Evaluating Eucalyptus leaf colonization by Brasilonema octagenarum (Cyanobacteria, Scytonemataceae) using in planta experiments and genomics

Unraveling host-microbe interactions and ecosystem functions in moss-bacteria symbioses

Mosses are non-vascular plants usually found in moist and shaded areas, with great ecological importance in several ecosystems. This is especially true in northern latitudes, where mosses are responsible for up to 100% of primary production in some ecosystems. Mosses establish symbiotic associations with unique bacteria that play key roles in the carbon and nitrogen cycles. For instance, in boreal environments, more than 35% of the nitrogen fixed by diazotrophic symbionts in peatlands is transferred to mosses, directly affecting carbon fixation by the hosts, while moss-associated methanotrophic bacteria contribute 10-30% of moss carbon. Further, half of ecosystem N input may derive from moss-cyanobacteria associations in pristine ecosystems. Moss-bacteria interactions have consequences on a global scale since northern environments sequester 20% of all the carbon generated by forests in the world and stock at least 32% of global terrestrial carbon. Different moss hosts influence bacteria in distinct ways, which suggests that threats to mosses also threaten unique microbial communities with important ecological and biogeochemical consequences. Since their origin ~500 Ma, mosses have interacted with bacteria, making these associations ideal models for understanding the evolution of plant-microbe associations and their contribution to biogeochemical cycles.

Discovery of Unusual Cyanobacterial Tryptophan-Containing Anabaenopeptins by MS/MS-Based Molecular Networking

Heterocytous cyanobacteria are among the most prolific sources of bioactive secondary metabolites, including anabaenopeptins (APTs). A terrestrial filamentous Brasilonema sp. CT11 collected in Costa Rica bamboo forest as a black mat, was studied using a multidisciplinary approach: genome mining and HPLC-HRMS/MS coupled with bioinformatic analyses. Herein, we report the nearly complete genome consisting of 8.79 Mbp with a GC content of 42.4%. Moreover, we report on three novel tryptophan-containing APTs; anabaenopeptin 788 (1), anabaenopeptin 802 (2), and anabaenopeptin 816 (3). Furthermore, the structure of two homologues, i.e., anabaenopeptin 802 (2a) and anabaenopeptin 802 (2b), was determined by spectroscopic analysis (NMR and MS). Both compounds were shown to exert weak to moderate antiproliferative activity against HeLa cell lines. This study also provides the unique and diverse potential of biosynthetic gene clusters and an assessment of the predicted chemical space yet to be discovered from this genus.