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Linking activity and function to ecosystem dynamics in a coastal bacterioplankton community
Scott M Gifford1, Shalabh Sharma1, Mary Ann Moran1
1Department of Marine Sciences, University of Georgia Athens, GA, USA.
Frontiers in Microbiology
|May 6, 2014
Summary
We measured bacterial activity in coastal waters using ribosomal protein expression (%RP) to link microbial taxa to environmental changes. This revealed distinct seasonal and daily activity patterns for different bacterial groups.
Area of Science:
- Microbial Ecology
- Metagenomics
- Oceanography
Background:
- Understanding microbial community function in diverse environments is crucial.
- High-resolution taxonomic links to ecological processes remain a challenge.
Purpose of the Study:
- To link in situ microbial activity to specific taxa and environmental dynamics.
- To investigate seasonal and diel activity patterns in a coastal ocean microbial community.
Main Methods:
- Utilized metatranscriptomic data to quantify ribosomal protein expression (%RP) as a proxy for microbial activity.
- Analyzed activity of 200 taxa across 20 samples from a coastal ocean time series.
- Correlated %RP patterns with environmental gradients and functional gene expression.
Main Results:
- Identified seven distinct microbial activity clusters based on %RP profiles.
- Observed clear seasonal activity patterns, with some clusters active in cooler months and others in warmer months.
- Revealed significant diel (day-night) activity rhythms for many taxa, particularly heterotrophs.
Conclusions:
- Ribosomal protein expression (%RP) effectively links microbial taxa to ecological functions and environmental conditions.
- Coastal microbial communities exhibit complex seasonal and diel activity patterns.
- This study provides a framework for predicting microbial ecological groupings in dynamic environments.
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