Trait dimensions in bacteria and archaea compared to vascular plants

Area of Science:

• Microbial Ecology
• Trait-Based Ecology

Background:

• Microbial ecological strategies are often discussed using concepts like oligotrophy and stress tolerance.
• Plant trait ecology, using measurable dimensions, has enabled global ecological syntheses.
• Bacteria and archaea, despite different ecologies from plants, may also be understood through trait-based approaches.

Purpose of the Study:

• To identify key trait dimensions for understanding bacterial and archaeal ecology.
• To explore analogies and differences between microbial and plant trait ecology.
• To assess the utility of quantitative traits in complementing substrate-use information for microbial strategies.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of widely measured trait dimensions in bacteria and archaea.
• Comparison of microbial trait axes (e.g., growth rate, rRNA operon copy number, genome size, signal transduction, cell size) with plant ecological spectra.
• Examination of the relationship between quantitative traits and substrate-use pathways.

Main Results:

• Three main trait dimensions were identified for bacteria and archaea: maximum growth rate/rRNA operon copy number (rate-yield trade-off), genome size/signal transduction (versatility), and cell size (uptake/cost).
• These microbial trait dimensions show analogies to plant acquisitive-conservative spectra but are based on different trade-offs.
• Quantitative traits like maximum growth rate show significant variation within substrate-use pathways, providing complementary ecological information.

Conclusions:

• Measurable trait dimensions offer a promising framework for interpreting bacterial and archaeal ecology.
• Microbial trait ecology differs substantially from plant trait ecology due to different traits, trade-offs, and substrates.
• Quantitative traits provide valuable, complementary information to substrate-use pathways for understanding microbial ecological strategies.