Environmental Microbiology

Summary Members of the bacterial order Rickettsiales are obligatorily associated with a wide range of eukaryotic hosts. Their evolutionary trajectories, in particular concerning the origin of shared or differential traits among distant sub‐lineages, are still poorly understood. Here, we characterized a novel Rickettsiales bacterium associated with the ciliate Paramecium tredecaurelia and phylogenetically related to the Rickettsia genus. Its genome encodes significant lineage‐specific features, chiefly the mevalonate pathway gene repertoire, involved in isoprenoid precursor biosynthesis. Not only this pathway has never been described in Rickettsiales , it also is very rare among bacteria, though typical in eukaryotes, thus likely representing a horizontally acquired trait. The presence of these genes could enable an efficient exploitation of host‐derived intermediates for isoprenoid synthesis. Moreover, we hypothesize the reversed reactions could have replaced canonical pathways for producing acetyl‐CoA, essential for phospholipid biosynthesis. Additionally, we detected phylogenetically unrelated mevalonate pathway genes in metagenome‐derived Rickettsiales sequences, likely indicating evolutionary convergent effects of independent horizontal gene transfer events. Accordingly, convergence, involving both gene acquisitions and losses, is highlighted as a relevant evolutionary phenomenon in Rickettsiales , possibly favoured by plasticity and comparable lifestyles, representing a potentially hidden origin of other more nuanced similarities among sub‐lineages.

Summary Holobiont phenotype results from a combination of host and symbiont genotypes as well as from prevailing environmental conditions that alter the relationships among symbiotic members. Corals exemplify this concept, where shifts in the algal symbiont community can lead to some corals becoming more or less thermally tolerant. Despite linkage between coral bleaching and disease, the roles of symbiotic bacteria in holobiont resistance and susceptibility to disease remains less well understood. This study thus characterizes the microbiome of disease‐resistant and ‐susceptible Acropora cervicornis coral genotypes (hereafter referred to simply as ‘genotypes’) before and after high temperature‐mediated bleaching. We found that the intracellular bacterial parasite ‘ Ca. Aquarickettsia rohweri’ was strikingly abundant in disease‐susceptible genotypes. Disease‐resistant genotypes, however, had notably more diverse and even communities, with correspondingly low abundances of ‘ Ca. Aquarickettsia’ . Bleaching caused a dramatic reduction of ‘ Ca. Aquarickettsia’ within disease‐susceptible corals and led to an increase in bacterial community dispersion, as well as the proliferation of opportunists. Our data support the hypothesis that ‘ Ca. Aquarickettsia’ species increase coral disease risk through two mechanisms: (i) the creation of host nutritional deficiencies leading to a compromised host‐symbiont state and (ii) the opening of niche space for potential pathogens during thermal stress.

Summary Cyanobacteria of the genus Synechococcus are major contributors to global primary productivity and are found in a wide range of aquatic ecosystems. This Synechococcus collective (SC) is metabolically diverse, with some lineages thriving in polar and nutrient‐rich locations and others in tropical or riverine waters. Although many studies have discussed the ecology and evolution of the SC, there is a paucity of knowledge on its taxonomic structure. Thus, we present a new taxonomic classification framework for the SC based on recent advances in microbial genomic taxonomy. Phylogenomic analyses of 1085 cyanobacterial genomes demonstrate that organisms classified as Synechococcus are polyphyletic at the order rank. The SC is classified into 15 genera, which are placed into five distinct orders within the phylum Cyanobacteria: (i) Synechococcales ( Cyanobium , Inmanicoccus , Lacustricoccus gen. Nov., Parasynechococcus , Pseudosynechococcus , Regnicoccus , Synechospongium gen. nov., Synechococcus and Vulcanococcus ); (ii) Cyanobacteriales ( Limnothrix ); (iii) Leptococcales ( Brevicoccus and Leptococcus ); (iv) Thermosynechococcales ( Stenotopis and Thermosynechococcus ) and (v) Neosynechococcales ( Neosynechococcus ). The newly proposed classification is consistent with habitat distribution patterns (seawater, freshwater, brackish and thermal environments) and reflects the ecological and evolutionary relationships of the SC.

Summary Recent advances in sequencing technology and bioinformatic pipelines have allowed unprecedented access to the genomes of yet‐uncultivated microorganisms from diverse environments. However, the catalogue of freshwater genomes remains limited, and most genome recovery attempts in freshwater ecosystems have only targeted specific taxa. Here, we present a genome recovery pipeline incorporating iterative subtractive binning, and apply it to a time series of 100 metagenomic datasets from seven connected lakes and estuaries along the Chattahoochee River (Southeastern USA). Our set of metagenome‐assembled genomes (MAGs) represents >400 yet‐unnamed genomospecies, substantially increasing the number of high‐quality MAGs from freshwater lakes. We propose names for two novel species: ‘ Candidatus Elulimicrobium humile’ (‘ Ca . Elulimicrobiota’, ‘Patescibacteria’) and ‘ Candidatus Aquidulcis frankliniae’ (‘Chloroflexi’). Collectively, our MAGs represented about half of the total microbial community at any sampling point. To evaluate the prevalence of these genomospecies in the chronoseries, we introduce methodologies to estimate relative abundance and habitat preference that control for uneven genome quality and sample representation. We demonstrate high degrees of habitat‐specialization and endemicity for most genomospecies in the Chattahoochee lakes. Wider ecological ranges characterized smaller genomes with higher coding densities, indicating an overall advantage of smaller, more compact genomes for cosmopolitan distributions.

Summary Members of the bacterial candidate phylum WPS‐2 (or Eremiobacterota) are abundant in several dry, bare soil environments. In a bare soil deposited by an extinct iron–sulfur spring, we found that WPS‐2 comprised up to 24% of the bacterial community and up to 10 8 cells per g of soil based on 16S rRNA gene sequencing and quantification. A single genus‐level cluster ( Ca. Rubrimentiphilum) predominated in bare soils but was less abundant in adjacent forest. Nearly complete genomes of Ca. Rubrimentiphilum were recovered as single amplified genomes (SAGs) and metagenome‐assembled genomes (MAGs). Surprisingly, given the abundance of WPS‐2 in bare soils, the genomes did not indicate any capacity for autotrophy, phototrophy, or trace gas metabolism. Instead, they suggest a predominantly aerobic organoheterotrophic lifestyle, perhaps based on scavenging amino acids, nucleotides, and complex oligopeptides, along with lithotrophic capacity on thiosulfate. Network analyses of the entire community showed that some species of Chloroflexi , Actinobacteria , and candidate phylum AD3 (or Dormibacterota) co‐occurred with Ca. Rubrimentiphilum and may represent ecological or metabolic partners. We propose that Ca. Rubrimentiphilum act as efficient heterotrophic scavengers. Combined with previous studies, these data suggest that the phylum WPS‐2 includes bacteria with diverse metabolic capabilities.

Summary Oxidation of nitrite to nitrate is an important process in the global nitrogen cycle. Recent molecular biology‐based studies have revealed that the widespread nitrite‐oxidizing bacteria (NOB) belonging to the genus ‘ Candidatus Nitrotoga’ may be highly important for the environment. However, the insufficient availability of pure Nitrotoga cultures has limited our understanding of their physiological and genomic characteristics. Here, we isolated the ‘ Ca . Nitrotoga’ sp. strain AM1P, from a previously enriched Nitrotoga culture, using an improved isolation strategy. Although ‘ Ca . Nitrotoga’ have been recognized as cold‐adapted NOB, the strain AM1P had a slightly higher optimum growth temperature at 23°C. Strain AM1P showed a pH optimum of 8.3 and was not inhibited even at high nitrite concentrations (20 mM). We obtained the complete genome of the strain and compared the genome profile to five previously sequenced ‘ Ca . Nitrotoga’ strains. Comparative genomics suggested that lactate dehydrogenase may be only encoded in the strain AM1P and closely related genomes. While the growth yield of AM1P did not change, we observed faster growth in the presence of lactate in comparison to purely chemolithoautotrophic growth. The characterization of the new strain AM1P sheds light on the physiological adaptation of this environmentally important, but understudied genus ‘ Ca . Nitrotoga’.

Summary The marine sponge Halichondria panicea inhabits coastal areas around the globe and is a widely studied sponge species in terms of its biology, yet the ecological functions of its dominant bacterial symbiont ‘ Candidatus Halichondribacter symbioticus’ remain unknown. Here, we present the draft genome of ‘ Ca . H. symbioticus’ HS1 (2.8 Mbp, ca. 87.6% genome coverage) recovered from the sponge metagenome of H . panicea in order to study functions and symbiotic interactions at the genome level. Functional genome comparison of HS1 against closely related free‐living seawater bacteria revealed a reduction of genes associated with carbohydrate transport and transcription regulation, pointing towards a limited carbohydrate metabolism, and static transcriptional dynamics reminiscent of other bacterial symbionts. In addition, HS1 was enriched in sponge symbiont specific gene families related to host–symbiont interactions and defence. Similarity in the functional gene repertoire between HS1 and a phylogenetically more distant symbiont in the marine sponge Aplysina aerophoba , based on COG category distribution, suggest a convergent evolution of symbiont specific traits and general metabolic features. This warrants further investigation into convergent genomic evolution of symbionts across different sponge species and habitats.

Summary Marine sponges represent one of the few eukaryotic groups that frequently harbour symbiotic members of the Thaumarchaeota , which are important chemoautotrophic ammonia‐oxidizers in many environments. However, in most studies, direct demonstration of ammonia‐oxidation by these archaea within sponges is lacking, and little is known about sponge‐specific adaptations of ammonia‐oxidizing archaea (AOA). Here, we characterized the thaumarchaeal symbiont of the marine sponge Ianthella basta using metaproteogenomics, fluorescence in situ hybridization, qPCR and isotope‐based functional assays. ‘ Candidatus Nitrosospongia ianthellae’ is only distantly related to cultured AOA. It is an abundant symbiont that is solely responsible for nitrite formation from ammonia in I. basta that surprisingly does not harbour nitrite‐oxidizing microbes. Furthermore, this AOA is equipped with an expanded set of extracellular subtilisin‐like proteases, a metalloprotease unique among archaea, as well as a putative branched‐chain amino acid ABC transporter. This repertoire is strongly indicative of a mixotrophic lifestyle and is (with slight variations) also found in other sponge‐associated, but not in free‐living AOA. We predict that this feature as well as an expanded and unique set of secreted serpins (protease inhibitors), a unique array of eukaryotic‐like proteins, and a DNA‐phosporothioation system, represent important adaptations of AOA to life within these ancient filter‐feeding animals.

Summary A hallmark of the SUP05 clade of marine Gammaproteobacteria is the ability to use energy obtained from reduced inorganic sulfur to fuel autotrophic fixation of carbon using RuBisCo. However, some SUP05 also have the genetic potential for heterotrophic growth, raising questions about the roles of SUP05 in the marine carbon cycle. We used genomic reconstructions, physiological growth experiments and proteomics to characterize central carbon and energy metabolism in Candidatus Thioglobus singularis strain PS1, a representative from the SUP05 clade that has the genetic potential for autotrophy and heterotrophy. Here, we show that the addition of individual organic compounds and 0.2 μm filtered diatom lysate significantly enhanced the growth of this bacterium. This positive growth response to organic substrates, combined with expression of a complete TCA cycle, heterotrophic pathways for carbon assimilation, and methylotrophic pathways for energy conversion demonstrate strain PS1's capacity for heterotrophic growth. Further, our inability to verify the expression of RuBisCO suggests that carbon fixation was not critical for growth. These results highlight the metabolic diversity of the SUP05 clade that harbours both primary producers and consumers of organic carbon in the oceans and expand our understanding of specific pathways of organic matter oxidation by the heterotrophic SUP05.

Summary Enhanced biological phosphorus removal (EBPR) exploits the metabolism of polyphosphate‐accumulating organisms (PAOs) to remove excess phosphorus (P) from wastewater treatment. Candidatus Accumulibacter phosphatis (Accumulibacter) is the most abundant and well‐studied PAO in EBPR systems. In a previous study, we detected polyphosphates throughout peripheral bay sediments, and hypothesized that an estuary is an ideal setting to evaluate PAOs in a natural system, given that estuaries are characterized by dynamic dissolved oxygen fluctuations that potentially favour PAO metabolism. We detected nucleotide sequences attributable to Accumulibacter (16S rRNA, ppk1 ) in sediments within three peripheral bays of the Columbia River estuary at abundances rivalling those observed in conventional wastewater treatment plants (0.01%–2.6%). Most of the sequences attributable to Accumulibacter were Type I rather than Type II, despite the fact that the estuary does not have particularly high nutrient concentrations. The highest diversity of Accumulibacter was observed in oligohaline peripheral bays, while the greatest abundances were observed at the mouth of the estuary in mesohaline sediments in the spring and summer. In addition, an approximately 70% increase in polyphosphate concentrations observed at one of the sites between dawn and dusk suggests that PAOs may play an important role in P cycling in estuary sediments.