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Ecological and Evolutionary Implications of Microbial Dispersal
Gordon F Custer1, Luana Bresciani1, Francisco Dini-Andreote1
1Department of Plant Science and Huck Institutes of the Life Sciences, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, United States.
Frontiers in Microbiology
|April 25, 2022
Summary
Microbial dispersal, the movement of microbes, shapes community assembly and function. Understanding these processes is key to microbiome research and predicting ecological and evolutionary outcomes.
Area of Science:
- Ecology
- Evolutionary Biology
- Microbiology
Background:
- Dispersal is crucial for species distribution, community assembly, and turnover.
- Environmental context, dispersal timing, and species traits influence species establishment.
- Microbial dispersal mechanisms and their impact on microbiomes are not well understood.
Purpose of the Study:
- To explore parallels between macro- and micro-organismal dispersal.
- To identify novel mechanisms of microbial dispersal in microbiomes.
- To synthesize current knowledge on microbial dispersal's ecological and evolutionary implications.
Main Methods:
- Literature review and synthesis.
- Comparison of macro- and micro-organismal dispersal.
- Discussion of ecological and evolutionary impacts.
Main Results:
- Microbial dispersal influences microbiome structure and function through active/passive mechanisms, traits, and community coalescence.
- Dispersal impacts diversification rates via gene influx and allele frequency shifts.
- Microbial assemblages result from the dynamic interplay of dispersal events.
Conclusions:
- Dispersal is a fundamental process shaping microbiomes.
- Further research into microbial dispersal mechanisms is needed.
- Understanding dispersal enhances microbiome research and applications.
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