scholarly journals Microbial community dynamics and coexistence in a sulfide-driven phototrophic bloom

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Srijak Bhatnagar ◽  
Elise S. Cowley ◽  
Sebastian H. Kopf ◽  
Sherlynette Pérez Castro ◽  
Sean Kearney ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Community Dynamics ◽  
Microbial Mats ◽  
Elemental Sulfur ◽  
Green Sulfur Bacteria ◽  
Sulfur Cycle ◽  
Ecological Niches ◽  
Purple Sulfur Bacteria ◽  
Microbial Community Dynamics ◽  
Sulfur Bacteria ◽  
Green Sulfur

AbstractPhototrophic microbial mats commonly contain multiple phototrophic lineages that coexist based on their light, oxygen and nutrient preferences. Here we show that similar coexistence patterns and ecological niches can occur in suspended phototrophic blooms of an organic-rich estuary. The water column showed steep gradients of oxygen, pH, sulfate, sulfide, and salinity. The upper part of the bloom was dominated by aerobic phototrophicCyanobacteria, the middle and lower parts were dominated by anoxygenic purple sulfur bacteria (Chromatiales) and green sulfur bacteria (Chlorobiales), respectively. We found multiple uncultured phototrophic lineages and present metagenome-assembled genomes of two uncultured organisms within theChlorobiales. Apparently, thoseChlorobialespopulations were affected byMicroviridaeviruses. We suggest a sulfur cycle within the bloom in which elemental sulfur produced by phototrophs is reduced to sulfide byDesulfuromonas sp. These findings improve our understanding of the ecology and ecophysiology of phototrophic blooms and their impact on biogeochemical cycles.

scholarly journals Differential RNA Sequencing Implicates Sulfide as the Master Regulator of S 0 Metabolism in Chlorobaculum tepidum and Other Green Sulfur Bacteria

2017 ◽  
Vol 84 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jacob M. Hilzinger ◽  
Vidhyavathi Raman ◽  
Kevin E. Shuman ◽  
Brian J. Eddie ◽  
Thomas E. Hanson
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Elemental Sulfur ◽  
Green Sulfur Bacteria ◽  
Electron Donors ◽  
Reduced Sulfur Compounds ◽  
Promoter Elements ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Sulfur Bacteria ◽  
Chlorobaculum Tepidum ◽  
Green Sulfur

ABSTRACT The green sulfur bacteria ( Chlorobiaceae ) are anaerobes that use electrons from reduced sulfur compounds (sulfide, S 0 , and thiosulfate) as electron donors for photoautotrophic growth. Chlorobaculum tepidum , the model system for the Chlorobiaceae , both produces and consumes extracellular S 0 globules depending on the availability of sulfide in the environment. These physiological changes imply significant changes in gene regulation, which has been observed when sulfide is added to Cba. tepidum growing on thiosulfate. However, the underlying mechanisms driving these gene expression changes, i.e., the specific regulators and promoter elements involved, have not yet been defined. Here, differential RNA sequencing (dRNA-seq) was used to globally identify transcript start sites (TSS) that were present during growth on sulfide, biogenic S 0 , and thiosulfate as sole electron donors. TSS positions were used in combination with RNA-seq data from cultures growing on these same electron donors to identify both basal promoter elements and motifs associated with electron donor-dependent transcriptional regulation. These motifs were conserved across homologous Chlorobiaceae promoters. Two lines of evidence suggest that sulfide-mediated repression is the dominant regulatory mode in Cba. tepidum . First, motifs associated with genes regulated by sulfide overlap key basal promoter elements. Second, deletion of the Cba. tepidum 1277 ( CT1277 ) gene, encoding a putative regulatory protein, leads to constitutive overexpression of the sulfide:quinone oxidoreductase CT1087 in the absence of sulfide. The results suggest that sulfide is the master regulator of sulfur metabolism in Cba. tepidum and the Chlorobiaceae . Finally, the identification of basal promoter elements with differing strengths will further the development of synthetic biology in Cba. tepidum and perhaps other Chlorobiaceae . IMPORTANCE Elemental sulfur is a key intermediate in biogeochemical sulfur cycling. The photoautotrophic green sulfur bacterium Chlorobaculum tepidum either produces or consumes elemental sulfur depending on the availability of sulfide in the environment. Our results reveal transcriptional dynamics of Chlorobaculum tepidum on elemental sulfur and increase our understanding of the mechanisms of transcriptional regulation governing growth on different reduced sulfur compounds. This report identifies genes and sequence motifs that likely play significant roles in the production and consumption of elemental sulfur. Beyond this focused impact, this report paves the way for the development of synthetic biology in Chlorobaculum tepidum and other Chlorobiaceae by providing a comprehensive identification of promoter elements for control of gene expression, a key element of strain engineering.

scholarly journals dRNA-seq implicates sulfide as master regulator of S(0) metabolism in Chlorobaculum tepidum and other green sulfur bacteria

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jacob M. Hilzinger ◽  
Vidhyavathi Raman ◽  
Kevin E. Shuman ◽  
Brian J. Eddie ◽  
Thomas E. Hanson
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Elemental Sulfur ◽  
Green Sulfur Bacteria ◽  
Electron Donors ◽  
Rna Seq ◽  
Reduced Sulfur Compounds ◽  
Promoter Elements ◽  
Sulfur Bacteria ◽  
Chlorobaculum Tepidum ◽  
Green Sulfur

AbstractThe green sulfur bacteria (Chlorobiaceae) are anaerobes that use electrons from reduced sulfur compounds (sulfide, S(0), and thiosulfate) as electron donors for photoautotrophic growth. Chlorobaculum tepidum, the model system for the Chlorobiaceae, both produces and consumes extracellular S(0) globules depending on the availability of sulfide in the environment. These physiological changes imply significant changes in gene regulation, which has been observed when sulfide is added to Cba. tepidum growing on thiosulfate. However, the underlying mechanisms driving these gene expression changes, i.e. specific regulators and promoter elements involved, have not yet been defined. Here, differential RNA-seq (dRNA-seq) was used to globally identify transcript start sites (TSS) that were present during growth on sulfide, biogenic S(0), and thiosulfate as sole electron donors. TSS positions were used in combination with RNA-seq data from cultures growing on these same electron donors to identify both basal promoter elements and motifs associated with electron donor dependent transcriptional regulation. These motifs were conserved across homologous Chlorobiaceae promoters. Two lines of evidence suggest that sulfide mediated repression is the dominant regulatory mode in Cba. tepidum. First, motifs associated with genes regulated by sulfide overlap key basal promoter elements. Second, deletion of the gene CT1277, encoding a putative regulatory protein, leads to constitutive over-expression of the sulfide:quinone oxidoreductase CT1087 in the absence of sulfide. The results suggest that sulfide is the master regulator of sulfur metabolism in Cba. tepidum and the Chlorobiaceae. Finally, the identification of basal promoter elements with differing strengths will further the development of synthetic biology in Cba. tepidum and perhaps other Chlorobiaceae.ImportanceElemental sulfur is a key intermediate in biogeochemical sulfur cycling. The photoautotrophic green sulfur bacterium Chlorobaculum tepidum both produces and consumes elemental sulfur depending on the availability of sulfide in the environment. Our results reveal transcriptional dynamics of Chlorobaculum tepidum on elemental sulfur, and increase our understanding of the mechanisms of transcriptional regulation governing growth on different reduced sulfur compounds. This study identifies new genes and sequence motifs that likely play significant roles in the production and consumption of elemental sulfur. Beyond this focused impact, this study paves the way for the development of synthetic biology in Chlorobaculum tepidum and other Chlorobiaceae by providing a comprehensive identification of promoter elements to control gene expression, a key element of strain engineering.

scholarly journals Long-Term Population Dynamics of Phototrophic Sulfur Bacteria in the Chemocline of Lake Cadagno, Switzerland

2005 ◽  
Vol 71 (7) ◽  
pp. 3544-3550 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mauro Tonolla ◽  
Raffaele Peduzzi ◽  
Dittmar Hahn
Keyword(s):  
Major Change ◽  
Green Sulfur Bacteria ◽  
Purple Sulfur Bacteria ◽  
Phototrophic Sulfur Bacteria ◽  
Sulfur Bacteria ◽  
Large Fluctuations ◽  
Order Of Magnitude ◽  
Chlorobium Phaeobacteroides ◽  
Green Sulfur ◽  
Different Populations

ABSTRACT Population analyses in water samples obtained from the chemocline of crenogenic, meromictic Lake Cadagno, Switzerland, in October for the years 1994 to 2003 were studied using in situ hybridization with specific probes. During this 10-year period, large shifts in abundance between purple and green sulfur bacteria and among different populations were obtained. Purple sulfur bacteria were the numerically most prominent phototrophic sulfur bacteria in samples obtained from 1994 to 2001, when they represented between 70 and 95% of the phototrophic sulfur bacteria. All populations of purple sulfur bacteria showed large fluctuations in time with populations belonging to the genus Lamprocystis being numerically much more important than those of the genera Chromatium and Thiocystis. Green sulfur bacteria were initially represented by Chlorobium phaeobacteroides but were replaced by Chlorobium clathratiforme by the end of the study. C. clathratiforme was the only green sulfur bacterium detected during the last 2 years of the analysis, when a shift in dominance from purple sulfur bacteria to green sulfur bacteria was observed in the chemocline. At this time, numbers of purple sulfur bacteria had decreased and those of green sulfur bacteria increased by about 1 order of magnitude and C. clathratiforme represented about 95% of the phototrophic sulfur bacteria. This major change in community structure in the chemocline was accompanied by changes in profiles of turbidity and photosynthetically available radiation, as well as for sulfide concentrations and light intensity. Overall, these findings suggest that a disruption of the chemocline in 2000 may have altered environmental niches and populations in subsequent years.

scholarly journals In situabundance and carbon fixation activity of distinct anoxygenic phototrophs in the stratified seawater lake Rogoznica

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Petra Pjevac ◽  
Stefan Dyksma ◽  
Tobias Goldhammer ◽  
Izabela Mujakić ◽  
Michal Koblížek ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Inorganic Carbon ◽  
Carbon Fixation ◽  
Green Sulfur Bacteria ◽  
Purple Sulfur Bacteria ◽  
Purple Sulfur Bacterium ◽  
Anoxygenic Phototrophs ◽  
Flow Cytometric ◽  
Sulfur Bacteria ◽  
Chlorobium Phaeobacteroides ◽  
Green Sulfur

AbstractSulfide-driven anoxygenic photosynthesis is an ancient microbial metabolism that contributes significantly to inorganic carbon fixation in stratified, sulfidic water bodies. Methods commonly applied to quantify inorganic carbon fixation by anoxygenic phototrophs, however, cannot resolve the contributions of distinct microbial populations to the overall process. We implemented a straightforward workflow, consisting of radioisotope labeling and flow cytometric cell sorting based on the distinct autofluorescence of bacterial photo pigments, to discriminate and quantify contributions of co-occurring anoxygenic phototrophic populations toin situinorganic carbon fixation in environmental samples. This allowed us to assign 89.3 ±7.6% of daytime inorganic carbon fixation by anoxygenic phototrophs in Lake Rogoznica (Croatia) to an abundant chemocline-dwelling population of green sulfur bacteria (dominated byChlorobium phaeobacteroides), whereas the co-occurring purple sulfur bacteria (Halochromatiumsp.) contributed only 1.8 ±1.4%. Furthermore, we obtained two metagenome assembled genomes of green sulfur bacteria and one of a purple sulfur bacterium which provides the first genomic insights into the genusHalochromatium, confirming its high metabolic flexibility and physiological potential for mixo-and heterotrophic growth.

scholarly journals Characterization and In Situ Carbon Metabolism of Phototrophic Consortia

2003 ◽  
Vol 69 (7) ◽  
pp. 3739-3750 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jens Glaeser ◽  
Jörg Overmann
Keyword(s):  
16S Rrna ◽  
16S Rrna Gene ◽  
Denaturing Gradient Gel Electrophoresis ◽  
Stable Carbon Isotope ◽  
Green Sulfur Bacteria ◽  
Purple Sulfur Bacteria ◽  
Rrna Gene ◽  
Sulfur Bacteria ◽  
Green Sulfur

ABSTRACT A dense population of the phototrophic consortium “Pelochromatium roseum” was investigated in the chemocline of a temperate holomictic lake (Lake Dagow, Brandenburg, Germany). Fluorescence in situ hybridization revealed that the brown epibionts of “P. roseum” constituted up to 37% of the total bacterial cell number and up to 88% of all green sulfur bacteria present in the chemocline. Specific amplification of 16S rRNA gene fragments of green sulfur bacteria and denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis fingerprinting yielded a maximum of four different DNA bands depending on the year of study, indicating that the diversity of green sulfur bacteria was low. The 465-bp 16S rRNA gene sequence of the epibiont of “P. roseum” was obtained after sorting of individual consortia by micromanipulation, followed by a highly sensitive PCR. The sequence obtained represents a new phylotype within the radiation of green sulfur bacteria. Maximum light-dependent H14CO3 − fixation in the chemocline in the presence of 3-(3,4-dichlorophenyl)-1,1-dimethylurea suggested that there was anaerobic autotrophic growth of the green sulfur bacteria. The metabolism of the epibionts was further studied by determining stable carbon isotope ratios (δ13C) of their specific biomarkers. Analysis of photosynthetic pigments by high-performance liquid chromatography revealed the presence of high concentrations of bacteriochlorophyll (BChl) e and smaller amounts of BChl a and d and chlorophyll a in the chemocline. Unexpectedly, isorenieratene and β-isorenieratene, carotenoids typical of other brown members of the green sulfur bacteria, were absent. Instead, four different esterifying alcohols of BChl e were isolated as biomarkers of green sulfur bacterial epibionts, and their δ13C values were determined. Farnesol, tetradecanol, hexadecanol, and hexadecenol all were significantly enriched in 13C compared to bulk dissolved and particulate organic carbon and compared to the biomarkers of purple sulfur bacteria. The difference between the δ13C values of farnesol, the major esterifying alcohol of BChl e, and CO2 was −7.1%, which provides clear evidence that the mode of growth of the green sulfur bacterial epibionts of “P. roseum” in situ is photoautotrophic.

scholarly journals Carotenoid biomarkers in Namibian shelf sediments: Anoxygenic photosynthesis during sulfide eruptions in the Benguela Upwelling System

2021 ◽  
Vol 118 (29) ◽  
pp. e2106040118
Author(s):  
Jian Ma ◽  
Katherine L. French ◽  
Xingqian Cui ◽  
Donald A. Bryant ◽  
Roger E. Summons
Keyword(s):  
Microbial Mats ◽  
Green Sulfur Bacteria ◽  
Purple Sulfur Bacteria ◽  
Overlying Water ◽  
Anoxygenic Photosynthesis ◽  
Anoxygenic Phototrophs ◽  
Upwelling System ◽  
Sulfur Bacteria ◽  
Benguela Upwelling ◽  
Shelf Sediments

Aromatic carotenoid-derived hydrocarbon biomarkers are ubiquitous in ancient sediments and oils and are typically attributed to anoxygenic phototrophic green sulfur bacteria (GSB) and purple sulfur bacteria (PSB). These biomarkers serve as proxies for the environmental growth requirements of PSB and GSB, namely euxinic waters extending into the photic zone. Until now, prevailing models for environments supporting anoxygenic phototrophs include microbial mats, restricted basins and fjords with deep chemoclines, and meromictic lakes with shallow chemoclines. However, carotenoids have been reported in ancient open marine settings for which there currently are no known modern analogs that host GSB and PSB. The Benguela Upwelling System offshore Namibia, known for exceptionally high primary productivity, is prone to recurrent toxic gas eruptions whereupon hydrogen sulfide emanates from sediments into the overlying water column. These events, visible in satellite imagery as water masses clouded with elemental sulfur, suggest that the Benguela Upwelling System may be capable of supporting GSB and PSB. Here, we compare distributions of biomarkers in the free and sulfur-bound organic matter of Namibian shelf sediments. Numerous compounds—including acyclic isoprenoids, steranes, triterpanes, and carotenoids—were released from the polar lipid fractions upon Raney nickel desulfurization. The prevalence of isorenieratane and β-isorenieratane in sampling stations along the shelf verified anoxygenic photosynthesis by low-light-adapted, brown-colored GSB in this open marine setting. Renierapurpurane was also present in the sulfur-bound carotenoids and was typically accompanied by lower abundances of renieratane and β-renierapurpurane, thereby identifying cyanobacteria as an additional aromatic carotenoid source.

scholarly journals Ignavibacterium album gen. nov., sp. nov., a moderately thermophilic anaerobic bacterium isolated from microbial mats at a terrestrial hot spring and proposal of Ignavibacteria classis nov., for a novel lineage at the periphery of green sulfur bacteria

2010 ◽  
Vol 60 (6) ◽  
pp. 1376-1382 ◽  
Author(s):  
Takao Iino ◽  
Koji Mori ◽  
Yoshihito Uchino ◽  
Tatsunori Nakagawa ◽  
Shigeaki Harayama ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Microbial Mats ◽  
Hot Spring ◽  
Sequence Similarity ◽  
Green Sulfur Bacteria ◽  
Phylogenetic Position ◽  
Rrna Gene ◽  
Strictly Anaerobic ◽  
Moderately Thermophilic ◽  
Sulfur Bacteria ◽  
Green Sulfur

A moderately thermophilic chemoheterotrophic bacterium, strain Mat9-16T, was isolated from microbial mats developed in hot spring water streams from Yumata, Nagano, Japan. Cells of strain Mat9-16T were strictly anaerobic, Gram-stain-negative, non-sporulating, non-motile and short to long rods (2.0–15.5 μm in length). Strain Mat9-16T grew fermentatively with optimum growth at 45 °C, pH 7.0–7.5 and 1 % NaCl (w/v). Phylogenetic analysis based on the 16S rRNA gene revealed that strain Mat9-16T was affiliated with an uncultivated lineage, and the nearest cultivated neighbours were green sulfur bacteria belonging to the class Chlorobea with 77–83 % sequence similarity. However, strain Mat9-16T could not grow phototrophically and did not possess light-harvesting structures, morphologically and genetically, such as the chlorosomes of green sulfur bacteria. On the basis of phenotypic features and phylogenetic position, a novel genus and species are proposed for strain Mat9-16T, to be named Ignavibacterium album gen. nov., sp. nov. (=NBRC 101810T =DSM 19864T). We also propose to place the cultivated bacterial lineage accommodating the sole representative Mat9-16T in a novel class, Ignavibacteria classis nov. In addition, we present a formal description of the phylum-level taxon ‘Chlorobi’ as Chlorobi phyl. nov.

scholarly journals Signature pigments of green sulfur bacteria in lower Pleistocene deposits from the Banyoles lacustrine area (Spain)

2005 ◽  
Vol 34 (2) ◽  
pp. 271-280 ◽  
Author(s):  
N. Mallorquí ◽  
J.B. Arellano ◽  
C.M. Borrego ◽  
L.J. Garcia-Gil
Keyword(s):  
Green Sulfur Bacteria ◽  
Sulfur Bacteria ◽  
Lower Pleistocene ◽  
Green Sulfur
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