Metagenomes of Red Sea Subpopulations Challenge the Use of Marker Genes and Morphology to Assess Trichodesmium Diversity.

ABSTRACT: Trichodesmium are filamentous cyanobacteria of key interest due to their ability to fix carbon and nitrogen within an oligotrophic marine environment. Their blooms consist of a dynamic assemblage of subpopulations and colony morphologies that are hypothesized to occupy unique niches. Here, we assessed the poorly studied diversity of Trichodesmium in the Red Sea, based on metagenome-assembled genomes (MAGs) and hetR gene-based phylotyping. We assembled four non-redundant MAGs from morphologically distinct Trichodesmium colonies (tufts, dense and thin puffs). Trichodesmium thiebautii (puffs) and Trichodesmium erythraeum (tufts) were the dominant species within these morphotypes. While subspecies diversity is present for both T. thiebautii and

SUBMITTER: Koedooder C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9189399 | biostudies-literature | 2022

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature