approach combining genetic, metabolomic, imaging, and/or microfluidic techniques to gain insight into mechanisms of microbial interactions and into the impact of these interactions on microbiomes.

Microbial model communities: To understand complexity, harness the power of simplicity

Natural microbial communities are complex ecosystems with myriads of interactions. To deal with this complexity, we can apply lessons learned from the study of model organisms and try to find simpler systems that can shed light on the same questions. Here, microbial model communities are essential, as they can allow us to learn about the metabolic interactions, genetic mechanisms and ecological principles governing and structuring communities. A variety of microbial model communities of varying complexity have already been developed, representing different purposes, environments and phenomena. However, choosing a suitable model community for one's research question is no easy task. This review aims to be a guide in the selection process, which can help the researcher to select a sufficiently well-studied model community that also fulfills other relevant criteria. For example, a good model community should consist of species that are easy to grow, have been evaluated for community behaviors, provide simple readouts and - in some cases - be of relevance for natural ecosystems. Finally, there is a need to standardize growth conditions for microbial model communities and agree on definitions of community-specific phenomena and frameworks for community interactions. Such developments would be the key to harnessing the power of simplicity to start disentangling complex community interactions.

Genetic factors involved in rhizosphere colonization by phytobeneficial Pseudomonas spp

Plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) actively colonize the soil portion under the influence of plant roots, called the rhizosphere. Many plant-beneficial Pseudomonas spp. have been characterized as PGPR. They are ubiquitous rod-shaped motile Gram-negative bacteria displaying a high metabolic versatility. Their capacity to protect plants from pathogens and improve plant growth closely depends on their rhizosphere colonization abilities. Various molecular and cellular mechanisms are involved in this complex process, such as chemotaxis, biofilm formation, secondary metabolites biosynthesis, metabolic versatility, and evasion of plant immunity. The burst in Pseudomonas spp. genome sequencing in recent years has been crucial to better understand how they colonize the rhizosphere. In this review, we discuss the recent advances regarding these mechanisms and the underlying bacterial genetic factors required for successful rhizosphere colonization.

Navarro MO, Andrade G, Lucas JA. Identifying the Compounds of the Metabolic Elicitors of Pseudomonas fluorescens N 21.4 Responsible for Their Ability to Induce Plant Resistance

In this work, the metabolic elicitors extracted from the beneficial rhizobacterium Pseudomonas fluorescens N 21.4 were sequentially fragmented by vacuum liquid chromatography to isolate, purify and identify the compounds responsible for the extraordinary capacities of this strain to induce systemic resistance and to elicit secondary defensive metabolism in diverse plant species. To check if the fractions sequentially obtained were able to increase the synthesis of isoflavones and if, therefore, they still maintained the eliciting capacity of the live strain, rapid and controlled experiments were done with soybean seeds. The optimal action concentration of the fractions was established and all of them elicited isoflavone secondary metabolism-the fractions that had been extracted with n-hexane being more effective. The purest fraction was the one with the highest eliciting capacity and was also tested in Arabidopsis thaliana seedlings to induce systemic resistance against the pathogen Pseudomonas syringae pv. tomato DC 3000. This fraction was then analyzed by UHPLC/ESI-QTOF-MS, and an alkaloid, two amino lipids, three arylalkylamines and a terpenoid were tentatively identified. These identified compounds could be part of commercial plant inoculants of biological and sustainable origin to be applied in crops, due to their potential to enhance the plant immune response and since many of them have putative antibiotic and/or antifungal potential.

Crystal structure of 5-methyl-3-phenyl-1-tosyl-1,2,3,4-tetrahydropyridine, C19H21NO2S

C19H21NO2S, orthorhombic, Pbca (no. 61), a = 16.792(5) Å, b = 9.153(3) Å, c = 22.809(6) Å, V = 3505.8(16) Å3, Z = 8, R gt(F) = 0.0622, wR ref(F 2) = 0.1494, T = 296(2) K.

A Chemical Counterpunch: Chromobacterium violaceum ATCC 31532 Produces Violacein in Response to Translation-Inhibiting Antibiotics

Secondary metabolites play important roles in microbial communities, but their natural functions are often unknown and may be more complex than appreciated. While compounds with antibiotic activity are often assumed to underlie microbial competition, they may alternatively act as signal molecules. In either scenario, microorganisms might evolve responses to sublethal concentrations of these metabolites, either to protect themselves from inhibition or to change certain behaviors in response to the local abundance of another species. Here, we report that violacein production by C. violaceum ATCC 31532 is induced in response to hygromycin A from Streptomyces sp. 2AW, and we show that this response is dependent on inhibition of translational polypeptide elongation and a previously uncharacterized two-component regulatory system. The breadth of the transcriptional response beyond violacein induction suggests a surprisingly complex metabolite-mediated microbe-microbe interaction and supports the hypothesis that antibiotics evolved as signal molecules. These novel insights will inform predictive models of soil community dynamics and the unintended effects of clinical antibiotic administration.

Antibiotics produced by bacteria play important roles in microbial interactions and competition Antibiosis can induce resistance mechanisms in target organisms, and at sublethal doses, antibiotics have been shown to globally alter gene expression patterns. Here, we show that hygromycin A from Streptomyces sp. strain 2AW. induces Chromobacterium violaceum ATCC 31532 to produce the purple antibiotic violacein. Sublethal doses of other antibiotics that similarly target the polypeptide elongation step of translation likewise induced violacein production, unlike antibiotics with different targets. C. violaceum biofilm formation and virulence against Drosophila melanogaster were also induced by translation-inhibiting antibiotics, and we identified an antibiotic-induced response (air) two-component regulatory system that is required for these responses. Genetic analyses indicated a connection between the Air system, quorum-dependent signaling, and the negative regulator VioS, leading us to propose a model for induction of violacein production. This work suggests a novel mechanism of interspecies interaction in which a bacterium produces an antibiotic in response to inhibition by another bacterium and supports the role of antibiotics as signal molecules.

Evolutionary dynamics of natural product biosynthesis in bacteria

Covering: 2008 up to 2019The forces of biochemical adaptive evolution operate at the level of genes, manifesting in complex phenotypes and the global biodiversity of proteins and metabolites. While evolutionary histories have been deciphered for some other complex traits, the origins of natural product biosynthesis largely remain a mystery. This fundamental knowledge gap is surprising given the many decades of research probing the genetic, chemical, and biophysical mechanisms of bacterial natural product biosynthesis. Recently, evolutionary thinking has begun to permeate this otherwise mechanistically dominated field. Natural products are now sometimes referred to as 'specialized' rather than 'secondary' metabolites, reinforcing the importance of their biological and ecological functions. Here, we review known evolutionary mechanisms underlying the overwhelming chemical diversity of bacterial secondary metabolism, focusing on enzyme promiscuity and the evolution of enzymatic domains that enable metabolic traits. We discuss the mechanisms that drive the assembly of natural product biosynthetic gene clusters and propose formal definitions for 'specialized' and 'secondary' metabolism. We further explore how biosynthetic gene clusters evolve to synthesize related molecular species, and in turn how the biological and ecological roles that emerge from metabolic diversity are acted on by selection. Finally, we reconcile chemical, functional, and genetic data into an evolutionary model, the dynamic chemical matrix evolutionary hypothesis, in which the relationships between chemical distance, biomolecular activity, and relative fitness shape adaptive landscapes.

Draft genome sequence of a cold-adapted phosphorous-solubilizing Pseudomonas koreensis P2 isolated from Sela Lake, India

The draft genome sequence of a cold-adapted phosphorus-solubilizing strain Pseudomonas koreensis P2 isolated from the Sela Lake contains 6,436,246 bp with G + C content of 59.8%. The genome sequence includes 5743 protein coding genes, 68 non-protein coding genes, 1007 putative proteins, 5 rRNA genes, 64 tRNAs and two prophage regions in 40 contigs. Besides these, genes involved in phosphate solubilization, siderophore production, iron uptake, heat shock and cold shock tolerance, multidrug resistance and glycine-betaine production were also identified.

Introducing THOR, a Model Microbiome for Genetic Dissection of Community Behavior

The manipulation and engineering of microbiomes could lead to improved human health, environmental sustainability, and agricultural productivity. However, microbiomes have proven difficult to alter in predictable ways, and their emergent properties are poorly understood. The history of biology has demonstrated the power of model systems to understand complex problems such as gene expression or development. Therefore, a defined and genetically tractable model community would be useful to dissect microbiome assembly, maintenance, and processes. We have developed a tractable model rhizosphere microbiome, designated THOR, containing Pseudomonas koreensis, Flavobacterium johnsoniae, and Bacillus cereus, which represent three dominant phyla in the rhizosphere, as well as in soil and the mammalian gut. The model community demonstrates emergent properties, and the members are amenable to genetic dissection. We propose that THOR will be a useful model for investigations of community-level interactions.

The quest to manipulate microbiomes has intensified, but many microbial communities have proven to be recalcitrant to sustained change. Developing model communities amenable to genetic dissection will underpin successful strategies for shaping microbiomes by advancing an understanding of community interactions. We developed a model community with representatives from three dominant rhizosphere taxa, the Firmicutes, Proteobacteria, and Bacteroidetes. We chose Bacillus cereus as a model rhizosphere firmicute and characterized 20 other candidates, including “hitchhikers” that coisolated with B. cereus from the rhizosphere. Pairwise analysis produced a hierarchical interstrain-competition network. We chose two hitchhikers, Pseudomonas koreensis from the top tier of the competition network and Flavobacterium johnsoniae from the bottom of the network, to represent the Proteobacteria and Bacteroidetes, respectively. The model community has several emergent properties, induction of dendritic expansion of B. cereus colonies by either of the other members, and production of more robust biofilms by the three members together than individually. Moreover, P. koreensis produces a novel family of alkaloid antibiotics that inhibit growth of F. johnsoniae, and production is inhibited by B. cereus. We designate this community THOR, because the members are the hitchhikers of the rhizosphere. The genetic, genomic, and biochemical tools available for dissection of THOR provide the means to achieve a new level of understanding of microbial community behavior.