Publications

4474

Huanglongbing (HLB) is an important citrus disease associated with the phloem-limited, uncultured bacterium ‘Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus’(CLas). Effective treatments against CLas have to be validated in the field, however, methods for the field assessment of treatment effectiveness are time-consuming, in part because DNA-based assays, including quantitative PCR (qPCR), cannot differentiate between live and dead bacterial DNA. The aim of this study was to develop a method for rapid the evaluation of HLB therapies in field experiments. To this aim, a DNA extraction method from citrus leaf tissues with propidum monoazide (PMA), a dye that binds covalently to dsDNA making it unavailable for amplification in subsequent qPCR reactions, was optimized. The results indicated that the efficacy of PMA-qPCR was highly dependent on the primer set used. Primers targeting the 16S region of CLas showed a clear distinction between qPCR from PMA-treated and non-treated samples, while the RNR and LJ900 primers did not show significant differences between the DNA extraction methods. The PMA-qPCR viability analysis of CLas from citrus cuttings treated with different ampicillin (Amp) concentrations showed that all concentrations reduced CLas titers significantly starting 4 days after the initial treatment, unlike the water treatment, which did not show any change. This method was used for assessing the antibacterial activity of Amp, Streptomycin, Oxytetracycline (OTC), and a water control in field tests. The PMA-qPCR results indicated that Amp and OTC displayed significant antibacterial activity against CLas by 8 days post-injection, which was not detected in the non-PMA qPCR analysis. This method could allow the rapid validation of treatments against CLas in field experiments and facilitate the implementation of effective management strategies against HLB.

Anaerobic methane metabolism is among the hallmarks of Archaea, originating very early in their evolution. Here, we show that the ancestor of methane metabolizers was an autotrophic CO 2 -reducing hydrogenotrophic methanogen that possessed the two main complexes, methyl-CoM reductase (Mcr) and tetrahydromethanopterin-CoM methyltransferase (Mtr), the anaplerotic hydrogenases Eha and Ehb, and a set of other genes collectively called “methanogenesis markers” but could not oxidize alkanes. Overturning recent inferences, we demonstrate that methyl-dependent hydrogenotrophic methanogenesis has emerged multiple times independently, either due to a loss of Mtr while Mcr is inherited vertically or from an ancient lateral acquisition of Mcr. Even if Mcr is lost, Mtr, Eha, Ehb, and the markers can persist, resulting in mixotrophic metabolisms centered around the Wood-Ljungdahl pathway. Through their methanogenesis remnants, Thorarchaeia and two newly reconstructed order-level lineages in Archaeoglobi and Bathyarchaeia act as metabolically versatile players in carbon cycling of anoxic environments across the globe.

Anaerobic ammonium oxidation (Anammox) process is a type of biological nitrogen removal technology which is known to directly convert ammonium and nitrite to nitrogen gas. The freshwater ‘Candidatus Kuenenia stuttgartiensis’ anammox under the phylum of Planctomycetes is used to study the parameters that affect the anammox development and the metabolic pathways alongside the associated enzymes. These observations were made using state-of-the art techniques for detecting anammox bacteria based on their small-subunit ribosomal RNA genes, functional genes and unique reaction pathways. This review systematically summarizes up-to-date studies on the parameters affecting the growth of the anammox bacteria and metabolic networks driving anammox bacterial anabolism and mixotrophy beyond genome-based predictions. The K. stuttgartiensis survives in summer and winter conditions besides in the aerobic zones (dissolved oxygen >2 mg/L), which consequently contribute to better nitrogen removal in the wastewater treatment. Furthermore, the K. stuttgartiensis utilizes the Wood–Ljungdahl pathway to directly assimilate extracellular formation instead of oxidising it completely to CO2 prior reassimilation.

AbstractThe mutualistic interactions between Riftia pachyptila and its endosymbiont Candidatus Endoriftia persephone (short Endoriftia) have been extensively researched. However, the closed Endoriftia genome is still lacking. Here, by employing single‐molecule real‐time sequencing we present the closed chromosomal sequence of Endoriftia. In contrast to theoretical predictions of enlarged and mobile genetic element‐rich genomes related to facultative endosymbionts, the closed Endoriftia genome is streamlined with fewer than expected coding sequence regions, insertion‐, prophage‐sequences and transposase‐coding sequences. Automated and manually curated functional analyses indicated that Endoriftia is more versatile regarding sulphur metabolism than previously reported. We identified the presence of two identical rRNA operons and two long CRISPR regions in the closed genome. Additionally, pangenome analyses revealed the presence of three types of secretion systems (II, IV and VI) in the different Endoriftia populations indicating lineage‐specific adaptations. The in depth mobilome characterization identified the presence of shared genomic islands in the different Endoriftia drafts and in the closed genome, suggesting that the acquisition of foreign DNA predates the geographical dispersal of the different endosymbiont populations. Finally, we found no evidence of epigenetic regulation in Endoriftia, as revealed by gene screenings and absence of methylated modified base motifs in the genome. As a matter of fact, the restriction‐modification system seems to be dysfunctional in Endoriftia, pointing to a higher importance of molecular memory‐based immunity against phages via spacer incorporation into CRISPR system. The Endoriftia genome is the first closed tubeworm endosymbiont to date and will be valuable for future gene oriented and evolutionary comparative studies.