Molecular physiology of Antarctic diatom natural assemblages and bloom event reveal insights into strategies contributing to their ecological success
ABSTRACTThe continental shelf of the Western Antarctic Peninsula (WAP) is a highly variable system characterized by strong cross-shelf gradients, rapid regional change, and large blooms of phytoplankton, notably diatoms. Rapid environmental changes coincide with shifts in plankton community composit...
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American Society for Microbiology
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ftdoajarticles:oai:doaj.org/article:7ed4ca263612483b95cb8f2826c23068 2024-09-15T17:48:22+00:00 Molecular physiology of Antarctic diatom natural assemblages and bloom event reveal insights into strategies contributing to their ecological success Carly M. Moreno Margaret Bernish Meredith G. Meyer Zuchuan Li Nicole Waite Natalie R. Cohen Oscar Schofield Adrian Marchetti 2024-03-01T00:00:00Z https://doi.org/10.1128/msystems.01306-23 https://doaj.org/article/7ed4ca263612483b95cb8f2826c23068 EN eng American Society for Microbiology https://journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/msystems.01306-23 https://doaj.org/toc/2379-5077 doi:10.1128/msystems.01306-23 2379-5077 https://doaj.org/article/7ed4ca263612483b95cb8f2826c23068 mSystems, Vol 9, Iss 3 (2024) polar diatoms microbial ecology metatranscriptome Western Antarctic Peninsula oceanography Microbiology QR1-502 article 2024 ftdoajarticles https://doi.org/10.1128/msystems.01306-23 2024-08-05T17:49:48Z ABSTRACTThe continental shelf of the Western Antarctic Peninsula (WAP) is a highly variable system characterized by strong cross-shelf gradients, rapid regional change, and large blooms of phytoplankton, notably diatoms. Rapid environmental changes coincide with shifts in plankton community composition and productivity, food web dynamics, and biogeochemistry. Despite the progress in identifying important environmental factors influencing plankton community composition in the WAP, the molecular basis for their survival in this oceanic region, as well as variations in species abundance, metabolism, and distribution, remains largely unresolved. Across a gradient of physicochemical parameters, we analyzed the metabolic profiles of phytoplankton as assessed through metatranscriptomic sequencing. Distinct phytoplankton communities and metabolisms closely mirrored the strong gradients in oceanographic parameters that existed from coastal to offshore regions. Diatoms were abundant in coastal, southern regions, where colder and fresher waters were conducive to a bloom of the centric diatom, Actinocyclus. Members of this genus invested heavily in growth and energy production; carbohydrate, amino acid, and nucleotide biosynthesis pathways; and coping with oxidative stress, resulting in uniquely expressed metabolic profiles compared to other diatoms. We observed strong molecular evidence for iron limitation in shelf and slope regions of the WAP, where diatoms in these regions employed iron-starvation induced proteins, a geranylgeranyl reductase, aquaporins, and urease, among other strategies, while limiting the use of iron-containing proteins. The metatranscriptomic survey performed here reveals functional differences in diatom communities and provides further insight into the environmental factors influencing the growth of diatoms and their predicted response to changes in ocean conditions.IMPORTANCEIn the Southern Ocean, phytoplankton must cope with harsh environmental conditions such as low light and growth-limiting ... Article in Journal/Newspaper Antarc* Antarctic Antarctic Peninsula Southern Ocean Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles mSystems 9 3 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Directory of Open Access Journals: DOAJ Articles |
op_collection_id |
ftdoajarticles |
language |
English |
topic |
polar diatoms microbial ecology metatranscriptome Western Antarctic Peninsula oceanography Microbiology QR1-502 |
spellingShingle |
polar diatoms microbial ecology metatranscriptome Western Antarctic Peninsula oceanography Microbiology QR1-502 Carly M. Moreno Margaret Bernish Meredith G. Meyer Zuchuan Li Nicole Waite Natalie R. Cohen Oscar Schofield Adrian Marchetti Molecular physiology of Antarctic diatom natural assemblages and bloom event reveal insights into strategies contributing to their ecological success |
topic_facet |
polar diatoms microbial ecology metatranscriptome Western Antarctic Peninsula oceanography Microbiology QR1-502 |
description |
ABSTRACTThe continental shelf of the Western Antarctic Peninsula (WAP) is a highly variable system characterized by strong cross-shelf gradients, rapid regional change, and large blooms of phytoplankton, notably diatoms. Rapid environmental changes coincide with shifts in plankton community composition and productivity, food web dynamics, and biogeochemistry. Despite the progress in identifying important environmental factors influencing plankton community composition in the WAP, the molecular basis for their survival in this oceanic region, as well as variations in species abundance, metabolism, and distribution, remains largely unresolved. Across a gradient of physicochemical parameters, we analyzed the metabolic profiles of phytoplankton as assessed through metatranscriptomic sequencing. Distinct phytoplankton communities and metabolisms closely mirrored the strong gradients in oceanographic parameters that existed from coastal to offshore regions. Diatoms were abundant in coastal, southern regions, where colder and fresher waters were conducive to a bloom of the centric diatom, Actinocyclus. Members of this genus invested heavily in growth and energy production; carbohydrate, amino acid, and nucleotide biosynthesis pathways; and coping with oxidative stress, resulting in uniquely expressed metabolic profiles compared to other diatoms. We observed strong molecular evidence for iron limitation in shelf and slope regions of the WAP, where diatoms in these regions employed iron-starvation induced proteins, a geranylgeranyl reductase, aquaporins, and urease, among other strategies, while limiting the use of iron-containing proteins. The metatranscriptomic survey performed here reveals functional differences in diatom communities and provides further insight into the environmental factors influencing the growth of diatoms and their predicted response to changes in ocean conditions.IMPORTANCEIn the Southern Ocean, phytoplankton must cope with harsh environmental conditions such as low light and growth-limiting ... |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Carly M. Moreno Margaret Bernish Meredith G. Meyer Zuchuan Li Nicole Waite Natalie R. Cohen Oscar Schofield Adrian Marchetti |
author_facet |
Carly M. Moreno Margaret Bernish Meredith G. Meyer Zuchuan Li Nicole Waite Natalie R. Cohen Oscar Schofield Adrian Marchetti |
author_sort |
Carly M. Moreno |
title |
Molecular physiology of Antarctic diatom natural assemblages and bloom event reveal insights into strategies contributing to their ecological success |
title_short |
Molecular physiology of Antarctic diatom natural assemblages and bloom event reveal insights into strategies contributing to their ecological success |
title_full |
Molecular physiology of Antarctic diatom natural assemblages and bloom event reveal insights into strategies contributing to their ecological success |
title_fullStr |
Molecular physiology of Antarctic diatom natural assemblages and bloom event reveal insights into strategies contributing to their ecological success |
title_full_unstemmed |
Molecular physiology of Antarctic diatom natural assemblages and bloom event reveal insights into strategies contributing to their ecological success |
title_sort |
molecular physiology of antarctic diatom natural assemblages and bloom event reveal insights into strategies contributing to their ecological success |
publisher |
American Society for Microbiology |
publishDate |
2024 |
url |
https://doi.org/10.1128/msystems.01306-23 https://doaj.org/article/7ed4ca263612483b95cb8f2826c23068 |
genre |
Antarc* Antarctic Antarctic Peninsula Southern Ocean |
genre_facet |
Antarc* Antarctic Antarctic Peninsula Southern Ocean |
op_source |
mSystems, Vol 9, Iss 3 (2024) |
op_relation |
https://journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/msystems.01306-23 https://doaj.org/toc/2379-5077 doi:10.1128/msystems.01306-23 2379-5077 https://doaj.org/article/7ed4ca263612483b95cb8f2826c23068 |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1128/msystems.01306-23 |
container_title |
mSystems |
container_volume |
9 |
container_issue |
3 |
_version_ |
1810289506309373952 |