| 1. |
- Alneberg, Johannes, et al.
(författare)
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Genomes from uncultivated prokaryotes : a comparison of metagenome-assembled and single-amplified genomes
- 2018
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Ingår i: Microbiome. - : BioMed Central. - 2049-2618. ; 6
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: Prokaryotes dominate the biosphere and regulate biogeochemical processes essential to all life. Yet, our knowledge about their biology is for the most part limited to the minority that has been successfully cultured. Molecular techniques now allow for obtaining genome sequences of uncultivated prokaryotic taxa, facilitating in-depth analyses that may ultimately improve our understanding of these key organisms. Results: We compared results from two culture-independent strategies for recovering bacterial genomes: single-amplified genomes and metagenome-assembled genomes. Single-amplified genomes were obtained from samples collected at an offshore station in the Baltic Sea Proper and compared to previously obtained metagenome-assembled genomes from a time series at the same station. Among 16 single-amplified genomes analyzed, seven were found to match metagenome-assembled genomes, affiliated with a diverse set of taxa. Notably, genome pairs between the two approaches were nearly identical (average 99.51% sequence identity; range 98.77-99.84%) across overlapping regions (30-80% of each genome). Within matching pairs, the single-amplified genomes were consistently smaller and less complete, whereas the genetic functional profiles were maintained. For the metagenome-assembled genomes, only on average 3.6% of the bases were estimated to be missing from the genomes due to wrongly binned contigs. Conclusions: The strong agreement between the single-amplified and metagenome-assembled genomes emphasizes that both methods generate accurate genome information from uncultivated bacteria. Importantly, this implies that the research questions and the available resources are allowed to determine the selection of genomics approach for microbiome studies.
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| 2. |
- Baker, Brett J., et al.
(författare)
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Genomic inference of the metabolism of cosmopolitan subsurface Archaea, Hadesarchaea
- 2016
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Ingår i: Nature Microbiology. - 2058-5276. ; 1:3
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The subsurface biosphere is largely unexplored and contains a broad diversity of uncultured microbes(1). Despite being one of the few prokaryotic lineages that is cosmopolitan in both the terrestrial and marine subsurface(2-4), the physiological and ecological roles of SAGMEG (South-African Gold Mine Miscellaneous Euryarchaeal Group) Archaea are unknown. Here, we report the metabolic capabilities of this enigmatic group as inferred from genomic reconstructions. Four high-quality (63-90% complete) genomes were obtained from White Oak River estuary and Yellowstone National Park hot spring sediment metagenomes. Phylogenomic analyses place SAGMEG Archaea as a deeply rooting sister clade of the Thermococci, leading us to propose the name Hadesarchaea for this new Archaeal class. With an estimated genome size of around 1.5 Mbp, the genomes of Hadesarchaea are distinctly streamlined, yet metabolically versatile. They share several physiological mechanisms with strict anaerobic Euryarchaeota. Several metabolic characteristics make them successful in the subsurface, including genes involved in CO and H-2 oxidation (or H-2 production), with potential coupling to nitrite reduction to ammonia (DNRA). This first glimpse into the metabolic capabilities of these cosmopolitan Archaea suggests they are mediating key geochemical processes and are specialized for survival in the subsurface biosphere.
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| 3. |
- Beier, Sara, et al.
(författare)
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Pronounced seasonal dynamics of freshwater chitinase genes and chitin processing
- 2012
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Ingår i: Environmental Microbiology. - : Wiley. - 1462-2912 .- 1462-2920. ; 14:9, s. 2467-2479
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Seasonal variation in activity of enzymes involved in polymer degradation, including chitinases, has been observed previously in freshwater environments. However, it is not known whether the seasonal dynamics are due to shifts in the activity of bacteria already present, or shifts in community structure towards emergence or disappearance of chitinolytic organisms. We traced seasonal shifts in the chitinase gene assemblage in a temperate lake and linked these communities to variation in chitinase activity. Chitinase genes from 20 samples collected over a full yearly cycle were characterized by pyrosequencing. Pronounced temporal shifts in composition of the chitinase gene pool (beta diversity) occurred along with distinct shifts in richness (alpha diversity) as well as chitin processing. Changes in the chitinase gene pool correlated mainly with temperature, abundance of crustacean zooplankton and phytoplankton blooms. Also changes in the physical structure of the lake, e.g. stratification and mixing were associated with changes in the chitinolytic community, while differences were minor between surface and suboxic hypolimnetic water. The lake characteristics influencing the chitinolytic community are all linked to changes in organic particles and we suggest that seasonal changes in particle quality and availability foster microbial communities adapted to efficiently degrade them.
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| 4. |
- Bernander, Rolf, et al.
(författare)
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An archaeal origin for the actin cytoskeleton : implications for eukaryogenesis
- 2011
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Ingår i: Communicative & Integrative Biology. - : Landes Bioscience. - 1942-0889. ; 4:6, s. 664-667
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- A hallmark of the eukaryotic cell is the actin cytoskeleton, involved in a wide array of processes ranging from shape determination and phagocytosis to intracellular transport and cytokinesis. Recently, we reported the discovery of an actin-based cytoskeleton also in Archaea. The archaeal actin ortholog, Crenactin, was shown to belong to a conserved operon, Arcade (actin-related cytoskeleton in Archaea involved in shape determination), encoding an additional set of cytoskeleton-associated proteins. Here, we elaborate on the implications of these findings for the evolutionary relation between archaea and eukaryotes, with particular focus on the possibility that eukaryotic actin and actin-related proteins have evolved from an ancestral archaeal actin gene. Archaeal actin could thus have played an important role in cellular processes essential for the origin and early evolution of the eukaryotic lineage. Further exploration of uncharacterized archaeal lineages is necessary to find additional missing pieces in the evolutionary trajectory that ultimately gave rise to present-day organisms.
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| 5. |
- Bernander, Rolf, et al.
(författare)
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Comparative and functional analysis of the archaeal cell cycle
- 2010
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Ingår i: Cell Cycle. - : Informa UK Limited. - 1538-4101 .- 1551-4005. ; 9:4, s. 795-806
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The temporal and spatial organization of the chromosome replication, genome segregation and cell division processes is less well understood in species belonging to the Archaea, than in those from the Bacteria and Eukarya domains. Novel insights into the regulation and key components of the Sulfolobus acidocaldarius cell cycle have been obtained through genome-wide analysis of cell cycle-specific gene expression, followed by cloning and characterization of gene products expressed at different cell cycle stages. Here, the results of the transcript profiling are further explored, and potential key players in archaeal cell cycle progression are highlighted in an evolutionary context, by comparing gene expression patterns and gene conservation between three selected microbial species from different domains of life. We draw attention to novel putative nucleases and helicases implicated in DNA replication, recombination and repair, as well as to potential genome segregation factors. Focus is also placed upon regulatory features, including transcription factors and protein kinases inferred to be involved in the execution of specific cell cycle stages, and regulation through metabolic coupling is discussed.
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| 6. |
- Bernander, Rolf, et al.
(författare)
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FtsZ-less cell division in archaea and bacteria
- 2010
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Ingår i: Current Opinion in Microbiology. - : Elsevier BV. - 1369-5274 .- 1879-0364. ; 13:6, s. 747-752
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- A dedicated cell division machinery is needed for efficient proliferation of an organism. The eukaryotic actin-myosin based mechanism and the bacterial FtsZ-dependent machinery have both been characterized in detail, and a third division mechanism, the Cdv system, was recently discovered in archaea from the Crenarchaeota phylum. Despite these findings, division mechanisms remain to be identified in, for example, organisms belonging to the bacterial PVC superphylum, bacteria with extremely reduced genomes, wall-less archaea and bacteria, and in archaea that carry out the division process without cell constriction. Cytokinesis mechanisms in these clades and individual taxa are likely to include adaptation of host functions to division of bacterial symbionts, transfer of bacterial division genes into the host genome, vesicle formation without a dedicated constriction machinery, cross-wall formation without invagination, as well as entirely novel division mechanisms.
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| 7. |
- Blombach, Fabian, et al.
(författare)
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Archaeal MBF1 binds to 30S and 70S ribosomes via its helix-turn-helix domain
- 2014
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Ingår i: Biochemical Journal. - 0264-6021 .- 1470-8728. ; 462, s. 373-384
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- MBF1 (multi-protein bridging factor 1) is a protein containing a conserved HTH (helix-turn-helix) domain in both eukaryotes and archaea. Eukaryotic MBF1 has been reported to function as a transcriptional co-activator that physically bridges transcription regulators with the core transcription initiation machinery of RNA polymerase II. In addition, MBF1 has been found to be associated with polyadenylated mRNA in yeast as well as in mammalian cells. aMBF1 (archaeal MBF1) is very well conserved among most archaeal lineages; however, its function has so far remained elusive. To address this, we have conducted a molecular characterization of this aMBF1. Affinity purification of interacting proteins indicates that aMBF1 binds to ribosomal subunits. On sucrose density gradients, aMBF1 co-fractionates with free 30S ribosomal subunits as well as with 70S ribosomes engaged in translation. Binding of aMBF1 to ribosomes does not inhibit translation. Using NMR spectroscopy, we show that aMBF1 contains a long intrinsically disordered linker connecting the predicted N-terminal zinc-ribbon domain with the C-terminal HTH domain. The HTH domain, which is conserved in all archaeal and eukaryotic MBF1 homologues, is directly involved in the association of aMBF1 with ribosomes. The disordered linker of the ribosome-bound aMBF1 provides the N-terminal domain with high flexibility in the aMBF1 ribosome complex. Overall, our findings suggest a role for aMBF1 in the archaeal translation process.
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| 8. |
- 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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| 9. |
- Brindefalk, Björn, et al.
(författare)
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A Phylometagenomic Exploration of Oceanic Alphaproteobacteria Reveals Mitochondrial Relatives Unrelated to the SAR11 Clade
- 2011
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Ingår i: PLOS ONE. - : Public Library of Science (PLoS). - 1932-6203. ; 6:9, s. e24457-
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: According to the endosymbiont hypothesis, the mitochondrial system for aerobic respiration was derived from an ancestral Alphaproteobacterium. Phylogenetic studies indicate that the mitochondrial ancestor is most closely related to the Rickettsiales. Recently, it was suggested that Candidatus Pelagibacter ubique, a member of the SAR11 clade that is highly abundant in the oceans, is a sister taxon to the mitochondrial-Rickettsiales clade. The availability of ocean metagenome data substantially increases the sampling of Alphaproteobacteria inhabiting the oxygen-containing waters of the oceans that likely resemble the originating environment of mitochondria. Methodology/Principal Findings: We present a phylogenetic study of the origin of mitochondria that incorporates metagenome data from the Global Ocean Sampling (GOS) expedition. We identify mitochondrially related sequences in the GOS dataset that represent a rare group of Alphaproteobacteria, designated OMAC (Oceanic Mitochondria Affiliated Clade) as the closest free-living relatives to mitochondria in the oceans. In addition, our analyses reject the hypothesis that the mitochondrial system for aerobic respiration is affiliated with that of the SAR11 clade. Conclusions/Significance: Our results allude to the existence of an alphaproteobacterial clade in the oxygen-rich surface waters of the oceans that represents the closest free-living relative to mitochondria identified thus far. In addition, our findings underscore the importance of expanding the taxonomic diversity in phylogenetic analyses beyond that represented by cultivated bacteria to study the origin of mitochondria.
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| 10. |
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