Environmental factors shaping the ecological niches of ammonia-oxidizing archaea

For more than 100 years it was believed that bacteria were the only group responsible for the oxidation of ammonia. However, recently, a new strain of archaea bearing a putative ammonia monooxygenase subunit A ( amoA ) gene and able to oxidize ammonia was isolated from a marine aquarium tank. Ammonia-oxidizing archaea (AOA) were subsequently discovered in many ecosystems of varied characteristics and even found as the predominant causal organisms in some environments. Here, we summarize the current knowledge on the environmental conditions related to the presence of AOA and discuss the possible site-related properties. Considering these data, we deduct the possible niches of AOA based on pH, sulfide and phosphate levels. It is proposed that the AOA might be important actors within the nitrogen cycle in low-nutrient, low-pH, and sulfide-containing environments.     

Bacterioplankton communities of Crater Lake,OR: dynamic changes with euphotic zone food web structure and stable deep water populations

The distribution of bacterial and archaeal species in Crater Lake plankton varies dramatically over depth and with time, as assessed by hybridization of group-specific oligonucleotides to RNA extracted from lakewater. Nonmetric, multidimensional scaling (MDS) analysis of relative bacterial phylotype densities revealed complex relationships among assemblages sampled from depth profiles in July, August and September of 1997 through 1999. CL500-11 green nonsulfur bacteria (Phylum Chloroflexi) and marine Group I crenarchaeota are consistently dominant groups in the oxygenated deep waters at 300 and 500 m. Other phylotypes found in the deep waters are similar to surface and mid-depth populations and vary with time. Euphotic zone assemblages are dominated either by β-proteobacteria or CL120-10 verrucomicrobia, and ACK4 actinomycetes. MDS analyses of euphotic zone populations in relation to environmental variables and phytoplankton and zooplankton population structures reveal apparent links between Daphnia pulicaria zooplankton population densities and microbial community structure. These patterns may reflect food web interactions that link kokanee salmon population densities to community structure of the bacterioplankton, via fish predation on Daphnia with cascading consequences to Daphnia bacterivory and predation on bacterivorous protists. These results demonstrate a stable bottom-water microbial community. They also extend previous observations of food web-driven changes in euphotic zone bacterioplankton community structure to an oligotrophic setting.     

Complete Genome Sequence of an Aerobic Hyper-thermophilic Crenarchaeon, Aeropyrum pernix K1

The complete sequence of the genome of an aerobic hyper-thermophiliccrenarchaeon, Aeropyrum pernix K1, which optimally grows at95°C, has been determined by the whole genome shotgun methodwith some modifications. The entire length of the genome was1,669,695 bp. The authenticity of the entire sequence was supportedby restriction analysis of long PCR products, which were directlyamplified from the genomic DNA. As the potential protein-codingregions, a total of 2,694 open reading frames (ORFs) were assigned.By similarity search against public databases, 633 (23.5%) ofthe ORFs were related to genes with putative function and 523(19.4%) to the sequences registered but with unknown function.All the genes in the TCA cycle except for that of alpha-ketoglutaratedehydrogenase were included, and instead of the alpha-ketoglutaratedehydrogenase gene, the genes coding for the two subunits of2-oxoacid:ferredoxin oxidoreductase were identified. The remaining1,538 ORFs (57.1%) did not show any significant similarity tothe sequences in the databases. Sequence comparison among theassigned ORFs suggested that a considerable member of ORFs weregenerated by sequence duplication. The RNA genes identifiedwere a single 16S–23S rRNA operon, two 5S rRNA genes and47 tRNA genes including 14 genes with intron structures. Allthe assigned ORFs and RNA coding regions occupied 89.12% ofthe whole genome. The data presented in this paper are availableon the internet homepage (http://www.mild.nite.go.jp).     

Microbial community structures in anoxic freshwater lake sediment along a metal contamination gradient

Contamination, such as by heavy metals, has frequently been implicated in altering microbial community structure. However, this association has not been extensively studied for anaerobic communities, or in freshwater lake sediments. We investigated microbial community structure in the metal-contaminated anoxic sediments of a eutrophic lake that were impacted over the course of 80 years by nearby zinc-smelting activities. Microbial community structure was inferred for bacterial, archaeal and eukaryotic populations by evaluating terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism (TRFLP) patterns in near-surface sediments collected in triplicate from five areas of the lake that had differing levels of metal contamination. The majority of the fragments in the bacterial and eukaryotic profiles showed no evidence of variation in association with metal contamination levels, and diversity revealed by these profiles remained consistent even as metal concentrations varied from 3000 to 27 000 mg kg⁻¹ total Zn, 0.125 to 11.2 μ pore water Zn and 0.023 to 5.40 μ pore water As. Although most archaeal fragments also showed no evidence of variation, the prevalence of a fragment associated with mesophilic Crenarchaeota showed significant positive correlation with total Zn concentrations. This Crenarchaeota fragment dominated the archaeal TRFLP profiles, representing between 35% and 79% of the total measured peak areas. Lake DePue 16S rRNA gene sequences corresponding to this TRFLP fragment clustered with anaerobic and soil mesophilic Crenarchaeota sequences. Although Crenarchaeota have been associated with metal-contaminated groundwater and soils, this is a first report (to our knowledge) documenting potential increased prevalence of Crenarchaeota associated with elevated levels of metal contamination.     

几种农田土壤中古菌、泉古菌和细菌的数量分布特征

真核生物、细菌和古菌三者共同构成了生命的三域系统.古菌作为第3种生命形式,不仅能在高温、强酸和高盐等极端环境下生存,而且在海洋、湖泊和土壤等生境中也广泛分布,预示其在整个生态系统中有着不可估量的作用.本文以2个农田剖面土壤和2个长期施肥试验站祁阳(QY)和封丘(FQ)的土壤为对象,以实时定量PCR方法为主要研究手段,对土壤中古菌(包括泉古菌)和细菌的16S rRNA基因拷贝数丰度变化进行了研究.结果表明:土壤泉古菌16S rRNA基因拷贝数要低于古菌l～2个数量级,两者与细菌相比,16S rRNA基因拷贝数大小顺序为土壤泉古菌＜古茵＜细菌,而古菌和泉古菌16S rRNA基因拷贝数与细菌的比值均随土壤深度加深而增大.不同施肥处理对土壤古菌和泉古茵的数量有显著影响.QY试验站土壤古菌和细菌的数量与土壤pH值显著相关(分别为r=0.850,P＜0.01和r=0.676,P＜0.05).FQ古菌、泉古菌和细菌与土壤pH值相关性不显著,与土壤有机质含量相关性均达显著水平(分别为r=0.783,P＜0.05;r=0.827,P＜0.05;r=0.767,P＜0.05).了解古菌包括泉古菌在农田土壤中的分布,可为评价其在生态系统和物质循环中的作用提供重要的理论依据.     

氨氧化微生物生态学与氮循环研究进展

氮的生物地球化学循环主要由微生物驱动,除固氮作用、硝化作用、反硝化作用和氨化作用外,近年还发现厌氧氨氧化是微生物参与氮循环的一个重要过程.同时,随着宏基因组学等分子生物技术的快速发展和应用,参与氮循环的新的微生物类群--氨氧化古菌也逐渐被发现.这两个重要的发现大大改变了过去人们对氮循环的认识,就近年有关厌氧氨氧化细菌、氨氧化古菌和氨氧化细菌的生态学研究进展作一简要综述.     

俄罗斯堪察加地区热泉及其周边生境的泉古菌多样性

【目的】泉古菌为陆地热泉系统的主要古菌类群,可能在自然界生源元素的地球化学循环中发挥着重要作用。本研究旨在揭示俄罗斯堪察加地区热泉以及热泉周边区域的泉古菌多样性,同时基于之前已获得的我国云南地区热泉数据,比较两地区泉古菌群落差异。【方法】通过构建16S rRNA基因片段克隆文库获得序列信息和丰度,随后进行物种多样性、系统发育和群落结构差异分析。【结果】高温热泉Burlyashi Liza(BSL,89℃)中的泉古菌全部属于热变形菌纲(Thermoprotei)内的物种。中温热泉TF Vent 2(TFV,49℃)的群落结构主要由不确定的热变形菌纲类群、不确定的泉古菌类群、高温水环境泉古菌类群Ⅱ(HWCG-Ⅱ)和奇古菌下的Group1.1b类群组成。热泉周边常温环境的主要物种与热泉环境的代表性克隆pJP41一起聚成一个较大的遗传分枝。Jackknife聚类树和主坐标分析(Principal coordinates analysis,PCoA)的结果显示:温度相似的样点,其泉古菌群落结构相对来说更为相似。【结论】俄罗斯堪察加地区与我国云南地区热泉中的泉古菌存在着一定程度上的不同。陆地热泉系统影响着其周边环境的泉古菌类群。热泉中泉古菌群落结构受温度的明显影响。     

Archaea of the Miscellaneous Crenarchaeotal Group are abundant,diverse and widespread in marine sediments

Members of the highly diverse Miscellaneous Crenarchaeotal Group (MCG) are globally distributed in various marine and continental habitats. In this study, we applied a polyphasic approach (rRNA slot blot hybridization, quantitative PCR (qPCR) and catalyzed reporter deposition FISH) using newly developed probes and primers for the in situ detection and quantification of MCG crenarchaeota in diverse types of marine sediments and microbial mats. In general, abundance of MCG (cocci, 0.4 μm) relative to other archaea was highest (12–100%) in anoxic, low-energy environments characterized by deeper sulfate depletion and lower microbial respiration rates (P=0.06 for slot blot and P=0.05 for qPCR). When studied in high depth resolution in the White Oak River estuary and Hydrate Ridge methane seeps, changes in MCG abundance relative to total archaea and MCG phylogenetic composition did not correlate with changes in sulfate reduction or methane oxidation with depth. In addition, MCG abundance did not vary significantly (P>0.1) between seep sites (with high rates of methanotrophy) and non-seep sites (with low rates of methanotrophy). This suggests that MCG are likely not methanotrophs. MCG crenarchaeota are highly diverse and contain 17 subgroups, with a range of intragroup similarity of 82 to 94%. This high diversity and widespread distribution in subsurface sediments indicates that this group is globally important in sedimentary processes.