Role of Cyanobacterial Exopolysaccharides in Phototrophic Biofilms and in Complex Microbial Mats

Rossi, Federico; Philippis, Roberto De

doi:10.3390/life5021218

Cited by 294 publications

(176 citation statements)

References 85 publications

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“…2e&f, Additional file 1: Figure S2D&E). This suggests that in the first days of co-culture, while exported sucrose concentrations are low (≤1 g/L), E. coli strains cannot utilize sucrose effectively and dominantly depend on other metabolites from S. elongatus ; perhaps extracellular polymeric substances [30, 31]. …”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Synthetic photosynthetic consortia define interactions leading to robustness and photoproduction

et al. 2017

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BackgroundMicrobial consortia composed of autotrophic and heterotrophic species abound in nature, yet examples of synthetic communities with mixed metabolism are limited in the laboratory. We previously engineered a model cyanobacterium, Synechococcus elongatus PCC 7942, to secrete the bulk of the carbon it fixes as sucrose, a carbohydrate that can be utilized by many other microbes. Here, we tested the capability of sucrose-secreting cyanobacteria to act as a flexible platform for the construction of synthetic, light-driven consortia by pairing them with three disparate heterotrophs: Bacillus subtilis, Escherichia coli, or Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The comparison of these different co-culture dyads reveals general design principles for the construction of robust autotroph/heterotroph consortia.ResultsWe observed heterotrophic growth dependent upon cyanobacterial photosynthate in each co-culture pair. Furthermore, these synthetic consortia could be stabilized over the long-term (weeks to months) and both species could persist when challenged with specific perturbations. Stability and productivity of autotroph/heterotroph co-cultures was dependent on heterotroph sucrose utilization, as well as other species-independent interactions that we observed across all dyads. One destabilizing interaction we observed was that non-sucrose byproducts of oxygenic photosynthesis negatively impacted heterotroph growth. Conversely, inoculation of each heterotrophic species enhanced cyanobacterial growth in comparison to axenic cultures. Finally, these consortia can be flexibly programmed for photoproduction of target compounds and proteins; by changing the heterotroph in co-culture to specialized strains of B. subtilis or E. coli we demonstrate production of alpha-amylase and polyhydroxybutyrate, respectively.ConclusionsEnabled by the unprecedented flexibility of this consortia design, we uncover species-independent design principles that influence cyanobacteria/heterotroph consortia robustness. The modular nature of these communities and their unusual robustness exhibits promise as a platform for highly-versatile photoproduction strategies that capitalize on multi-species interactions and could be utilized as a tool for the study of nascent symbioses. Further consortia improvements via engineered interventions beyond those we show here (i.e., increased efficiency growing on sucrose) could improve these communities as production platforms.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13036-017-0048-5) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Synthetic photosynthetic consortia define interactions leading to robustness and photoproduction

et al. 2017

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“…Especially in arid or semi-arid environments, the role of EPSs secreted by Cyanobacteria is crucial for microbial communities surviving within (and below) biocrusts (De Philippis and Vincenzini, 1998;Pereira et al, 2009;Mager and Thomas, 2011;Rossi et al, 2012;Colica et al, 2014;Rossi and De Philippis, 2015). The synthesis of EPSs contributes to the stability of soil structure and hydrated microenvironments in soil, making it a key ingredient of biocrust formation.…”

Section: Microbial Eps Productionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Hydration status and diurnal trophic interactions shape microbial community function in desert biocrusts

Kim

2017

Biogeosciences

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Abstract. Biological soil crusts (biocrusts) are selforganised thin assemblies of microbes, lichens, and mosses that are ubiquitous in arid regions and serve as important ecological and biogeochemical hotspots. Biocrust ecological function is intricately shaped by strong gradients of water, light, oxygen, and dynamics in the abundance and spatial organisation of the microbial community within a few millimetres of the soil surface. We report a mechanistic model that links the biophysical and chemical processes that shape the functioning of biocrust representative microbial communities that interact trophically and respond dynamically to cycles of hydration, light, and temperature. The model captures key features of carbon and nitrogen cycling within biocrusts, such as microbial activity and distribution (during early stages of biocrust establishment) under diurnal cycles and the associated dynamics of biogeochemical fluxes at different hydration conditions. The study offers new insights into the highly dynamic and localised processes performed by microbial communities within thin desert biocrusts.

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“…Among the subaerial biofilm microorganisms, the phototrophs play a very important role, since the input of nitrogen and carbon to the biofilm depends on their metabolism. Furthermore, phototrophs synthesize most of the biofilm exopolysaccharide matrix (Cary et al 2010, Vázquez-Martínez et al 2014, Rossi & De Philippis 2015, Vázquez-Nion et al 2016.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Nodosilinea chupicuarensis sp. nov. (Leptolyngbyaceae, Synechococcales) a subaerial cyanobacterium isolated from a stone monument in central Mexico

et al. 2018

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Microorganisms of subaerial biofilms, which develop on the surface of stone monuments, have been widely studied due to their impact on Cultural Heritage deterioration. Nevertheless, these extremophile microorganisms are poorly characterised. In this study, a cyanobacterial strain isolated from an archaeological zone in north-central Mexico was characterised through a polyphasic study based on ecological, morphological, and molecular data. Phylogenetic analyses were done using sequences of the 16S rRNA gene and the 16S-23S ITS region. Based on the polyphasic data, a new species corresponding to the genus Nodosilinea is described. This alkaliphilic species has optimum growth at pH of 9. Its fatty acid profile indicates that C18:1, 9E and C16:0 are its most abundant fatty acids. Extracellular polymeric substance production was verified on this strain. Only a few species of the genus Nodosilinea have been documented and described, and this is the first report of their presence in central Mexico. Hence the name Nodosilinea chupicuarensis sp. nov. is proposed.

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Role of Cyanobacterial Exopolysaccharides in Phototrophic Biofilms and in Complex Microbial Mats

Cited by 294 publications

References 85 publications

Synthetic photosynthetic consortia define interactions leading to robustness and photoproduction

Synthetic photosynthetic consortia define interactions leading to robustness and photoproduction

Hydration status and diurnal trophic interactions shape microbial community function in desert biocrusts

Nodosilinea chupicuarensis sp. nov. (Leptolyngbyaceae, Synechococcales) a subaerial cyanobacterium isolated from a stone monument in central Mexico

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