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Metagenomic binning of a marine sponge microbiome reveals unity in defense but metabolic specialization

Journal Article · · The ISME Journal
 [1];  [2];  [3];  [4];  [5]
  1. GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel (Germany). RD3 Marine Microbiology; Univ. of Wurzburg (Germany). Julius-von-Sachs Inst. for Biological Science. Dept. of Botany II; DOE/OSTI
  2. Massachusetts Inst. of Technology (MIT), Cambridge, MA (United States). Dept. of Civil and Environmental Engineering
  3. GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel (Germany). RD3 Marine Microbiology; Univ. of Wurzburg (Germany). Julius-von-Sachs Inst. for Biological Science. Dept. of Botany II
  4. GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel (Germany). RD3 Marine Microbiology
  5. GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel (Germany). RD3 Marine Microbiology; Christian-Albrechts Univ. of Kiel (Germany)

Marine sponges are ancient metazoans that are populated by distinct and highly diverse microbial communities. In order to obtain deeper insights into the functional gene repertoire of the Mediterranean sponge Aplysina aerophoba, we combined Illumina short-read and PacBio long-read sequencing followed by un-targeted metagenomic binning. We identified a total of 37 high-quality bins representing 11 bacterial phyla and two candidate phyla. Statistical comparison of symbiont genomes with selected reference genomes revealed a significant enrichment of genes related to bacterial defense (restriction-modification systems, toxin-antitoxin systems) as well as genes involved in host colonization and extracellular matrix utilization in sponge symbionts. A within-symbionts genome comparison revealed a nutritional specialization of at least two symbiont guilds, where one appears to metabolize carnitine and the other sulfated polysaccharides, both of which are abundant molecules in the sponge extracellular matrix. A third guild of symbionts may be viewed as nutritional generalists that perform largely the same metabolic pathways but lack such extraordinary numbers of the relevant genes. This study characterizes the genomic repertoire of sponge symbionts at an unprecedented resolution and it provides greater insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying microbial-sponge symbiosis.

Research Organization:
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Science (SC)
Grant/Contract Number:
AC02-05CH11231
OSTI ID:
1623776
Journal Information:
The ISME Journal, Journal Name: The ISME Journal Journal Issue: 11 Vol. 11; ISSN 1751-7362
Publisher:
Nature Publishing GroupCopyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

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Pangenomics Analysis Reveals Diversification of Enzyme Families and Niche Specialization in Globally Abundant SAR202 Bacteria text January 2020

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