Microbiome digest, July 24

Introducing the crAssphage, an 84 bp BLAST from the past, archaea in the Savannah, metabolomics of racehorse microbiome, and X-raying headphones.

Human oral microbiome

Proceedings RoyalMolecular analysis of ancient caries – Marc Simón – Proceedings of the Royal Society, Biological Sciences

“An 84 base pair sequence of the Streptococcus mutans virulence factor, known as dextranase, has been obtained from 10 individuals from the Bronze Age to the Modern Era in Europe and from before and after the colonization in America. “

Human gut microbiome

Nature CommunicationsA highly abundant bacteriophage discovered in the unknown sequences of human faecal metagenomes – Bas E. Dutilh – Nature Communications

“Here we describe the discovery of a previously unidentified bacteriophage present in the majority of published human faecal metagenomes, which we refer to as crAssphage.”

Gut family SchlossThe dynamics of a family’s gut microbiota reveal variations on a theme – Patrick D Schloss – Microbiome

“Using 16S rRNA gene and metagenomic shotgun sequence data, it was possible to distinguish the family from a cohort of normal individuals living in the same geographic region and to differentiate each family member”

Pregnancy and Birth

Screen Shot 2014-07-24 at 05.53PM, Jul 24An unnecessary cut? – Sky Dylan-Robbins – The New Yorker

“The most common operating-room procedure in the United States is the Cesarean section. “

Animal microbiome

Equine Vet JournalCharacterisation of the faecal metabolome and microbiome of Thoroughbred racehorses – C. J. Proudman – Equine Veterinary Journal

“Faecal metabolome was characterised using thermal desorption-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (TD-GC-MS), with spectral analysis performed using AMDIS and compared against the NIST database. Taxonomic description of the faecal microbiota was achieved using error-corrected 454 pyrosequencing data from 16S rRNA gene amplicons”

Journal of MicrobiologyPyrosequencing-based analysis of fecal microbial communities in three purebred pig lines – Edward Alain B. Pajarillo – Journal of Microbiology

“Taxon-dependent and -independent analyses were performed to evaluate differences in the fecal bacterial communities and to identify bacterial genera that can be used to discriminate breeds, following high-throughput pyrosequencing of 16S rRNA genes. “

Environmental microbiome

Screen Shot 2014-07-24 at 05.55PM, Jul 24Seasonal Effects in a Lake Sediment Archaeal Community of the Brazilian Savanna – Thiago Rodrigues – Archaea

“Here we describe for the first time the diversity of archaeal communities from freshwater lake sediments of the Cerrado in the dry season and in the transition period between the dry and rainy seasons, when the first rains occur. Gene libraries were constructed, using Archaea-specific primers for the 16S rRNA and amoA genes.”

Screen Shot 2014-07-24 at 05.56PM, Jul 24Spatial patterns and links between microbial community composition and function in cyanobacterial mats – Mohammad A. Al-Najjar – Frontiers in Microbiology

“Similar clustering was found when the community composition of the mats’ cyanobacterial layers were compared by automated ribosomal intergenic spacer analysis, indicating a significant link between the microbial community composition and function. “

MicrobeNetNew Joint Initiative from the Knight and Sogin Labs as a Follow-up to the MoBEDAC Initiative – Embriette Hyde

“By the end of the funded period, standard 16S rRNA and ITS (fungal) analysis pipelines will be developed and made available to the MoBe community, 16S rRNA and ITS databases will be markedly improved, QIIME and VAMPS will be tightly integrated into a new database engine called QiiTA to facilitate analysis by all MoBe researchers, and two major training workshops will be offered. “

Dr. Bik’s PicksDNA

DNA mostly ‘junk?’ Only 8.2 percent of human DNA is ‘functional’, study finds – Science Daily

“This figure is very different from one given in 2012, when some scientists involved in the ENCODE (Encyclopedia of DNA Elements) project stated that 80% of our genome has some biochemical function.”

Screen Shot 2014-07-24 at 05.58PM, Jul 24Sex differences in medicine – BeWell – Stanford University

“A man can be diagnosed with the same disease as a woman, and yet the course the disease takes in each could prove very different. And a treatment which works for one gender may prove ineffective for the other. “

corksIs Climate Change Ruining Wine Corks? – Kelly Dickerson – LiveScience

“Many people may only worry about corks when it’s time to pop the Champagne, but some experts are worried about wine cork quality, which has been mysteriously in decline for almost 20 years.“

Headphone x rayDoc X-Rays His Broken Headphones to Fix Them – Bahar Gholipour – LiveScience

“”Closed fracture of a speaker wire within its rubber/plastic sleeve is a rare headphone injury, usually due to a traction trauma,” Skalski wrote in his report of the case.”

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Non-human microbiome, July 22

Symbionts of tortoises, bees, diatoms, amoebae, and seaweed.

Reptile microbiome

Thesis: Population genetics and microbial communities of the gopher tortoise (Gopherus polyphemus) – Gaillard, Daniel Lyle – University of Sourthern Missisippi]

“Microbial communities did not show a correlation between community dissimilarity and geographic distance nor did they change in response to changes in plant communities at each site.”

Insect microbiome

Genomics and host specialization of honey bee and bumble bee gut symbionts – Waldan K. Kwong – PNAS

“We show that the simple microbiota of eusocial bees exhibits host specificity and that coresident species in the bee gut possess complementary capabilities for energy metabolism, implying their occupancy in distinct ecological niches.”

Diatom microbiome

Complete genome of a nonphotosynthetic cyanobacterium in a diatom reveals recent adaptations to an intracellular lifestyle – Takuro Nakayama – PNAS

“Here we present what is, to our knowledge, the first completely sequenced spheroid body genome from a rhopalodiacean diatom. Comparative analyses revealed that the endosymbiont is metabolically reduced, confirming its status as an obligate endosymbiont. “

Amoeba microbiome

Life in an unusual intracellular niche: a bacterial symbiont infecting the nucleus of amoebae – Frederik Schulz – ISME Journal

“This symbiont, tentatively named ‘Candidatus Nucleicultrix amoebiphila’, is only moderately related to known bacteria (~90% 16S and 23S rRNA sequence similarity) and member of a novel clade of protist symbionts affiliated with the Rickettsiales and Rhodospirillales. “

Seaweed microbiota

Identification and Characterization of a Halotolerant, Cold-Active Marine Endo-β-1,4-Glucanase by Using Functional Metagenomics of Seaweed-Associated Microbiota
Marjolaine Martin – Applied and Environmental Microbiology

“A metagenomic library was constructed from microorganisms associated with the brown alga Ascophyllum nodosum. Functional screening of this library revealed 13 novel putative esterase loci and two glycoside hydrolase loci.”

Aquatic microbiology

Metaproteomics reveals differential modes of metabolic coupling among ubiquitous oxygen minimum zone microbes – Alyse K. Hawley – PNAS

“Here we use metagenomic and metaproteomic methods to chart in situ metabolic networks linking key microbial players driving carbon and nutrient cycling in a seasonally stratified fjord, Saanich Inlet, a model ecosystem for studying microbial responses to changing levels of water column oxygen deficiency.”

EVENT: An Evening with the World’s Leading Marine Microbiologists – A Creative Collisions Initiative – Wednesday July 30, 2014 – Tech Museum San Jose, CA

“Mingle with the 16 Investigators of the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation’s Marine Microbiology Initiative”

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Non-human microbiome, July 21

Microbiomes of water fleas, marine zooplankton, soil, rumen, and how a microbiome can help woodrats eat toxic plants.

Rumen microbiome

Development of a phylogenetic microarray for comprehensive analysis of ruminal bacterial communities – M. Kim – Journal of Applied Microbiology

“A total of 1,666 OTU-specific probes were designed and synthesized on microarray slides (referred to as RumenBactArray) in a 6×5k format with each probe being represented in triplicate.”

Rodent microbiome

Gut microbes of mammalian herbivores facilitate intake of plant toxins – Kevin D. Kohl – Ecology Letters

“We investigated the gut microbiota of desert woodrats (Neotoma lepida), some populations of which specialise on highly toxic creosote bush (Larrea tridentata). Here, we demonstrate that gut microbes are crucial in allowing herbivores to consume toxic plants. “

Crustacean microbiome

Water fleas require microbiota for survival, growth and reproduction – Marilou P Sison-Mangus – ISME Journal

“We assessed the effect of microbiota on Daphnia magna by experimentally depriving animals of their microbiota and comparing their growth, survival and fecundity to that of their bacteria-bearing counterparts.”

Soil microbiome

Soil Properties and Spatial Processes Influence Bacterial Metacommunities within a Grassland Restoration Experiment – Cheryl A. Murphy – Restoration Ecology

“We found that soil bacterial communities were not influenced by plant restoration, but rather, by the local heterogeneity of soil environmental properties (16.9% of bacterial community variation) and pure spatial effects (11.1%).”

Environmental drivers of soil microbial community distribution at the Koiliaris Critical Zone Observatory – Myrto Tsiknia – FEMS Microbiology Ecology

“This study investigates the distribution of archaea, bacteria and fungi as well as the dominant bacterial phyla (Acidobacteria, Actinobacteria, Bacteroidetes, Firmicutes), and classes of Proteobacteria (α- and β-Proteobacteria) across the Koiliaris watershed by qPCR and associate them with environmental variables. “

Soil microbial community structure and activity along a montane elevational gradient on the Tibetan Plateau – Meng Xu – European Journal of Soil Biology

“We investigated the microbial community composition and functional patterns along an elevational gradient (3100–4600 m above sea level) on Mount Segrila using phospholipid fatty acids (PLFAs) and community level physiological profiles (CLPP). “

Oil pipeline microbiome

Identification and characterization of microbial biofilm communities associated with corroded oil pipeline surfaces – Tiffany R. Lenhart – The Journal of Bioadhesion and Biofilm Research

“Eubacterial and archaeal 16S rRNA sequences of DNA recovered from extracted pipeline pieces, termed ‘cookies,’ revealed the presence of thermophilic sulfidogenic anaerobes, as well as mesophilic aerobes. “

Plankton microbiome

Zooplankton diversity across three Red Sea reefs using pyrosequencing – John K. Pearman – Frontiers in Marine Science

“The diversity of metazoan plankton was investigated by targeting the 18S rRNA gene and clustering OTUs at 97% sequence similarity. A total of 754 and 854 metazoan OTUs were observed in the data set for the 1380F and 1389F primer sets respectively. “

Food microbiology

Cheese Rind Communities Provide Tractable Systems for In Situ and In Vitro Studies of Microbial Diversity – Benjamin E. Wolfe – Cell

“Sequencing of 137 different rind communities across 10 countries revealed 24 widely distributed and culturable genera of bacteria and fungi as dominant community members. “

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Non-human microbiome, July 17

Microbiomes of sparrows, stinkbugs, corals, grapevine, and archeological stones.

Bird microbiome

Screen Shot 2014-07-17 at 5.14.56 PMGut Bacterial Diversity of the House Sparrow (Passer domesticus) Inferred by 16S rRNA Sequence Analysis – Leticia Mirón – Metagenomics

“This study is the first description of the diversity of bacteria along the whole intestine of a wild bird (Passer domesticus). Pyrosequencing of the 16S rRNA gene unveiled a high bacterial diversity, distributed in 11 bacterial phyla. “

Insect microbiome

StinkybugsSymbiont polyphyly, co-evolution, and necessity in pentatomid stinkbugs from Costa Rica – Kalia S. I. Bistolas – Frontiers in Microbiology

“The gut microbiota of 13 micro-allopatric tropical pentatomid species, from a Costa Rican lowland rainforest, was characterized and compared with insect and host plant phylogenies.”

Coral microbiome

CoralsReview: A genomic approach to coral-dinoflagellate symbiosis: studies of Acropora digitifera and Symbiodinium minutum – Chuya Shinzato – Frontiers in Microbiology

“Here we review recent genomic data derived from the scleractinian coral, Acropora digitifera, and the endosymbiotic dinoflagellate, Symbiodinium minutum. “

Plant microbiome

Screen Shot 2014-07-17 at 5.15.23 PMPyrosequencing detects human and animal pathogenic taxa in the grapevine endosphere – Sohail Yousaf – Frontiers in Microbiology

“We used pyrosequencing and phylogenetic analyses of the 16S rDNA gene. We identified several HAPT, and focused on four genera (Propionibacterium, Staphylococcus, Clostridium, and Burkholderia). “

Built Environment microbiome

Screen Shot 2014-07-17 at 5.15.49 PM 1Biological nanosilver particles for the protection of archaeological stones against microbial colonization – Ashraf M M Essa – International Biodeterioration & Biodegradation

“The stones treated with silicon polymer loaded with AgNPs showed an elevated antimicrobial potentiality against A. niger and S. parvullus.”

Water microbiome

Screen Shot 2014-07-17 at 5.16.30 PM16S rDNA-based analysis reveals cosmopolitan occurrence but limited diversity of two cyanobacterial lineages with contrasted patterns of intracellular carbonate mineralization – Marie Ragon – Frontiers in Microbiology

“To explore the diversity of these two distant cyanobacterial lineages representing two different patterns of intracellular calcification, we designed specific primers against their 16S rRNA genes and looked for their occurrence in a wide variety of samples. “

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Human (and fish) microbiome, July 16

Oral microbiome in children with leukemia, and effects of antibiotics on fish microbiota.

Human oral microbiome

Oral Microbiota Distinguishes Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia Pediatric Hosts from Healthy Populations – Yan Wang – PLOS ONE

“The oral microbiota of leukemia patients had lower richness and less diversity compared to healthy controls.”

Human gut microbiome

Editorial: New bacteria associated with diarrhoea – Cláudio Nunes-Alves – Nature Reviews Microbiology

Pop et al. used high throughput 16S rRNA sequencing to compare the faecal microbiota composition in 992 children from Gambia, Mali, Kenya and Bangladesh”

Pregnancy and birth

Yes, this one is not really microbiome-related, but it touched my heart:

Screen Shot 2014-07-16 at 11.49.15 PMStrangers help with photo in midst of tragedy – Dorrine Mendoza, CNN

“”My daughter recently passed away after a long battle in the children’s hospital. She was in the hospital her whole life and we were never able to get a photo without all her tubes. Can someone remove the tubes?””

Fish microbiome

Effects of antibiotic on the bacterial microflora in two commercially
important catfish species, Clarias batrachus and Heteropneustes fossilis in
Bangladesh – Md. Shahdat Hossain – Journal of Coastal Life Medicine

“During the experiment, bacterial loads were estimated as colony forming unit (CFU/g) by every alternate day in the aquarium water, gills, skin and intestine of fish.”

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Non-human microbiome, July 2014

Kittens! And squid, sponges, acid mine drainage in someone’s backyard, soils, and sediments.

Cat microbiome

KittensDeep Illumina-Based Shotgun Sequencing Reveals Dietary Effects on the Structure and Function of the Fecal Microbiome of Growing Kittens – Oliver Deusch – PLOS ONE

“The present study… applied deep Illumina shotgun sequencing to identify the diet-associated functional potential and analyze taxonomic changes of the feline fecal microbiome.”

Squid microbiome

Squid albaGene-Swapping Mediates Host Specificity among Symbiotic Bacteria in a Beneficial Symbiosis – Alba A. Chavez-Dozal – PLOS ONE

“Our results demonstrate that multiple bacterial genetic elements can determine V. fischeri strain specificity between two closely related squid hosts, indicating how important genetic variation is for regulating conspecific beneficial interactions that are acquired from the environment.”

Sponge microbiome 

Review: Diversity and biotechnological potential of microorganisms associated with marine sponges – Fuerst JA – Applied Microbiol Biotechnol (Direct link not working)

“Here, we review recent progress in our understanding of this genetic diversity, its retrieval via culture and genomic approaches, and its implications for chemical diversity and other biotechnology applications of sponge microorganisms and their genes.”

Soils and sediments

StroudMetal(loid) bioaccessibility dictates microbial community composition in acid sulfate soil horizons and sulfidic drain sediments – Jackie Stroud – Environmental Science & Technology

“Microbial community compositions were determined for three soil horizons and drain sediments within an anthropogenically-disturbed coastal acid sulfate landscape using 16S rRNA gene tagged 454 pyrosequencing.”

Screen shot 2014-07-14 at 12.34PM, Jul 14Geochemical and microbiological response to oxidant introduction into reduced subsurface sediment from the Hanford 300 Area, WA – Elizabeth M Percak-Dennett and Eric E. Roden – Environmental Science & Technology

“Together these results indicate the potential for heterotrophic carbon metabolism in the reduced sediments, consistent with the proliferation of known heterotrophic taxa (e.g. Pseudomonadaceae, Burkholderiaceae, Clostridiaceae) inferred from 16S rRNA gene pyrosequencing.”

Brantner AMDResponse of Soil-Associated Microbial Communities to Intrusion of Coal Mine-Derived Acid Mine Drainage – Justin S. Brantner and John M. Senko – Environmental Science & Technology

“Evaluation of pyrosequencing-derived 16S rRNA gene sequences recovered from incubations revealed the development of microbial community characteristics that were similar to those of the mature iron mound sediment.”

Screen shot 2014-07-14 at 12.36PM, Jul 14New carbohydrate-active enzymes identified by screening two metagenomic libraries derived from the soil of a winter wheat field – A. Stroobants – Journal of Applied Microbiology

“The aim of this work was to discover new β-glucosidases by constructing two metagenomic DNA libraries from soil samples collected in winter and spring from a field of winter wheat.”

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Non-human microbiome, July 9

Amphibians and fungi, microbes in the interface of plants and soil, and methane production by starving SAR11.

Amphibian microbiome

Screen Shot 2014-07-09 at 10.11.22 PMAmphibians acquire resistance to live and dead fungus overcoming fungal immunosuppression – Taegan A. McMahon – Nature

“Here we demonstrate that three species of amphibians can acquire behavioural or immunological resistance to B. dendrobatidis. “

Plant and soil microbiome

Screen Shot 2014-07-09 at 10.11.40 PMRoot exudates mediated interactions belowground – Feth el Zahar Haichar – Soil Biology and Biochemistry

“The root exudates may have a direct impact on carbon and nitrogen cycling, as they exhibit a rhizosphere priming effect towards soil organic matter degraders, and may inhibit nitrification process by soil nitrifying microorganisms. “

Water microbiology

Methane productions SAR11Methane production by phosphate-starved SAR11 chemoheterotrophic marine bacteria – Paul Carini – Nature Communications

“Here we show that Pelagibacterales sp. strain HTCC7211, an isolate of the SAR11 clade of marine α-proteobacteria, produces methane from MPn, stoichiometric to phosphorus consumption, when starved for phosphate. “

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Non-human microbiome

Microbiomes of frogs, kakapo birds, and very hot water springs. And a special on Ed DeLong.

Cow microbiome

RumenRumen Cellulosomics: Divergent Fiber-Degrading Strategies Revealed by Comparative Genome-Wide Analysis of Six Ruminococcal Strains – Bareket Dassa – PLOS ONE

“Here, we have used a bioinformatics-based approach to explore the cellulosome-related components of six genomes from two of the primary fiber-degrading bacteria in the rumen”

Reptile microbiome

Occurrence, Diversity, and Host Association of Intestinal Campylobacter, Arcobacter, and Helicobacter in Reptiles – Maarten J. Gilbert – PLOS ONE

“Based on PCR, Campylobacter, Arcobacter, and Helicobacter were detected in 69.3% of the reptiles; 82.5% of the chelonians, 63.8% of the lizards, and 58.0% of the snakes were positive for one or more of these genera.”

Amphibian microbiome

Frog taggingTagging Frogs with Passive Integrated Transponders Causes Disruption of the Cutaneous Bacterial Community and Proliferation of Opportunistic Fungi – Rachael E. Antwis – Applied and Environmental Microbiology

“We find that PIT tagging causes a major disruption to the bacterial community associated with the skin of frogs (∼12-fold increase in abundance), as well as a concurrent proliferation in resident fungi (up to ∼200-fold increase).”

Bird microbiome

Influence of Hand Rearing and Bird Age on the Fecal Microbiota of the Critically Endangered Kakapo – David W. Waite – Applied and Environmental Microbiology

“Amplicon pyrosequencing revealed a juvenile fecal microbiota enriched with particular lactic acid bacteria compared to the microbiota of adults, although the overall community structure did not differ significantly among kakapos of different ages. “

Multilocus Sequence Typing Confirms Wild Birds as the Source of a Campylobacter Outbreak Associated with the Consumption of Raw Peas – Patrick S. L. Kwan – Applied and Environmental Microbiology

“Novel STs clustered closely with isolates typically associated with wild birds and the environment but distinct from lineages commonly seen in human infections. “

 

Sponge microbiome

SpongeIn Situ Natural Product Discovery via an Artificial Marine Sponge – James J. La Clair – PLOS ONE

“Retrieving this artificial sponge from a tropical ecosystem after deployment for 320 hours afforded three actin–targeting jasplakinolide depsipeptides that had been discovered two decades earlier using traditional sponge specimen collection and isolation procedures.”

 

Water microbiology

Profile of Edward DeLong – Paul Gabrielsen – PNAS

“DeLong has learned that studying a reservoir of life as large and diverse as the ocean can lead to unexpected discoveries. “We’re continually being surprised,” he says.”

Handling Temperature Bursts Reaching 464°C: Different Microbial Strategies in the Sisters Peak Hydrothermal Chimney – Mirjam Perner – Applied and Environmental Microbiology

“The SP metagenome reveals considerable differences in the taxonomic composition from those of other hydrothermal vent and subsurface samples; these could be better explained by temperature than by other available abiotic parameters. “

Methanotrophic bacteria in warm geothermal spring sediments identified using stable isotope probing – Christine E. Sharp – FEMS Microbiology Ecology

“Quantitative (q)PCR of pmoA genes identified the position of the heavy (13C-labelled) DNA fractions in density gradients, and 16S rRNA gene pyrotag sequencing of the heavy fractions was performed to identify the active methanotrophs.”

Bacterial and archaeal communities in long-term contaminated surface and subsurface soil evaluated through co-extracted RNA and DNA – Anu Mikkonen – FEMS Microbiology Ecology

“Soil RNA and DNA were co-extracted along a contamination gradient at a landfarming field with aged crude oil contamination to investigate pollution-dependent differences in 16S rRNA and rRNA gene pools”

rpoD Gene Pyrosequencing for the Assessment of Pseudomonas Diversity in a Water Sample from the Woluwe River – David Sánchez – Applied and Environmental Microbiology

“Culture-independent methods consisted of cloning and pyrosequencing of a Pseudomonas rpoD amplicon from total DNA extracted from the same sample and amplified with selective rpoD gene primers. “

Influence of DNA Extraction Method, 16S rRNA Targeted Hypervariable Regions, and Sample Origin on Microbial Diversity Detected by 454 Pyrosequencing in Marine Chemosynthetic Ecosystems – Perrine Cruaud – Applied and Environmental Microbiology

“Thanks to statistical and diversity analyses as well as inference of operational taxonomic unit (OTU) networks, we show that (i) while DNA extraction methods do not seem to affect the results for some samples, they can lead to dramatic changes for others; and (ii) the choice of amplification and sequencing primers also considerably affects the microbial community detected in the samples.”

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Non-human microbiome, July 7

Microbiomes of buffalo’s, chickens on melatonin, and acid mine drainages.

Buffalo microbiome

Insights into resistome and stress responses genes in Bubalus bubalis rumen through metagenomic analysis – Bhaskar Reddy – Molecular Biology Reports

“We analyzed the metagenomes of buffalo rumen in the liquid and solid phase of the rumen biomaterial from river buffalo adapted to varying proportion of concentrate to green or dry roughages, using high-throughput sequencing to know the occurrence of antibiotics resistance genes, genetic exchange between bacterial population and environmental reservoirs.”

Chicken microbiome

Exogenous melatonin improves growth performance, intestinal microbiota, and morphology in temporarily feed restricted broilers – A. Akbarian – Livestock Science

“An increment in ileal Lactobacillus counts was found in MFR group compared to CON (P<0.05). No significant differences were noticed in microbial counts of cecum among treatments.”

Insect microbiome

Homeostasis between gut-associated microorganisms and the immune system in Drosophila – Hyejin You – Current Opinion in Immunology

“A deeper understanding of the role of uracil in Drosophila immunity will provide additional insight into the molecular mechanisms underlying host–microbe symbiosis and dysbiosis.”

Water and other microbiology

Inter-species interconnections in acid mine drainage microbial communities
Luis R. Comolli and Jillian F. Banfield – Frontiers in Microbiology

“Here, we present cryogenic transmission electron microscope (cryo-TEM) 2D images and 3D tomographic datasets for archaeal species from natural acid mine drainage (AMD) microbial communities. “

Biogeochemical activity of microbial biofilms in the water column overlying uranium mine tailings – V.F. Bondici – Journal of Applied Microbiology

“To describe microbial diversity, biofilm composition and biogeochemical potential within biofilms in the water overlying uranium tailings characterized by high pH, high metal concentration and low permeability.”

Rapid succession of uncultured marine bacterial and archaeal populations in a denitrifying continuous culture – Beate Kraft – Environmental Microbiology

“In this study, a heterotrophic denitrifying community from sediments of a marine intertidal flat active in nitrogen cycling was selected in a chemostat and monitored over a period of 50 days.”

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Non-human microbiome digest, July 3

Parasites, effect of antibiotics in pigs, microbiome of birds, Drosophila, microbiome of plant crops, Hawai’i waters, and bacteria to preserve stone monuments.

Parasites and microbiome

Cooperation and conflict in host manipulation: interactions among macro-parasites and micro-organisms – Frank Cézilly – Frontiers in Microbiology

“Here, we review the empirical evidence in favor of the existence of synergistic or antagonistic interactions between co-occurring parasites, and highlight the neglected role of micro-organisms. “

holobiontHolobiont–Holobiont Interactions: Redefining Host–Parasite Interactions – Nolwenn Marie Dheilly – PLOS Pathogens

“It has been established in different model species that immune system maturation requires the presence of mutualistic bacteria”

Marine mammal microbiome

Screen shot 2014-07-03 at 04.24PM, Jul 03Intestinal helminth fauna of striped dolphins (Stenella coeruleoalba) in the western Mediterranean: No effects of host body length, age and sex – Paula Mateu – Marine Mammal Science

“The intestine of 52 (28 males and 24 females) striped dolphins (Stenella coeruleoalba) from western Mediterranean waters was examined for helminths. Animals were found stranded along the Spanish coasts during the morbillivirus epizootic in 1990.”

Pig microbiome

Screen shot 2014-07-03 at 03.17PM, Jul 03Carbadox has both temporary and lasting effects on the swine gut microbiota – Torey Looft – Frontiers in Microbiology

“Carbadox is an in-feed antibiotic that is widely used in swine production to prevent dysentery and to improve feed efficiency. The goal of this study was to characterize the effects of carbadox and its withdrawal on the swine gut microbiota. ”

Screen shot 2014-07-03 at 03.18PM, Jul 03Learning from agriculture: understanding low-dose antimicrobials as drivers of resistome expansion – Yaqi You – Frontiers in Microbiology

“Unconfined storage or land deposition of a large volume of animal waste causes its wide contact with the environment and drives the expansion of the environmental resistome through mobilome facilitated horizontal genet (sic, EB) transfer. “

Bird microbiome

Screen shot 2014-07-03 at 03.18PM, Jul 03Interspecific variations in the faecal microbiota of Procellariiform seabirds – Meagan L. Dewar – FEMS Microbiology Ecology

“Examining the faecal microbiota of three Procellariiform species (short-tailed shearwater, common diving petrel and fairy prion) provided a unique opportunity to not only characterise the gastrointestinal (GI) microbial composition of seabirds but to also examine the influence of stomach oils on the microbial community.”

Insect microbiome

Drosophila modelTransient adult microbiota, gut homeostasis and longevity: Novel insights from the Drosophila model – Berra Erkosar, Francois Leulier – FEBS Letters

“In the last decade, Drosophila has emerged as a useful model to study host–microbiota interactions, creating an active research field with prolific publications.”

Plant microbiome

Screen shot 2014-07-03 at 03.21PM, Jul 03Building the crops of tomorrow: advantages of symbiont-based approaches to improving abiotic stress tolerance – Devin Coleman-Derr – Frontiers in Microbiology

“In recent years, studies have attempted to identify microbial symbionts capable of conferring the same stress-tolerance to their plant hosts, and new developments in genomic technologies have greatly facilitated such research. “

Screen shot 2014-07-03 at 03.21PM, Jul 03Convergence in mycorrhizal fungal communities due to drought, plant competition, parasitism, and susceptibility to herbivory: consequences for fungi and host plants – Catherine A. Gehring – Frontiers in Microbiology

“We found that drought and all three of the biotic interactions studied resulted in similar shifts in ectomycorrhizal fungal community composition, demonstrating a convergence of the community towards dominance by a few closely related fungal taxa.”

Screen shot 2014-07-03 at 03.22PM, Jul 03Nitrogen-fixing Rhizobium-legume symbiosis: are polyploidy and host peptide-governed symbiont differentiation general principles of endosymbiosis? – Gergely Maróti- Frontiers in Microbiology

“This review focuses on symbiotic plant cell development and terminal bacteroid differentiation and demonstrates the crucial roles of symbiotic peptides”

Screen shot 2014-07-03 at 03.22PM, Jul 03Disparate origins of Bradyrhizobium symbionts for invasive populations of Cytisus scoparius (Leguminosae) in North America – Kevin Horn – FEMS Microbiology Ecology

“To identify the geographic origin of nodule bacteria associated with invasion of the European legume Cytisus scoparius in the United States, isolates from 15 sites in six states were compared to > 200 Bradyrhizobium strains from indigenous legumes in the U.S., Mexico, Europe (six countries), Morocco, and Australia. “

Food microbiology

Screen shot 2014-07-03 at 03.24PM, Jul 03Weissella confusa: problems with identification of an opportunistic pathogen that has been found in fermented foods and proposed as a probiotic – Marilynn R. Fairfax – Frontiers in Microbiology

“Weissella confusa is found in fermented foods and has been suggested as a probiotic, but also causes sepsis and other serious infections in humans and animals.”

Stone microbiology

Screen shot 2014-07-03 at 03.24PM, Jul 03 1Application of calcifying bacteria for remediation of stones and cultural heritages – Navdeep Kaur Dhami – Frontiers in Microbiology

“The present review emphasizes about different causative agents leading to deterioration and application of microbially induced calcium carbonate precipitation as a novel and potential technology for dealing with these problems. “

Soil microbiology

Screen shot 2014-07-03 at 03.25PM, Jul 03Volatile-mediated interactions between phylogenetically different soil bacteria
Paolina Garbeva – Frontiers in Microbiology

“Here we report that volatile compounds emitted by different soil bacteria can affect the growth, antibiotic production and gene expression of the soil bacterium Pseudomonas fluorescens Pf0–1. “

Screen shot 2014-07-03 at 03.27PM, Jul 03Land-use influences the distribution and activity of high affinity CO-oxidizing bacteria associated to type I-coxL genotype in soil – Liliana Quiza – Frontiers in Microbiology

“The main objective of this study was to assess the impact of land-use and soil properties on coxL gene diversity and identify molecular indicators for the soil uptake of atmospheric CO.”

Screen shot 2014-07-03 at 03.26PM, Jul 03Abundance and community structure of ammonia-oxidizing Archaea and Bacteria in response to fertilization and mowing in a temperate steppe in Inner Mongolia
Yong-Liang Chen – FEMS Microbiology Ecology

“… we investigated the effects of nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) fertilization and mowing on the abundance and community compositions of ammonia-oxidizing Bacteria (AOB) and Archaea (AOA) upon early (May) and peak (August) plant growth using quantitative PCR (qPCR), terminal-restriction fragment length polymorphism (T-RFLP), cloning and sequencing. “

Water microbiology

Screen shot 2014-07-03 at 03.27PM, Jul 03Biogeography of planktonic and benthic cyanobacteria in coastal waters of the Big Island, Hawai’i – Samuel D. Chamberlain – FEMS Microbiology Ecology

“To understand the patterns of cyanobacterial biogeography in relation to coastal environmental factors, we examined the diversity of planktonic and benthic cyanobacteria at 12 sites along the west coast of Hawaii’s Big Island.”

Screen shot 2014-07-03 at 03.29PM, Jul 03Rhizosphere heterogeneity shapes abundance and activity of sulfur-oxidizing bacteria in vegetated salt marsh sediments – François Thomas – Frontiers in Microbiology

“We combined next-generation amplicon sequencing of 16S rDNA and rRNA libraries with phylogenetic analyses of marker genes for two S-oxidation pathways (soxB and rdsrAB). Gene and transcript numbers of soxB and rdsrAB phylotypes were quantified simultaneously, using newly designed (RT)-qPCR assays.”

Screen shot 2014-07-03 at 03.28PM, Jul 03Neotropical Andes hot springs harbor diverse and distinct planktonic microbial communities – Luisa Delgado-Serrano – FEMS Microbiology Ecology

“In this study, we describe and compare the planktonic microbial communities present in five high-mountain hot springs with distinct geochemical characteristics, at varying altitudes and geographical locations in the Colombian Andes. “

Screen shot 2014-07-03 at 03.29PM, Jul 03Occurrence and activity of anammox bacteria in surface sediments of the southern North Sea – Nicole J. Bale – FEMS Microbiology Ecology

“The presence of anammox bacteria was established through the detection of specific phosphocholine-monoether ladderane lipids, 16S rRNA gene, and hydrazine synthase (hzsA) genes. “

Screen shot 2014-07-03 at 03.29PM, Jul 03 1Bacterial community structure and dissolved organic matter in repeatedly flooded subsurface karst water pools – Tanja Shabarova – FEMS Microbiology Ecology

“Bacterial diversity, community assembly, and the composition of the dissolved organic matter (DOM) were studied in three temporary subsurface karst pools with different flooding regimes.”

Screen shot 2014-07-03 at 03.30PM, Jul 03Abundance, diversity and seasonal dynamics of predatory bacteria in aquaculture zero discharge systems – Prem P. Kandel – FEMS Microbiology Ecology

“The dynamics of populations belonging to the obligate predators Bdellovibrio and like organisms (BALOs) were analyzed in freshwater and saline ZDS over a 7-month period using QPCR targeting the Bdellovibrionaceae, and the Bacteriovorax and Bacteriolyticum genera in the Bacteriovoracaeae”

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