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| 2. |
- Arridge, Christopher S., et al.
(författare)
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Uranus Pathfinder : exploring the origins and evolution of Ice Giant planets
- 2012
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Ingår i: Experimental astronomy. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0922-6435 .- 1572-9508. ; 33:2-3, s. 753-791
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The "Ice Giants" Uranus and Neptune are a different class of planet compared to Jupiter and Saturn. Studying these objects is important for furthering our understanding of the formation and evolution of the planets, and unravelling the fundamental physical and chemical processes in the Solar System. The importance of filling these gaps in our knowledge of the Solar System is particularly acute when trying to apply our understanding to the numerous planetary systems that have been discovered around other stars. The Uranus Pathfinder (UP) mission thus represents the quintessential aspects of the objectives of the European planetary community as expressed in ESA's Cosmic Vision 2015-2025. UP was proposed to the European Space Agency's M3 call for medium-class missions in 2010 and proposed to be the first orbiter of an Ice Giant planet. As the most accessible Ice Giant within the M-class mission envelope Uranus was identified as the mission target. Although not selected for this call the UP mission concept provides a baseline framework for the exploration of Uranus with existing low-cost platforms and underlines the need to develop power sources suitable for the outer Solar System. The UP science case is based around exploring the origins, evolution, and processes at work in Ice Giant planetary systems. Three broad themes were identified: (1) Uranus as an Ice Giant, (2) An Ice Giant planetary system, and (3) An asymmetric magnetosphere. Due to the long interplanetary transfer from Earth to Uranus a significant cruise-phase science theme was also developed. The UP mission concept calls for the use of a Mars Express/Rosetta-type platform to launch on a Soyuz-Fregat in 2021 and entering into an eccentric polar orbit around Uranus in the 2036-2037 timeframe. The science payload has a strong heritage in Europe and beyond and requires no significant technology developments.
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| 3. |
- Bowers, Robert M., et al.
(författare)
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Minimum information about a single amplified genome (MISAG) and a metagenome-assembled genome (MIMAG) of bacteria and archaea
- 2017
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Ingår i: Nature Biotechnology. - : NATURE PUBLISHING GROUP. - 1087-0156 .- 1546-1696. ; 35:8, s. 725-731
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We present two standards developed by the Genomic Standards Consortium (GSC) for reporting bacterial and archaeal genome sequences. Both are extensions of the Minimum Information about Any (x) Sequence (MIxS). The standards are the Minimum Information about a Single Amplified Genome (MISAG) and the Minimum Information about a Metagenome-Assembled Genome (MIMAG), including, but not limited to, assembly quality, and estimates of genome completeness and contamination. These standards can be used in combination with other GSC checklists, including the Minimum Information about a Genome Sequence (MIGS), Minimum Information about a Metagenomic Sequence (MIMS), and Minimum Information about a Marker Gene Sequence (MIMARKS). Community-wide adoption of MISAG and MIMAG will facilitate more robust comparative genomic analyses of bacterial and archaeal diversity.
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| 4. |
- Dick, G J, et al.
(författare)
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Community-wide analysis of microbial genome sequence signatures
- 2009
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Ingår i: Genome Biology. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1465-6906 .- 1474-760X. ; 10:8, s. R85-
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BACKGROUND: Analyses of DNA sequences from cultivated microorganisms have revealed genome-wide, taxa-specific nucleotide compositional characteristics, referred to as genome signatures. These signatures have far-reaching implications for understanding genome evolution and potential application in classification of metagenomic sequence fragments. However, little is known regarding the distribution of genome signatures in natural microbial communities or the extent to which environmental factors shape them. RESULTS: We analyzed metagenomic sequence data from two acidophilic biofilm communities, including composite genomes reconstructed for nine archaea, three bacteria, and numerous associated viruses, as well as thousands of unassigned fragments from strain variants and low-abundance organisms. Genome signatures, in the form of tetranucleotide frequencies analyzed by emergent self-organizing maps, segregated sequences from all known populations sharing < 50 to 60% average amino acid identity and revealed previously unknown genomic clusters corresponding to low-abundance organisms and a putative plasmid. Signatures were pervasive genome-wide. Clusters were resolved because intra-genome differences resulting from translational selection or protein adaptation to the intracellular (pH approximately 5) versus extracellular (pH approximately 1) environment were small relative to inter-genome differences. We found that these genome signatures stem from multiple influences but are primarily manifested through codon composition, which we propose is the result of genome-specific mutational biases. CONCLUSIONS: An important conclusion is that shared environmental pressures and interactions among coevolving organisms do not obscure genome signatures in acid mine drainage communities. Thus, genome signatures can be used to assign sequence fragments to populations, an essential prerequisite if metagenomics is to provide ecological and biochemical insights into the functioning of microbial communities.
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| 5. |
- Eme, Laura, et al.
(författare)
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Inference and reconstruction of the heimdallarchaeial ancestry of eukaryotes
- 2023
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Ingår i: Nature. - : Springer Nature. - 0028-0836 .- 1476-4687. ; 618:7967, s. 992-
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- In the ongoing debates about eukaryogenesis-the series of evolutionary events leading to the emergence of the eukaryotic cell from prokaryotic ancestors-members of the Asgard archaea play a key part as the closest archaeal relatives of eukaryotes(1). However, the nature and phylogenetic identity of the last common ancestor of Asgard archaea and eukaryotes remain unresolved(2-4). Here we analyse distinct phylogenetic marker datasets of an expanded genomic sampling of Asgard archaea and evaluate competing evolutionary scenarios using state-of-the-art phylogenomic approaches. We find that eukaryotes are placed, with high confidence, as a well-nested clade within Asgard archaea and as a sister lineage to Hodarchaeales, a newly proposed order within Heimdallarchaeia. Using sophisticated gene tree and species tree reconciliation approaches, we show that analogous to the evolution of eukaryotic genomes, genome evolution in Asgard archaea involved significantly more gene duplication and fewer gene loss events compared with other archaea. Finally, we infer that the last common ancestor of Asgard archaea was probably a thermophilic chemolithotroph and that the lineage from which eukaryotes evolved adapted to mesophilic conditions and acquired the genetic potential to support a heterotrophic lifestyle. Our work provides key insights into the prokaryote-to-eukaryote transition and a platform for better understanding the emergence of cellular complexity in eukaryotic cells.
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| 7. |
- Wilmes, P., et al.
(författare)
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Community proteogenomics highlights microbial strain-variant protein expression within activated sludge performing enhanced biological phosphorus removal
- 2008
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Ingår i: The ISME Journal. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1751-7362 .- 1751-7370. ; 2:8, s. 853-864
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Enhanced biological phosphorus removal (EBPR) selects for polyphosphate accumulating microorganisms to achieve phosphate removal from wastewater. We used high-resolution community proteomics to identify key metabolic pathways in 'Candidatus Accumulibacter phosphatis' (A. phosphatis)-mediated EBPR and to evaluate the contributions of co-existing strains within the dominant population. Overall, 702 proteins from the A. phosphatis population were identified. Results highlight the importance of denitrification, fatty acid cycling and the glyoxylate bypass in EBPR. Strong similarity in protein profiles under anaerobic and aerobic conditions was uncovered (only 3% of A. phosphatis-associated proteins exhibited statistically significant abundance differences). By comprehensive genome-wide alignment of 13,930 orthologous proteins, we uncovered substantial differences in protein abundance for enzyme variants involved in both core-metabolism and EBPR-specific pathways among the A. phosphatis population. These findings suggest an essential role for genetic diversity in maintaining the stable performance of EBPR systems and, hence, demonstrate the power of integrated cultivation-independent genomics and proteomics for the analysis of complex biotechnological systems.
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| 8. |
- Zaremba-Niedzwiedzka, Katarzyna, et al.
(författare)
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Asgard archaea illuminate the origin of eukaryotic cellular complexity
- 2017
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Ingår i: Nature. - : NATURE PUBLISHING GROUP. - 0028-0836 .- 1476-4687. ; 541:7637, s. 353-
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The origin and cellular complexity of eukaryotes represent a major enigma in biology. Current data support scenarios in which an archaeal host cell and an alphaproteobacterial (mitochondrial) endosymbiont merged together, resulting in the first eukaryotic cell. The host cell is related to Lokiarchaeota, an archaeal phylum with many eukaryotic features. The emergence of the structural complexity that characterizes eukaryotic cells remains unclear. Here we describe the 'Asgard' superphylum, a group of uncultivated archaea that, as well as Lokiarchaeota, includes Thor-, Odin- and Heimdallarchaeota. Asgard archaea affiliate with eukaryotes in phylogenomic analyses, and their genomes are enriched for proteins formerly considered specific to eukaryotes. Notably, thorarchaeal genomes encode several homologues of eukaryotic membrane-trafficking machinery components, including Sec23/24 and TRAPP domains. Furthermore, we identify thorarchaeal proteins with similar features to eukaryotic coat proteins involved in vesicle biogenesis. Our results expand the known repertoire of 'eukaryote-specific' proteins in Archaea, indicating that the archaeal host cell already contained many key components that govern eukaryotic cellular complexity.
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| 9. |
- Andersson, Anders, et al.
(författare)
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Virus population dynamics and acquired virus resistance in natural microbial communities
- 2008
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Ingår i: Science. - : American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). - 0036-8075 .- 1095-9203. ; 320:5879, s. 1047-1050
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Viruses shape microbial community structure and function by altering the fitness of their hosts and by promoting genetic exchange. The complexity of most natural ecosystems has precluded detailed studies of virus-host interactions. We reconstructed virus and host bacterial and archaeal genome sequences from community genomic data from two natural acidophilic biofilms. Viruses were matched to their hosts by analyzing spacer sequences that occur among clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPRs) that are a hallmark of virus resistance. Virus population genomic analyses provided evidence that extensive recombination shuffles sequence motifs sufficiently to evade CRISPR spacers. Only the most recently acquired spacers match coexisting viruses, which suggests that community stability is achieved by rapid but compensatory shifts in host resistance levels and virus population structure.
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| 10. |
- Rosling, A., et al.
(författare)
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Phosphorous availability influences the dissolution of apatite by soil fungi
- 2007
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Ingår i: Geobiology. - : Wiley. - 1472-4677 .- 1472-4669. ; 5:3, s. 265-280
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Apatite (Ca-10(PO4)(6)(OH,F,Cl)(2)) is the primary inorganic source of phosphorus in the biosphere. Soil fungi are known to increase plant-available phosphorus by promoting dissolution of various phosphate minerals. Yet no apatite dissolution studies exist using fungi as weathering agents, and regulation of fungal weathering activity in response to different levels of phosphorus availability is largely unknown. Fungi were isolated from a grassland soil in northern California. Three pathways of tri-calcium phosphate (Ca-3(PO4)(2)) (TCP) dissolution in liquid culture were identified among biogeochemically active fungi: (1) acidification (pH 3.3 +/- 0.16), (2) moderate acidification (pH 4.9 +/- 0.11) and (3) no acidification. Isolates representing pathway 1 and 2 were Zygomycetes in the order of Mucorales. All non-acidifying isolates in pathway 3 were Ascomycetes and cleared the media by altering TCP into hydroxyapatite (Ca-10(PO4)(6)(OH)(2)) and sequestering it within mycelial spheres. One isolate representing each pathway was used in fluorapatite dissolution experiments either with the fungi present or under abiotic conditions using cell-free liquid media conditioned by fungal growth at different phosphorus and calcium availabilities. Both Mucorales isolates acidify their substrate when growing in the presence of phosphorus. Mucorales exudates were mainly oxalic acid, and conditioned cell-free media with phosphorus induced fluorapatite dissolution at a rate of 10(-0.9 +/- 0.14) and 10(-1.2 +/- 0.22) mu mol P m(-2) s(-1). The ascomycete isolate on the other hand, induced fluorapatite dissolution at a rate of 10(-1.1 +/- 0.05) mu mol P m(-2) s(-1) by lowering the pH of the media under phosphorus-limited conditions, without producing significant amounts of low molecular weight organic acids (LMWOAs). Oxalate strongly etches fluorapatite along channels parallel to [001], forming needle-like features, while exudates from the ascomycete-induced surface rounding. We conclude that while LMWOAs are well-studied weathering agents, these do not appear to be produced by fungi in response to phosphorus-limiting growth conditions.
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