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Title: Beyond the tip of the iceberg; a new view of the diversity of sulfite- and sulfate-reducing microorganisms

Abstract

Sulfite-reducing and sulfate-reducing microorganisms (SRM) play important roles in anoxic environments, linking the sulfur and carbon cycles. With climate warming, the distribution of anoxic habitats conductive to dissimilatory SRM is expanding. Consequently, we hypothesize that novel SRM are likely to emerge from the rare biosphere triggered by environmental changes. Using the dsrB gene as a molecular marker of sulfite-reducers and sulfate-reducers, we analyzed the diversity, community composition, and abundance of SRM in 200 samples representing 14 different ecosystems, including marine and freshwater environments, oil reservoirs, and engineered infrastructure. Up to 167,397 species-level OTUs affiliated with 47 different families were identified. Up to 96% of these can be considered as “rare biosphere SRM”. One third of the dsrB genes identified belonged to uncharacterized lineages. The dsrB sequences exhibited a strong pattern of selection in different ecosystems. These results expand our knowledge of the biodiversity and distribution of SRM, with implications for carbon and sulfur cycling in anoxic ecosystems.

Authors:
 [1];  [2];  [3]; ORCiD logo [4];  [5]; ORCiD logo [1]
  1. Newcastle Univ., Newcastle Upon Tyne (United Kingdom); Shell International Exploration and Production Inc., Houston, TX (United States)
  2. INRA, Montferrier-sur-Lez (France)
  3. Shell International Exploration and Production Inc., Houston, TX (United States); USDOE Joint Genome Institute (JGI), Walnut Creek, CA (United States)
  4. Heriot Watt Univ., Edinburgh (United Kingdom)
  5. Newcastle Univ., Newcastle Upon Tyne (United Kingdom)
Publication Date:
Research Org.:
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States). National Energy Research Scientific Computing Center (NERSC)
Sponsoring Org.:
USDOE Office of Science (SC)
OSTI Identifier:
1543738
Grant/Contract Number:  
AC02-05CH11231
Resource Type:
Accepted Manuscript
Journal Name:
The ISME Journal
Additional Journal Information:
Journal Volume: 12; Journal Issue: 8; Journal ID: ISSN 1751-7362
Publisher:
Nature Publishing Group
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English
Subject:
59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES; Environmental Sciences & Ecology; Microbiology

Citation Formats

Vigneron, Adrien, Cruaud, Perrine, Alsop, Eric, de Rezende, Julia R., Head, Ian M., and Tsesmetzis, Nicolas. Beyond the tip of the iceberg; a new view of the diversity of sulfite- and sulfate-reducing microorganisms. United States: N. p., 2018. Web. doi:10.1038/s41396-018-0155-4.
Vigneron, Adrien, Cruaud, Perrine, Alsop, Eric, de Rezende, Julia R., Head, Ian M., & Tsesmetzis, Nicolas. Beyond the tip of the iceberg; a new view of the diversity of sulfite- and sulfate-reducing microorganisms. United States. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41396-018-0155-4
Vigneron, Adrien, Cruaud, Perrine, Alsop, Eric, de Rezende, Julia R., Head, Ian M., and Tsesmetzis, Nicolas. Mon . "Beyond the tip of the iceberg; a new view of the diversity of sulfite- and sulfate-reducing microorganisms". United States. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41396-018-0155-4. https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1543738.
@article{osti_1543738,
title = {Beyond the tip of the iceberg; a new view of the diversity of sulfite- and sulfate-reducing microorganisms},
author = {Vigneron, Adrien and Cruaud, Perrine and Alsop, Eric and de Rezende, Julia R. and Head, Ian M. and Tsesmetzis, Nicolas},
abstractNote = {Sulfite-reducing and sulfate-reducing microorganisms (SRM) play important roles in anoxic environments, linking the sulfur and carbon cycles. With climate warming, the distribution of anoxic habitats conductive to dissimilatory SRM is expanding. Consequently, we hypothesize that novel SRM are likely to emerge from the rare biosphere triggered by environmental changes. Using the dsrB gene as a molecular marker of sulfite-reducers and sulfate-reducers, we analyzed the diversity, community composition, and abundance of SRM in 200 samples representing 14 different ecosystems, including marine and freshwater environments, oil reservoirs, and engineered infrastructure. Up to 167,397 species-level OTUs affiliated with 47 different families were identified. Up to 96% of these can be considered as “rare biosphere SRM”. One third of the dsrB genes identified belonged to uncharacterized lineages. The dsrB sequences exhibited a strong pattern of selection in different ecosystems. These results expand our knowledge of the biodiversity and distribution of SRM, with implications for carbon and sulfur cycling in anoxic ecosystems.},
doi = {10.1038/s41396-018-0155-4},
journal = {The ISME Journal},
number = 8,
volume = 12,
place = {United States},
year = {Mon May 28 00:00:00 EDT 2018},
month = {Mon May 28 00:00:00 EDT 2018}
}

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Cited by: 28 works
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Works referencing / citing this record:

Environmental filtering determines family-level structure of sulfate-reducing microbial communities in subsurface marine sediments
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Hydrogen sulfide signaling in mitochondria and disease
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  • Murphy, Brennah; Bhattacharya, Resham; Mukherjee, Priyabrata
  • The FASEB Journal, Vol. 33, Issue 12
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Draft Genome Sequence of Desulfofundulus thermobenzoicus subsp. thermosyntrophicus DSM 14055, a Moderately Thermophilic Sulfate Reducer
journal, January 2020

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The Active Sulfate-Reducing Microbial Community in Littoral Sediment of Oligotrophic Lake Constance
journal, February 2019


A Bioinformatics Guide to Plant Microbiome Analysis
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  • Lucaciu, Rares; Pelikan, Claus; Gerner, Samuel M.
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