Microarray-Based Analysis of Subnanogram Quantities of Microbial Community DNAs by Using Whole-Community Genome Amplification

Microarray technology provides the opportunity to identify thousands of microbial genes or populations simultaneously, but low microbial biomass often prevents application of this technology to many natural microbial communities. We developed a whole-community genome amplification-assisted microarray detection approach based on multiple displacement amplification. The representativeness of amplification was evaluated using several types of microarrays and quantitative indexes. Representative detection of individual genes or genomes was obtained with 1 to 100 ng DNA from individual or mixed genomes, in equal or unequal abundance, and with 1 to 500 ng community DNAs from groundwater. Lower concentrations of DNA (as low as 10 fg) could be detected, but the lower template concentrations affected the representativeness of amplification. Robust quantitative detection was also observed by significant linear relationships between signal intensities and initial DNA concentrations ranging from (i) 0.04 to 125 ng (r² = 0.65 to 0.99) for DNA from pure cultures as detected by whole-genome open reading frame arrays, (ii) 0.1 to 1,000 ng (r² = 0.91) for genomic DNA using community genome arrays, and (iii) 0.01 to 250 ng (r² = 0.96 to 0.98) for community DNAs from ethanol-amended groundwater using 50-mer functional gene arrays. This method allowed us to investigate the oligotrophic microbial communities in groundwater contaminated with uranium and other metals. The results indicated that microorganisms containing genes involved in contaminant degradation and immobilization are present in these communities, that their spatial distribution is heterogeneous, and that microbial diversity is greatly reduced in the highly contaminated environment.     

New Perspectives on Microbial Community Distortion after Whole-Genome Amplification

Whole-genome amplification (WGA) has become an important tool to explore the genomic information of microorganisms in an environmental sample with limited biomass, however potential selective biases during the amplification processes are poorly understood. Here, we describe the effects of WGA on 31 different microbial communities from five biotopes that also included low-biomass samples from drinking water and groundwater. Our findings provide evidence that microbiome segregation by biotope was possible despite WGA treatment. Nevertheless, samples from different biotopes revealed different levels of distortion, with genomic GC content significantly correlated with WGA perturbation. Certain phylogenetic clades revealed a homogenous trend across various sample types, for instance Alpha- and Betaproteobacteria showed a decrease in their abundance after WGA treatment. On the other hand, Enterobacteriaceae, an important biomarker group for fecal contamination in groundwater and drinking water, were strongly affected by WGA treatment without a predictable pattern. These novel results describe the impact of WGA on low-biomass samples and may highlight issues to be aware of when designing future metagenomic studies that necessitate preceding WGA treatment.     

Nucleic Acid Amplification Strategies for DNA Microarray-Based Pathogen Detection

DNA microarray-based screening and diagnostic technologies have long promised comprehensive testing capabilities. However, the potential of these powerful tools has been limited by front-end target-specific nucleic acid amplification. Despite the sensitivity and specificity associated with PCR amplification, the inherent bias and limited throughput of this approach constrain the principal benefits of downstream microarray-based applications, especially for pathogen detection. To begin addressing alternative approaches, we investigated four front-end amplification strategies: random primed, isothermal Klenow fragment-based, 29 DNA polymerase-based, and multiplex PCR. The utility of each amplification strategy was assessed by hybridizing amplicons to microarrays consisting of 70-mer oligonucleotide probes specific for enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli O157:H7 and by quantitating their sensitivities for the detection of O157:H7 in laboratory and environmental samples. Although nearly identical levels of hybridization specificity were achieved for each method, multiplex PCR was at least 3 orders of magnitude more sensitive than any individual random amplification approach. However, the use of Klenow-plus-Klenow and 29 polymerase-plus-Klenow tandem random amplification strategies provided better sensitivities than multiplex PCR. In addition, amplification biases among the five genetic loci tested were 2- to 20-fold for the random approaches, in contrast to >4 orders of magnitude for multiplex PCR. The same random amplification strategies were also able to detect all five diagnostic targets in a spiked environmental water sample that contained a 63-fold excess of contaminating DNA. The results presented here underscore the feasibility of using random amplification approaches and begin to systematically address the versatility of these approaches for unbiased pathogen detection from environmental sources.     

Profiling In Situ Microbial Community Structure with an Amplification Microarray

The objectives of this study were to unify amplification, labeling, and microarray hybridization chemistries within a single, closed microfluidic chamber (an amplification microarray) and verify technology performance on a series of groundwater samples from an in situ field experiment designed to compare U(VI) mobility under conditions of various alkalinities (as HCO₃⁻) during stimulated microbial activity accompanying acetate amendment. Analytical limits of detection were between 2 and 200 cell equivalents of purified DNA. Amplification microarray signatures were well correlated with 16S rRNA-targeted quantitative PCR results and hybridization microarray signatures. The succession of the microbial community was evident with and consistent between the two microarray platforms. Amplification microarray analysis of acetate-treated groundwater showed elevated levels of iron-reducing bacteria (Flexibacter, Geobacter, Rhodoferax, and Shewanella) relative to the average background profile, as expected. Identical molecular signatures were evident in the transect treated with acetate plus NaHCO₃, but at much lower signal intensities and with a much more rapid decline (to nondetection). Azoarcus, Thaurea, and Methylobacterium were responsive in the acetate-only transect but not in the presence of bicarbonate. Observed differences in microbial community composition or response to bicarbonate amendment likely had an effect on measured rates of U reduction, with higher rates probable in the part of the field experiment that was amended with bicarbonate. The simplification in microarray-based work flow is a significant technological advance toward entirely closed-amplicon microarray-based tests and is generally extensible to any number of environmental monitoring applications.     

Mechanism of RNA silencing by Hfq-binding small RNAs

The stress-induced small RNAs SgrS and RyhB in Escherichia coli form a specific ribonucleoprotein complex with RNAse E and Hfq resulting in translation inhibition, RNAse E-dependent degradation of target mRNAs. Translation inhibition is the primary event for gene silencing and degradation of these small RNAs is coupled with the degradation of target mRNAs. The crucial base-pairs for action of SgrS are confined to the 6 nt region overlapping the Shine-Dalgarno sequence of the target mRNA. Hfq accelerates the rate of duplex formation between SgrS and the target mRNA. Membrane localization of target mRNA contributes to efficient SgrS action by competing with ribosome loading.     

Microbial Community Analysis of Anodes from Sediment Microbial Fuel Cells Powered by Rhizodeposits of Living Rice Plants

By placing the anode of a sediment microbial fuel cell (SMFC) in the rhizosphere of a rice plant, root-excreted rhizodeposits can be microbially oxidized with concomitant current generation. Here, various molecular techniques were used to characterize the composition of bacterial and archaeal communities on such anodes, as influenced by electrical circuitry, sediment matrix, and the presence of plants. Closed-circuit anodes in potting soil were enriched with Desulfobulbus-like species, members of the family Geobacteraceae, and as yet uncultured representatives of the domain Archaea.Living plants release substantial amounts of carbon in the soil as rhizodeposits, which are to a large extent transformed into the greenhouse gas methane in wetlands (21). It was recently demonstrated (8, 33) that the rhizodeposits can be harvested by plant microbial fuel cells (plant MFCs) and transformed into electricity. In its most straightforward form, a plant MFC is an adaptation of a sediment MFC (SMFC), which has an anode buried in (planted) sediment, allowing (microbial) oxidation of reduced compounds, and a cathode in the overlying water.The roots and surrounding rhizosphere in a plant SMFC add an extra parameter to the as yet multifaceted SMFC system. In the present study, two molecular profiling techniques (denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis [DGGE] and terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism [T-RFLP]) will be applied to evaluate the effect of plant presence, support material, operation of the electrical circuit, and anode depth on the bacterial and archaeal communities associated with rice SMFC anodes. Phylogenetic analysis will give further insight in their composition.     

红树林人工修复区根际微生物群落结构分析

目的:通过比较不同年份红树林修复区的根际微生物结构,建立微生物区系与修复质量的相关性,为红树林修复提供理论借鉴。方法:采集4年、8年、10年红树林修复区以及原生红树林的根际微生物,利用末端限制性片段长度多态性技术(Terminal Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphism,T-RFLP)、聚类分析(Cluster Analysis,CA)、主成分分析法(Principal Component Analysis,PCA)、α多样性分析法、文氏图、稀释性曲线等分析方法,研究不同样本间根际微生物的群落组成并进行差异性对比。结果:通过分析不同修复年限间根际微生物的短片段重复序列(Short Tandem Repeat,STR)测序结果,发现三个不同修复时间的红树林修复区和原生红树林根际微生物间均存在差异,10年修复区更加接近原生红树林,4年和8年修复区享有更加相似的微生物群落,且同原生红树林间存在较大差异。结论:修复区红树林的根际微生物群落结构会逐步向着原生红树林根际微生物群落结构演替,但这一过程并非简单的加和式线性变化,而是存在复杂性和年份突变性的可能。     

滚环复制技术的建立及在RNA病毒基因检测中的初步应用

滚环复制是噬菌体繁殖所采取的一种基因复制方式,这种方式可使单链的环形分子在聚合酶和引物的作用下进行体外自我扩增。本文中用可特异性连接环化的寡核苷酸链作为探针,分别进行了1份细胞培养的禽流感病毒H5N1亚型样品、1份细胞培养的SARS病毒样品和4份丙型肝炎病毒阳性血清样品的检测。检测原理是探针与靶序列杂交后便可在T4DNA连接酶的作用下形成滚环复制中的环化单链分子,该分子在同温下可被特异性引物滚动复制和支链扩增。本文还利用按禽流感病毒NA1基因区序列合成的模拟DNA分子对该检测方法的灵敏度进行了测试。结果显示：利用固相RCA技术成功检测到三种RNA病毒的基因,该方法的灵敏度可达到能检测10^3拷贝模式DNA分子的水平。与传统的PCR方法敏感性的比较尚待进一步研究。     

Selection of prosomes and prosomal RNA by immobilized viral RNAs

Viral messengers were used to select and purify prosomes and prosomal RNA from subribosomal fractions of HeLa cells and mouse erythroblasts. Adenovirus mRNA immobilized on oligo(dT)-cellulose and tobacco mosaic virus RNA (TMV) sedimenting in sucrose gradients associated strongly with prosomes at high salt conditions forming intermolecular RNA-RNA hybrids between prosomal RNA and viral RNA. Hybrid selection of small cytoplasmic RNAs with immobilized TMV-RNA revealed a RNA species migrating at the same position as prosomal RNA. The possible existence of a box-like sequence involved in hybridization will be discussed.     

Microarray-based analysis of microbial community RNAs by whole-community RNA amplification

A new approach, termed whole-community RNA amplification (WCRA), was developed to provide sufficient amounts of mRNAs from environmental samples for microarray analysis. This method employs fusion primers (six to nine random nucleotides with an attached T7 promoter) for the first-strand synthesis. The shortest primer (T7N6S) gave the best results in terms of the yield and representativeness of amplification. About 1,200- to 1,800-fold amplification was obtained with amounts of the RNA templates ranging from 10 to 100 ng, and very representative detection was obtained with 50 to 100 ng total RNA. Evaluation with a Shewanella oneidensis Deltafur strain revealed that the amplification method which we developed could preserve the original abundance relationships of mRNAs. In addition, to determine whether representative detection of RNAs can be achieved with mixed community samples, amplification biases were evaluated with a mixture containing equal quantities of RNAs (100 ng each) from four bacterial species, and representative amplification was also obtained. Finally, the method which we developed was applied to the active microbial populations in a denitrifying fluidized bed reactor used for denitrification of contaminated groundwater and ethanol-stimulated groundwater samples for uranium reduction. The genes expressed were consistent with the expected functions of the bioreactor and groundwater system, suggesting that this approach is useful for analyzing the functional activities of microbial communities. This is one of the first demonstrations that microarray-based technology can be used to successfully detect the activities of microbial communities from real environmental samples in a high-throughput fashion.     

Microbial Interactions within a Cheese Microbial Community

The interactions that occur during the ripening of smear cheeses are not well understood. Yeast-yeast interactions and yeast-bacterium interactions were investigated within a microbial community composed of three yeasts and six bacteria found in cheese. The growth dynamics of this community was precisely described during the ripening of a model cheese, and the Lotka-Volterra model was used to evaluate species interactions. Subsequently, the effects on ecosystem functioning of yeast omissions in the microbial community were evaluated. It was found both in the Lotka-Volterra model and in the omission study that negative interactions occurred between yeasts. Yarrowia lipolytica inhibited mycelial expansion of Geotrichum candidum, whereas Y. lipolytica and G. candidum inhibited Debaryomyces hansenii cell viability during the stationary phase. However, the mechanisms involved in these interactions remain unclear. It was also shown that yeast-bacterium interactions played a significant role in the establishment of this multispecies ecosystem on the cheese surface. Yeasts were key species in bacterial development, but their influences on the bacteria differed. It appeared that the growth of Arthrobacter arilaitensis or Hafnia alvei relied less on a specific yeast function because these species dominated the bacterial flora, regardless of which yeasts were present in the ecosystem. For other bacteria, such as Leucobacter sp. or Brevibacterium aurantiacum, growth relied on a specific yeast, i.e., G. candidum. Furthermore, B. aurantiacum, Corynebacterium casei, and Staphylococcus xylosus showed reduced colonization capacities in comparison with the other bacteria in this model cheese. Bacterium-bacterium interactions could not be clearly identified.     

封闭环境下酸性矿坑水中微生物生态多样性的研究

铜绿山铜矿是世界开采时间最长的矿井之一,在开采过程中有许多矿井被废弃,许多废弃的矿井内产生了大量的对环境有害的酸性矿坑水.酸性矿坑水取自铜绿山铜矿某废弃矿井,利用限制性酶切片断多样性分析(RFLP分析)对酸性矿坑水中的微生物生态多样性进行了研究.研究表明,酸性矿坑水呈酸性,相对于其他极端与非极端生态环境,酸性矿坑水中的细菌与古菌的群落多样性较低.RFLP分析与系统发育分析表明,酸性矿坑水中细菌主要由A.fcrrooxidans(属于gamma-Proteobacteria)和L.ferrooxidans(属于Nitospira)成;古菌主要由Thermoplasma相关古菌组成.在这种封闭环境的酸性矿坑水中首次发现了类似于产甲烷古菌的克隆片断,其占古菌种群的四分之一左右.本研究将促进对酸性矿坑水中细菌及古菌群落组成及其对酸性矿坑水产生的作用的研究.     

Microbial Community Analysis of Anaerobic Reactors Treating Soft Drink Wastewater

The anaerobic packed-bed (AP) and hybrid packed-bed (HP) reactors containing methanogenic microbial consortia were applied to treat synthetic soft drink wastewater, which contains polyethylene glycol (PEG) and fructose as the primary constituents. The AP and HP reactors achieved high COD removal efficiency (>95%) after 80 and 33 days of the operation, respectively, and operated stably over 2 years. 16S rRNA gene pyrotag analyses on a total of 25 biofilm samples generated 98,057 reads, which were clustered into 2,882 operational taxonomic units (OTUs). Both AP and HP communities were predominated by Bacteroidetes, Chloroflexi, Firmicutes, and candidate phylum KSB3 that may degrade organic compound in wastewater treatment processes. Other OTUs related to uncharacterized Geobacter and Spirochaetes clades and candidate phylum GN04 were also detected at high abundance; however, their relationship to wastewater treatment has remained unclear. In particular, KSB3, GN04, Bacteroidetes, and Chloroflexi are consistently associated with the organic loading rate (OLR) increase to 1.5 g COD/L-d. Interestingly, KSB3 and GN04 dramatically decrease in both reactors after further OLR increase to 2.0 g COD/L-d. These results indicate that OLR strongly influences microbial community composition. This suggests that specific uncultivated taxa may take central roles in COD removal from soft drink wastewater depending on OLR.     

Multivariate Optimization of Polymerase Chain Reaction for Microbial Community Analysis

A multivariate regression, partial least square (PLS) approach was used to optimize a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) method for mixed communities. This approach, in contrast to univariate ones, provided information on the relative influence of the different factors to be optimized, as well as the interactions between factors. Models that predicted the outcome of further optimization were constructed from the initial experiments and verified experimentally. The models constructed were able to predict the outcome of a second set of experiments with high accuracy. PCR-amplification of DNA from environmental samples is often the first step in microbial community fingerprinting. Inhibitors and low cell numbers in the samples can cause problems with yield, for which compensation is normally made by increasing the number of cycles in the PCR-amplification reaction. Increasing the number of cycles, however, can cause other problems such as heteroduplex formation and increased bias. To avoid these problems the effects of different times of denaturing, annealing, and extension on yield were investigated for 2 different samples, one that consisted of a mixture of 9 laboratory strains, and one that represented the microbial community from the surface of the red alga Delisea pulchra. The multivariate approach showed, in addition to the successful optimization of yield, that the different factors affected the PCR depending on sample type. Annealing time had the largest effect on yield for the mixture of laboratory strains, whereas extension time was most important for the D. pulchra community. We suggest that multivariate optimization is a useful tool for PCR optimization and can be used irrespectively of the particular factors that are being investigated.     

Inhibition of herpesvirus-6B RNA replication by short interference RNAs

RNA interference (RNAi) is a process of sequence-specific gene silencing, which is initiated by double-stranded RNA (dsRNA). RNAi may also serve as an antiviral system in vertebrates. This study describes the inhibition of herpesvirus-6B (HHV-6B) replication by short interference RNAs (siRNAs) that are targeted to the U38 sequence that encodes DNA polymerase. When virus-infected SupT1 cells were treated by siRNA, these cells blocked the cytopathic effect (CPE) and detected the HHV-6B antibody-negative in indirect immunofluorescence assays (IFA). Our result suggests that RNAi can efficiently block Herpesvirus-6B replication.