Project description:We established simple synthetic microbial communities in a microcosm model system to determine the mechanisms that underlay cross-feeding in microbial methane-consuming communities. Co-occurring strains from Lake Washington sediment were used that are involved in methane consumption, a methanotroph and two non-methanotrophic methylotrophs.
Project description:This study evaluated glycine as a sole carbon source in an EBPR sequencing batch reactor, demonstrating effective phosphorus removal comparable to systems fed with mixed substrates. Microbial and genome-resolved analyses revealed a community with complementary metabolic roles, highlighting its contribution to phosphorus removal dynamics.
Project description:Fermenting microbial communities generate hydrogen: its removal through production of acetate, methane, or hydrogen sulfide modulates the efficiency of energy extraction from available nutrients in many ecosystems. We noted that pathway components for acetogenesis are more abundantly and consistently represented in the gut microbiomes of monozygotic twins and their mothers than components for methanogenesis or sulfate reduction, and subsequently analyzed the metabolic potential of two sequenced human gut acetogens, Blautia hydrogenotrophica and Marvinbryantia formatexigens in vitro and in the intestines of gnotobiotic mice harboring a prominent saccharolytic bacterium. To do so, we developed a generally applicable method for multiplex sequencing of expressed microbial mRNAs, and together with mass spectrometry of metabolites, show that these organisms have distinct patterns of substrate utilization. B. hydrogenotrophica targets aliphatic and aromatic amino acids. It increases the efficiency of fermentation by consuming reducing equivalents, thereby maintaining a high NAD+/NADH ratio and boosting acetate production. In contrast, M. formatexigens consumes oligosaccharides, does not impact the redox state of the gut, and boosts the yield of succinate. These findings have strategic implications for those who wish to manipulate the hydrogen economy of gut microbial communities in ways that modulate energy harvest. 119 Samples consisting of Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron, Marvinbryantia formatexigens, and Blautia hydrogenotrophica cecal and fecal samples. Please see the individual Sample descriptions for more information.
Project description:Wetland microbiomes play a crucial role in the global carbon cycle by modulating soil organic carbon (SOC) and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Understanding how microbial communities respond to environmental changes is essential for predicting wetland carbon fluxes under future climate scenarios. Here, we investigated the biogeochemistry of a temperate lacustrine wetland across four seasons and three soil depths, integrating greenhouse gas flux measurements, porewater metabolite profiles, metagenomics, metabolomics, and metaproteomics. While seasonal shifts in GHG fluxes and porewater chemistry were evident, microbial community composition and function were primarily structured by soil depth, suggesting resilience to short-term seasonal fluctuations. Depth-correlated microbial taxa and metabolic pathways revealed distinct stratification: surface soils were enriched in metabolically versatile Gammaproteobacteria capable of oxygen and nitrate respiration, as well as methane and sulfur oxidation, whereas deeper layers favored strict anaerobic metabolism, with increasing abundances of Anaerolinea and Methanomicrobia. Metabolomics showed an enrichment of purine nucleotides and amino acids at the surface, while deeper soils accumulated amino sugars and phenolic compounds, highlighting differences in carbon processing. Metaproteomics confirmed active metabolic pathways, linking functional potential to microbial activity. By integrating multi-omics with biogeochemical measurements, this study provides a system-level view of wetland microbial function and resilience, contributing to predictive models of wetland carbon cycling under future climate change.
The work (proposal:https://doi.org/10.46936/10.25585/60000490) conducted by the U.S. Department of Energy Joint Genome Institute (https://ror.org/04xm1d337), a DOE Office of Science User Facility, is supported by the Office of Science of the U.S. Department of Energy operated under Contract No. DE-AC02-05CH11231.
Project description:Fermenting microbial communities generate hydrogen: its removal through production of acetate, methane, or hydrogen sulfide modulates the efficiency of energy extraction from available nutrients in many ecosystems. We noted that pathway components for acetogenesis are more abundantly and consistently represented in the gut microbiomes of monozygotic twins and their mothers than components for methanogenesis or sulfate reduction, and subsequently analyzed the metabolic potential of two sequenced human gut acetogens, Blautia hydrogenotrophica and Marvinbryantia formatexigens in vitro and in the intestines of gnotobiotic mice harboring a prominent saccharolytic bacterium. To do so, we developed a generally applicable method for multiplex sequencing of expressed microbial mRNAs, and together with mass spectrometry of metabolites, show that these organisms have distinct patterns of substrate utilization. B. hydrogenotrophica targets aliphatic and aromatic amino acids. It increases the efficiency of fermentation by consuming reducing equivalents, thereby maintaining a high NAD+/NADH ratio and boosting acetate production. In contrast, M. formatexigens consumes oligosaccharides, does not impact the redox state of the gut, and boosts the yield of succinate. These findings have strategic implications for those who wish to manipulate the hydrogen economy of gut microbial communities in ways that modulate energy harvest.