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Diverse Marinimicrobia bacteria may mediate coupled biogeochemical cycles along eco-thermodynamic gradients

Microbial communities drive biogeochemical cycles through networks of metabolite exchange that are structured along energetic gradients. As energy yields become limiting, these networks favor co-metabolic interactions to maximize energy disequilibria. Here we apply single-cell genomics, metagenomics, and metatranscriptomics to study bacterial populations of the abundant “microbial dark matter” phylum Marinimicrobia along defined energy gradients. We… [Read More]

A thermostable Cas9 with increased lifetime in human plasma

CRISPR-Cas9 is a powerful technology that has enabled genome editing in a wide range of species. However, the currently developed Cas9 homologs all originate from mesophilic bacteria, making them susceptible to degradation and unsuitable for applications requiring cleavage at elevated temperatures. Here, we show that the Cas9 protein from the thermophilic bacterium Geobacillus stearothermophilus (GeoCas9)… [Read More]

Extensive gene content variation in the Brachypodium distachyon pan-genome correlates with population structure

While prokaryotic pan-genomes have been shown to contain many more genes than any individual organism, the prevalence and functional significance of differentially present genes in eukaryotes remains poorly understood. Whole-genome de novo assembly and annotation of 54 lines of the grass Brachypodium distachyon yield a pan-genome containing nearly twice the number of genes found in… [Read More]

Oxidative cyclization of prodigiosin by an alkylglycerol monooxygenase-like enzyme

Prodiginines, which are tripyrrole alkaloids displaying a wide array of bioactivities, occur as linear and cyclic congeners. Identification of an unclustered biosynthetic gene led to the discovery of the enzyme responsible for catalyzing the regiospecific C-H activation and cyclization of prodigiosin to cycloprodigiosin in Pseudoalteromonas rubra. This enzyme is related to alkylglycerol monooxygenase and unrelated… [Read More]

Feed Your Friends: Do Plant Exudates Shape the Root Microbiome?

Plant health in natural environments depends on interactions with complex and dynamic communities comprising macro- and microorganisms. While many studies have provided insights into the composition of rhizosphere microbiomes (rhizobiomes), little is known about whether plants shape their rhizobiomes. Here, we discuss physiological factors of plants that may govern plant-microbe interactions, focusing on root physiology… [Read More]

Arboriscoccus pini gen. nov., sp. nov., an endophyte from a pine tree of the class Alphaproteobacteria, emended description of Geminicoccus roseus, and proposal of Geminicoccaceae fam. nov

Bacterial strain B29T1(T) was isolated from the endophytic microbial community of a Pinus pinaster tree trunk and characterized. Strain B29T1(T) stained Gram-negative and formed diplococci that grew optimally at 26-30 degrees C and at pH 6.0-7.0. The G+C content of the DNA was 61.6mol%. The respiratory quinone was ubiquinone 10 (UK-10), and the major fatty… [Read More]

Draft genome of Paraburkholderia caballeronis TNe-841(T), a free-living, nitrogen-fixing, tomato plant-associated bacterium

10.1601/nm.26956 caballeronis is a plant-associated bacterium. Strain TNe-841(T) was isolated from the rhizosphere of tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L. var. lycopersicum) growing in Nepantla Mexico State. Initially this bacterium was found to effectively nodulate Phaseolus vulgaris L. However, from an analysis of the genome of strain TNe-841(T) and from repeat inoculation experiments, we found that this… [Read More]

Draft genome sequence of Pseudomonas extremaustralis strain USBA-GBX 515 isolated from Superparamo soil samples in Colombian Andes

Here we present the physiological features of Pseudomonas extremaustralis strain USBA-GBX-515 (CMPUJU 515), isolated from soils in Superparamo ecosystems, > 4000 m.a.s.l, in the northern Andes of South America, as well as the thorough analysis of the draft genome. Strain USBA-GBX-515 is a Gram-negative rod shaped bacterium of 1.0-3.0 mum x 0.5-1 mum, motile and… [Read More]

Draft genome sequence of Dethiosulfovibrio salsuginis DSM 21565(T) an anaerobic, slightly halophilic bacterium isolated from a Colombian saline spring

A bacterium belonging to the phylum Synergistetes, genus Dethiosulfovibrio was isolated in 2007 from a saline spring in Colombia. Dethiosulfovibrio salsuginis USBA 82(T) (DSM 21565(T)= KCTC 5659(T)) is a mesophilic, strictly anaerobic, slightly halophilic, Gram negative bacterium with a diderm cell envelope. The strain ferments peptides, amino acids and a few organic acids. Here we… [Read More]

Metagenomic analysis of intertidal hypersaline microbial mats from Elkhorn Slough, California, grown with and without molybdate

Cyanobacterial mats are laminated microbial ecosystems which occur in highly diverse environments and which may provide a possible model for early life on Earth. Their ability to produce hydrogen also makes them of interest from a biotechnological and bioenergy perspective. Samples of an intertidal microbial mat from the Elkhorn Slough estuary in Monterey Bay, California,… [Read More]