Genome sequence of Lysobacter dokdonensis DS-58(T), a gliding bacterium isolated from soil in Dokdo, Korea

Decreased growth of wild soil microbes after 15 years of transplant-induced warming in a montane meadow

The carbon stored in soil exceeds that of plant biomass and atmospheric carbon and its stability can impact global climate. Growth of decomposer microorganisms mediates both the accrual and loss of soil carbon. Growth is sensitive to temperature and given the vast biological diversity of soil microorganisms, the response of decomposer growth rates to warming may be strongly idiosyncratic, varying among taxa, making ecosystem predictions difficult. Here, we show that 15 years of warming by transplanting plant-soil mesocosms down in elevation, strongly reduced the growth rates of soil microorganisms, measured in the field using undisturbed soil. The magnitude of the response to warming varied among microbial taxa. However, the direction of the response-reduced growth-was universal and warming explained twofold more variation than did the sum of taxonomic identity and its interaction with warming. For this ecosystem, most of the growth responses to warming could be explained without taxon-specific information, suggesting that in some cases microbial responses measured in aggregate may be adequate for climate modeling. Long-term experimental warming also reduced soil carbon content, likely a consequence of a warming-induced increase in decomposition, as warming-induced changes in plant productivity were negligible. The loss of soil carbon and decreased microbial biomass with warming may explain the reduced growth of the microbial community, more than the direct effects of temperature on growth. These findings show that direct and indirect effects of long-term warming can reduce growth rates of soil microbes, which may have important feedbacks to global warming.

Pea Broth Enhances the Biocontrol Efficacy of Lysobacter capsici AZ78 by Triggering Cell Motility Associated with Biogenesis of Type IV Pilus

Bacterial cells can display different types of motility, due to the presence of external appendages such as flagella and type IV pili. To date, little information on the mechanisms involved in the motility of the Lysobacter species has been available. Recently, L. capsici AZ78, a biocontrol agent of phytopathogenic oomycetes, showed the ability to move on jellified pea broth. Pea broth medium improved also the biocontrol activity of L. capsici AZ78 against Plasmopara viticola under greenhouse conditions. Noteworthy, the quantity of pea residues remaining on grapevine leaves fostered cell motility in L. capsici AZ78. Based on these results, this unusual motility related to the composition of the growth medium was investigated in bacterial strains belonging to several Lysobacter species. The six L. capsici strains tested developed dendrite-like colonies when grown on jellified pea broth, while the development of dendrite-like colonies was not recorded in the media commonly used in motility assays. To determine the presence of genes responsible for biogenesis of the flagellum and type IV pili, the genome of L. capsici AZ78 was mined. Genes encoding structural components and regulatory factors of type IV pili were upregulated in L. capsici AZ78 cells grown on the above-mentioned medium, as compared with the other tested media. These results provide new insight into the motility mechanism of L. capsici members and the role of type IV pili and pea compounds on the epiphytic fitness and biocontrol features of L. capsici AZ78.