| 1. |
- Caceres, Eva F.
(författare)
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Genomic and evolutionary exploration of Asgard archaea
- 2019
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Current evolutionary theories postulate that eukaryotes emerged from the symbiosis of an archaeal host with, at least, one bacterial symbiont. However, our limited grasp of microbial diversity hampers insights into the features of the prokaryotic ancestors of eukaryotes. This thesis focuses on the study of a group of uncultured archaea to better understand both existing archaeal diversity and the origin of eukaryotes.In a first study, we used short-read metagenomic approaches to obtain eight genomes of Lokiarchaeum relatives. Using these data we described the Asgard superphylum, comprised of at least four different phyla: Lokiarchaeota, Odinarchaeota, Thorarchaeota and Heimdallarchaoeta. Phylogenetic analyses suggested that eukaryotes affiliate with the Asgard group, albeit the exact position of eukaryotes with respect to Asgard archaea members remained inconclusive. Comparative genomics showed that Asgard archaea genomes encoded homologs of numerous eukaryotic signature proteins (ESPs), which had never been observed in Archaea before. Among these, there were several components of proteins involved in vesicle formation and membrane remodelling.In a second study, we used similar approaches to uncover additional members of the Asgard superphylum. Based on genome-centric metagenomics we recovered 69 new genomes from which we identified five additional candidate phyla: Freyarchaeota, Baldrarchaeota, Gefionarchaeota, Friggarchaeota and Idunnarchaeota. In this expanded dataset we could detect additional homologs for unreported ESPs. Updated phylogenies showed support for a scenario in which eukaryotes emerged from within Asgard archaea.We further took advantage of the increased Asgard diversity to delimit the gene content of the last common archaeal ancestor of eukaryotes using ancestral reconstruction analyses. The results suggest that the archaeal host cell who gave rise to eukaryotes already contained many of the genes associated with eukaryotic cellular complexity. Based on these analyses, we discussed the metabolic capabilities of the archaeal ancestor of eukaryotes.Finally, we reconstructed several nearly complete Lokiarchaeota genomes, one of them in only three contigs, using both short- and long-read metagenomics. These analyses indicate that long-read metagenomics is a promising approach to obtain highly complete and contiguous genomes directly from environmental samples, even from complex populations in the presence of microdiversity and low abundant members. This study further supports that the presence of ESPs in Asgard genomes is not the result of assembly and binning artefacts. In conclusion, this thesis highlights the value of using culture-independent approaches together with phylogenomics and comparative genomics to improve our understanding of microbial diversity and to shed light into relevant evolutionary questions.
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| 2. |
- Chan, Helena, et al.
(författare)
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Genetic screens identify additional genes implicated in envelope remodeling during the engulfment stage of bacillus subtilis sporulation
- 2022
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Ingår i: mBio. - : American Society for Microbiology. - 2161-2129 .- 2150-7511. ; 13:5
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- During bacterial endospore formation, the developing spore is internalized into the mother cell through a phagocytic-like process called engulfment, which involves synthesis and hydrolysis of peptidoglycan. Engulfment peptidoglycan hydrolysis requires the widely conserved and well-characterized DMP complex, composed of SpoIID, SpoIIM, and SpoIIP. In contrast, although peptidoglycan synthesis has been implicated in engulfment, the protein players involved are less well defined. The widely conserved SpoIIIAH-SpoIIQ interaction is also required for engulfment efficiency, functioning like a ratchet to promote membrane migration around the forespore. Here, we screened for additional factors required for engulfment using transposon sequencing in Bacillus subtilis mutants with mild engulfment defects. We discovered that YrvJ, a peptidoglycan hydrolase, and the MurA paralog MurAB, involved in peptidoglycan precursor synthesis, are required for efficient engulfment. Cytological analyses suggest that both factors are important for engulfment when the DMP complex is compromised and that MurAB is additionally required when the SpoIIIAH-SpoIIQ ratchet is abolished. Interestingly, despite the importance of MurAB for sporulation in B. subtilis, phylogenetic analyses of MurA paralogs indicate that there is no correlation between sporulation and the number of MurA paralogs and further reveal the existence of a third MurA paralog, MurAC, within the Firmicutes. Collectively, our studies identify two new factors that are required for efficient envelop remodeling during sporulation and highlight the importance of peptidoglycan precursor synthesis for efficient engulfment in B. subtilis and likely other endospore-forming bacteria. IMPORTANCE In bacteria, cell envelope remodeling is critical for cell growth and division. This is also the case during the development of bacteria into highly resistant endospores (spores), known as sporulation. During sporulation, the developing spore becomes internalized inside the mother cell through a phagocytic-like process called engulfment, which is essential to form the cell envelope of the spore. Engulfment involves both the synthesis and hydrolysis of peptidoglycan and the stabilization of migrating membranes around the developing spore. Importantly, although peptidoglycan synthesis has been implicated during engulfment, the specific genes that contribute to this molecular element of engulfment have remained unclear. Our study identifies two new factors that are required for efficient envelope remodeling during engulfment and emphasizes the importance of peptidoglycan precursor synthesis for efficient engulfment in the model organism Bacillus subtilis and likely other endospore-forming bacteria. Finally, our work highlights the power of synthetic screens to reveal additional genes that contribute to essential processes during sporulation.
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| 3. |
- Gribaldo, Simonetta, et al.
(författare)
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The origin of eukaryotes and their relationship with the Archaea : are we at a phylogenomic impasse?
- 2010
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Ingår i: Nature Reviews Microbiology. - 1740-1526 .- 1740-1534. ; 8:10, s. 743-752
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The origin of eukaryotes and their evolutionary relationship with the Archaea is a major biological question and the subject of intense debate. In the context of the classical view of the universal tree of life, the Archaea and the Eukarya have a common ancestor, the nature of which remains undetermined. Alternative views propose instead that the Eukarya evolved directly from a bona fide archaeal lineage. Several recent large-scale phylogenomic studies using an array of approaches are divided in supporting either one or the other scenario, despite analysing largely overlapping data sets of universal genes. We examine the reasons for such a lack of consensus and consider how alternative approaches may enable progress in answering this fascinating and as-yet-unresolved question.
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| 4. |
- Lundin, Daniel, 1965-, et al.
(författare)
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Ribonucleotide reduction : horizontal transfer of a required function spans all three domains
- 2010
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Ingår i: BMC Evolutionary Biology. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1471-2148. ; 10:383
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Tidskriftsartikel (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Background Ribonucleotide reduction is the only de novo pathway for synthesis ofdeoxyribonucleotides, the building blocks of DNA. The reaction is catalysed byribonucleotide reductases (RNRs), an ancient enzyme family comprised of threeclasses. Each class has distinct operational constraints, and are broadly distributedacross organisms from all three domains, though few class I RNRs have beenidentified in archaeal genomes, and classes II and III likewise appear rare acrosseukaryotes. In this study, we examine whether this distribution is best explained bypresence of all three classes in the Last Universal Common Ancestor (LUCA), or byhorizontal gene transfer (HGT) of RNR genes. We also examine to what extentenvironmental factors may have impacted the distribution of RNR classes. Results Our phylogenies show that the Last Eukaryotic Common Ancestor (LECA) possesseda class I RNR, but that the eukaryotic class I enzymes are not directly descended fromclass I RNRs in archaea. Instead, our results indicate that archaeal class I RNR geneshave been independently transferred from bacteria on two occasions. While LECApossessed a class I RNR, our trees indicate that this is ultimately bacterial in origin.We also find convincing evidence that eukaryotic class I RNR has been transferred tothe bacteroidetes, providing a stunning example of HGT from eukaryotes back tobacteria. Based on our phylogenies and available genetic and genomic evidence, classII and III RNRs in eukaryotes also appear to have been transferred from bacteria, with subsequent within-domain transfer between distantly-related eukaryotes. Under the three-domains hypothesis the RNR present in the last common ancestor of archaeaand eukaryotes appears, through a process of elimination, to have been a dimeric classII RNR, though limited sampling of eukaryotes precludes a firm conclusion as the data may be equally well accounted for by HGT. Conclusions Horizontal gene transfer has clearly played an important role in the evolution of theRNR repertoire of organisms from all three domains of life. Our results clearly showthat class I RNRs have spread to archaea and eukaryotes via transfers from thebacterial domain, indicating that class I likely evolved in the bacteria. We find noclear evolutionary trace placing either class II or III RNRs in the LUCA, despite thefact that ribonucleotide reduction is an essential cellular reaction and was pivotal tothe transition from RNA to DNA genomes. Instead, a general pattern emerges whereenvironmental and enzyme operational constraints, especially the presence or absenceof oxygen, coupled with horizontal transmission are major determinants of the RNR repertoire of genomes.
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| 5. |
- Murray, Alison E., et al.
(författare)
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Roadmap for naming uncultivated Archaea and Bacteria
- 2020
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Ingår i: Nature Microbiology. - : NATURE PUBLISHING GROUP. - 2058-5276. ; 5:8, s. 987-994
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The assembly of single-amplified genomes (SAGs) and metagenome-assembled genomes (MAGs) has led to a surge in genome-based discoveries of members affiliated with Archaea and Bacteria, bringing with it a need to develop guidelines for nomenclature of uncultivated microorganisms. The International Code of Nomenclature of Prokaryotes (ICNP) only recognizes cultures as 'type material', thereby preventing the naming of uncultivated organisms. In this Consensus Statement, we propose two potential paths to solve this nomenclatural conundrum. One option is the adoption of previously proposed modifications to the ICNP to recognize DNA sequences as acceptable type material; the other option creates a nomenclatural code for uncultivated Archaea and Bacteria that could eventually be merged with the ICNP in the future. Regardless of the path taken, we believe that action is needed now within the scientific community to develop consistent rules for nomenclature of uncultivated taxa in order to provide clarity and stability, and to effectively communicate microbial diversity. In this Consensus Statement, the authors discuss the issue of naming uncultivated prokaryotic microorganisms, which currently do not have a formal nomenclature system due to a lack of type material or cultured representatives, and propose two recommendations including the recognition of DNA sequences as type material.
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