1
|
Pankey MS, Gochfeld DJ, Gastaldi M, Macartney KJ, Clayshulte Abraham A, Slattery M, Lesser MP. Phylosymbiosis and metabolomics resolve phenotypically plastic and cryptic sponge species in the genus Agelas across the Caribbean basin. Mol Ecol 2024; 33:e17321. [PMID: 38529721 DOI: 10.1111/mec.17321] [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: 05/31/2023] [Accepted: 03/07/2024] [Indexed: 03/27/2024]
Abstract
Fundamental to holobiont biology is recognising how variation in microbial composition and function relates to host phenotypic variation. Sponges often exhibit considerable phenotypic plasticity and also harbour dense microbial communities that function to protect and nourish hosts. One of the most prominent sponge genera on Caribbean coral reefs is Agelas. Using a comprehensive set of morphological (growth form, spicule), chemical and molecular data on 13 recognised species of Agelas in the Caribbean basin, we were able to define only five species (=clades) and found that many morphospecies designations were incongruent with phylogenomic and population genetic analyses. Microbial communities were also strongly differentiated between phylogenetic species, showing little evidence of cryptic divergence and relatively low correlation with morphospecies assignment. Metagenomic analyses also showed strong correspondence to phylogenetic species, and to a lesser extent, geographical and morphological characters. Surprisingly, the variation in secondary metabolites produced by sponge holobionts was explained by geography and morphospecies assignment, in addition to phylogenetic species, and covaried significantly with a subset of microbial symbionts. Spicule characteristics were highly plastic, under greater impact from geographical location than phylogeny. Our results suggest that while phenotypic plasticity is rampant in Agelas, morphological differences within phylogenetic species affect functionally important ecological traits, including the composition of the symbiotic microbial communities and metabolomic profiles.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- M S Pankey
- Molecular, Cellular and Biomedical Sciences, University of New Hampshire, Durham, New Hampshire, USA
| | - D J Gochfeld
- National Center for Natural Products Research and Environmental Toxicology, University of Mississippi, University, Mississippi, USA
| | - M Gastaldi
- Escuela Superior de Ciencias Marinas-Universidad Nacional del Comahue, San Antonio Oeste, Río Negro, Argentina
| | - K J Macartney
- Molecular, Cellular and Biomedical Sciences, University of New Hampshire, Durham, New Hampshire, USA
| | - A Clayshulte Abraham
- Division of Environmental Toxicology, Department of BioMolecular Sciences, University of Mississippi, University, Mississippi, USA
- Division of Pharmacognosy, Department of BioMolecular Sciences, University of Mississippi, University, Mississippi, USA
| | - M Slattery
- Division of Environmental Toxicology, Department of BioMolecular Sciences, University of Mississippi, University, Mississippi, USA
- Division of Pharmacognosy, Department of BioMolecular Sciences, University of Mississippi, University, Mississippi, USA
| | - M P Lesser
- Molecular, Cellular and Biomedical Sciences, University of New Hampshire, Durham, New Hampshire, USA
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Díez-Vives C, Riesgo A. High compositional and functional similarity in the microbiome of deep-sea sponges. THE ISME JOURNAL 2024; 18:wrad030. [PMID: 38365260 PMCID: PMC10837836 DOI: 10.1093/ismejo/wrad030] [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: 11/30/2023] [Revised: 12/07/2023] [Accepted: 12/08/2023] [Indexed: 02/18/2024]
Abstract
Sponges largely depend on their symbiotic microbes for their nutrition, health, and survival. This is especially true in high microbial abundance (HMA) sponges, where filtration is usually deprecated in favor of a larger association with prokaryotic symbionts. Sponge-microbiome association is substantially less understood for deep-sea sponges than for shallow water species. This is most unfortunate, since HMA sponges can form massive sponge grounds in the deep sea, where they dominate the ecosystems, driving their biogeochemical cycles. Here, we assess the microbial transcriptional profile of three different deep-sea HMA sponges in four locations of the Cantabrian Sea and compared them to shallow water HMA and LMA (low microbial abundance) sponge species. Our results reveal that the sponge microbiome has converged in a fundamental metabolic role for deep-sea sponges, independent of taxonomic relationships or geographic location, which is shared in broad terms with shallow HMA species. We also observed a large number of redundant microbial members performing the same functions, likely providing stability to the sponge inner ecosystem. A comparison between the community composition of our deep-sea sponges and another 39 species of HMA sponges from deep-sea and shallow habitats, belonging to the same taxonomic orders, suggested strong homogeneity in microbial composition (i.e. weak species-specificity) in deep sea species, which contrasts with that observed in shallow water counterparts. This convergence in microbiome composition and functionality underscores the adaptation to an extremely restrictive environment with the aim of exploiting the available resources.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Cristina Díez-Vives
- Department of Systems Biology, Centro Nacional de Biotecnología, c/ Darwin, 3, 28049 Madrid, Spain
- Department of Life Sciences, The Natural History Museum, London SW7 5BD, United Kingdom
| | - Ana Riesgo
- Department of Life Sciences, The Natural History Museum, London SW7 5BD, United Kingdom
- Department of Biodiversity and Evolutionary Biology, Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales (CSIC), c/José Gutiérrez Abascal 2, 28006 Madrid, Spain
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Cleary DFR, de Voogd NJ, Stuij TM, Swierts T, Oliveira V, Polónia ARM, Louvado A, Gomes NCM, Coelho FJRC. A Study of Sponge Symbionts from Different Light Habitats. MICROBIAL ECOLOGY 2023; 86:2819-2837. [PMID: 37597041 PMCID: PMC10640470 DOI: 10.1007/s00248-023-02267-x] [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: 01/29/2023] [Accepted: 07/07/2023] [Indexed: 08/21/2023]
Abstract
The amount of available light plays a key role in the growth and development of microbial communities. In the present study, we tested to what extent sponge-associated prokaryotic communities differed between specimens of the sponge species Cinachyrella kuekenthali and Xestospongia muta collected in dimly lit (caves and at greater depths) versus illuminated (shallow water) habitats. In addition to this, we also collected samples of water, sediment, and another species of Cinachyrella, C. alloclada. Overall, the biotope (sponge host species, sediment, and seawater) proved the major driver of variation in prokaryotic community composition. The light habitat, however, also proved a predictor of compositional variation in prokaryotic communities of both C. kuekenthali and X. muta. We used an exploratory technique based on machine learning to identify features (classes, orders, and OTUs), which distinguished X. muta specimens sampled in dimly lit versus illuminated habitat. We found that the classes Alphaproteobacteria and Rhodothermia and orders Puniceispirillales, Rhodospirillales, Rhodobacterales, and Thalassobaculales were associated with specimens from illuminated, i.e., shallow water habitat, while the classes Dehalococcoidia, Spirochaetia, Entotheonellia, Nitrospiria, Schekmanbacteria, and Poribacteria, and orders Sneathiellales and Actinomarinales were associated with specimens sampled from dimly lit habitat. There was, however, considerable variation within the different light habitats highlighting the importance of other factors in structuring sponge-associated bacterial communities.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- D F R Cleary
- CESAM & Department of Biology, University of Aveiro, Campus de Santiago, 3810-193, Aveiro, Portugal.
| | - N J de Voogd
- Naturalis Biodiversity Center, Leiden, The Netherlands.
- Institute of Environmental Sciences (CML), Leiden University, Leiden, The Netherlands.
| | - T M Stuij
- CESAM & Department of Biology, University of Aveiro, Campus de Santiago, 3810-193, Aveiro, Portugal
| | - T Swierts
- Naturalis Biodiversity Center, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - V Oliveira
- CESAM & Department of Biology, University of Aveiro, Campus de Santiago, 3810-193, Aveiro, Portugal
| | - A R M Polónia
- CESAM & Department of Biology, University of Aveiro, Campus de Santiago, 3810-193, Aveiro, Portugal
| | - A Louvado
- CESAM & Department of Biology, University of Aveiro, Campus de Santiago, 3810-193, Aveiro, Portugal
| | - N C M Gomes
- CESAM & Department of Biology, University of Aveiro, Campus de Santiago, 3810-193, Aveiro, Portugal
| | - F J R C Coelho
- CESAM & Department of Biology, University of Aveiro, Campus de Santiago, 3810-193, Aveiro, Portugal
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Kelly JB, Carlson DE, Low JS, Thacker RW. Novel trends of genome evolution in highly complex tropical sponge microbiomes. MICROBIOME 2022; 10:164. [PMID: 36195901 PMCID: PMC9531527 DOI: 10.1186/s40168-022-01359-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/22/2022] [Accepted: 08/03/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Tropical members of the sponge genus Ircinia possess highly complex microbiomes that perform a broad spectrum of chemical processes that influence host fitness. Despite the pervasive role of microbiomes in Ircinia biology, it is still unknown how they remain in stable association across tropical species. To address this question, we performed a comparative analysis of the microbiomes of 11 Ircinia species using whole-metagenomic shotgun sequencing data to investigate three aspects of bacterial symbiont genomes-the redundancy in metabolic pathways across taxa, the evolution of genes involved in pathogenesis, and the nature of selection acting on genes relevant to secondary metabolism. RESULTS A total of 424 new, high-quality bacterial metagenome-assembled genomes (MAGs) were produced for 10 Caribbean Ircinia species, which were evaluated alongside 113 publicly available MAGs sourced from the Pacific species Ircinia ramosa. Evidence of redundancy was discovered in that the core genes of several primary metabolic pathways could be found in the genomes of multiple bacterial taxa. Across hosts, the metagenomes were depleted in genes relevant to pathogenicity and enriched in eukaryotic-like proteins (ELPs) that likely mimic the hosts' molecular patterning. Finally, clusters of steroid biosynthesis genes (CSGs), which appear to be under purifying selection and undergo horizontal gene transfer, were found to be a defining feature of Ircinia metagenomes. CONCLUSIONS These results illustrate patterns of genome evolution within highly complex microbiomes that illuminate how associations with hosts are maintained. The metabolic redundancy within the microbiomes could help buffer the hosts from changes in the ambient chemical and physical regimes and from fluctuations in the population sizes of the individual microbial strains that make up the microbiome. Additionally, the enrichment of ELPs and depletion of LPS and cellular motility genes provide a model for how alternative strategies to virulence can evolve in microbiomes undergoing mixed-mode transmission that do not ultimately result in higher levels of damage (i.e., pathogenicity) to the host. Our last set of results provides evidence that sterol biosynthesis in Ircinia-associated bacteria is widespread and that these molecules are important for the survival of bacteria in highly complex Ircinia microbiomes. Video Abstract.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Joseph B Kelly
- Aquatic Ecology and Evolution, Limnological Institute University Konstanz, Konstanz, Germany.
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, USA.
| | - David E Carlson
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, USA
| | - Jun Siong Low
- Institute of Microbiology,ETH Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland
- Institute for Research in Biomedicine, Università della Svizzera Italiana, Bellinzona, Switzerland
- Department of Immunobiology, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA
| | - Robert W Thacker
- Department of Ecology and Evolution, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, USA
- Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Box 0843-03092, Balboa, Panama City, Republic of Panama
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Ben-Dor Cohen E, Ilan M, Yarden O. The Culturable Mycobiome of Mesophotic Agelas oroides: Constituents and Changes Following Sponge Transplantation to Shallow Water. J Fungi (Basel) 2021; 7:jof7070567. [PMID: 34356947 PMCID: PMC8307482 DOI: 10.3390/jof7070567] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/07/2021] [Revised: 06/27/2021] [Accepted: 06/28/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Marine sponges harbor a diverse array of microorganisms and the composition of the microbial community has been suggested to be linked to holo-biont health. Most of the attention concerning sponge mycobiomes has been given to sponges present in shallow depths. Here, we describe the presence of 146 culturable mycobiome taxa isolated from mesophotic niche (100 m depth)-inhabiting samples of Agelas oroides, in the Mediterranean Sea. We identify some potential in vitro interactions between several A. oroides-associated fungi and show that sponge meso-hyl extract, but not its predominantly collagen-rich part, is sufficient to support hyphal growth. We demonstrate that changes in the diversity of culturable mycobiome constituents occur following sponge transplantation from its original mesophotic habitat to shallow (10 m) waters, where historically (60 years ago) this species was found. We conclude that among the 30 fungal genera identified as associated with A. oroides, Aspergillus, Penicillium and Trichoderma constitute the core mycobiome of A. oroides, and that they persist even when the sponge is transplanted to a suboptimal environment, indicative of the presence of constant, as well as dynamic, components of the sponge mycobiome. Other genera seemed more depth-related and appeared or disappeared upon host's transfer from 100 to 10 m.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Eyal Ben-Dor Cohen
- School of Zoology, George S Wise Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 6997801, Israel; (E.B.-D.C.); (M.I.)
- Department of Plant Pathology and Microbiology, The RH Smith Faculty of Agriculture, Food and Environment, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Rehovot 7610001, Israel
| | - Micha Ilan
- School of Zoology, George S Wise Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 6997801, Israel; (E.B.-D.C.); (M.I.)
| | - Oded Yarden
- Department of Plant Pathology and Microbiology, The RH Smith Faculty of Agriculture, Food and Environment, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Rehovot 7610001, Israel
- Correspondence:
| |
Collapse
|