Dataset Information

Proteorhodopsin phototrophy promotes survival of marine bacteria during starvation.

ABSTRACT: Proteorhodopsins are globally abundant photoproteins found in bacteria in the photic zone of the ocean. Although their function as proton pumps with energy-yielding potential has been demonstrated, the ecological role of proteorhodopsins remains largely unexplored. Here, we report the presence and function of proteorhodopsin in a member of the widespread genus Vibrio, uncovered through whole-genome analysis. Phylogenetic analysis suggests that the Vibrio strain AND4 obtained proteorhodopsin through lateral gene transfer, which could have modified the ecology of this marine bacterium. We demonstrate an increased long-term survival of AND4 when starved in seawater exposed to light rather than held in darkness. Furthermore, mutational analysis provides the first direct evidence, to our knowledge, linking the proteorhodopsin gene and its biological function in marine bacteria. Thus, proteorhodopsin phototrophy confers a fitness advantage to marine bacteria, representing a novel mechanism for bacterioplankton to endure frequent periods of resource deprivation at the ocean's surface.

SUBMITTER: Gomez-Consarnau L

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2860489 | biostudies-literature | 2010 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

ACCESS DATA

Publications

Proteorhodopsin phototrophy promotes survival of marine bacteria during starvation.

Gómez-Consarnau Laura L Akram Neelam N Lindell Kristoffer K Pedersen Anders A Neutze Richard R Milton Debra L DL González José M JM Pinhassi Jarone J

PLoS biology 20100427 4

Proteorhodopsins are globally abundant photoproteins found in bacteria in the photic zone of the ocean. Although their function as proton pumps with energy-yielding potential has been demonstrated, the ecological role of proteorhodopsins remains largely unexplored. Here, we report the presence and function of proteorhodopsin in a member of the widespread genus Vibrio, uncovered through whole-genome analysis. Phylogenetic analysis suggests that the Vibrio strain AND4 obtained proteorhodopsin thro ...[more]

PMID: 20436956

Similar Datasets

Project description:Microbial proton-pumping rhodopsins are considered the simplest strategy among phototrophs to conserve energy from light. Proteorhodopsins are the most studied rhodopsins thus far because of their ubiquitous presence in the ocean, except in Antarctica, where they remain understudied. We analyzed proteorhodopsin abundance and transcriptional activity in the Western Antarctic coastal seawaters. Combining quantitative PCR (qPCR) and metagenomics, the relative abundance of proteorhodopsin-bearing bacteria accounted on average for 17, 3.5, and 29.7% of the bacterial community in Chile Bay (South Shetland Islands) during 2014, 2016, and 2017 summer-autumn, respectively. The abundance of proteorhodopsin-bearing bacteria changed in relation to environmental conditions such as chlorophyll a and temperature. Alphaproteobacteria, Gammaproteobacteria, and Flavobacteriia were the main bacteria that transcribed the proteorhodopsin gene during day and night. Although green light-absorbing proteorhodopsin genes were more abundant than blue-absorbing ones, the latter were transcribed more intensely, resulting in >50% of the proteorhodopsin transcripts during the day and night. Flavobacteriia were the most abundant proteorhodopsin-bearing bacteria in the metagenomes; however, Alphaproteobacteria and Gammaproteobacteria were more represented in the metatranscriptomes, with qPCR quantification suggesting the dominance of the active SAR11 clade. Our results show that proteorhodopsin-bearing bacteria are prevalent in Antarctic coastal waters in late austral summer and early autumn, and their ecological relevance needs to be elucidated to better understand how sunlight energy is used in this marine ecosystem. IMPORTANCE Proteorhodopsin-bearing microorganisms in the Southern Ocean have been overlooked since their discovery in 2000. The present study identify taxonomy and quantify the relative abundance of proteorhodopsin-bearing bacteria and proteorhodopsin gene transcription in the West Antarctic Peninsula's coastal waters. This information is crucial to understand better how sunlight enters this marine environment through alternative ways unrelated to chlorophyll-based strategies. The relative abundance of proteorhodopsin-bearing bacteria seems to be related to environmental parameters (e.g., chlorophyll a, temperature) that change yearly at the coastal water of the West Antarctic Peninsula during the austral late summers and early autumns. Proteorhodopsin-bearing bacteria from Antarctic coastal waters are potentially able to exploit both the green and blue spectrum of sunlight and are a prevalent group during the summer in this polar environment.

Dataset Information

Proteorhodopsin phototrophy promotes survival of marine bacteria during starvation.

Publications

Proteorhodopsin phototrophy promotes survival of marine bacteria during starvation.

Similar Datasets

OmicsDI is part of the ELIXIR infrastructure

Tweets