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Field-Based Thermal Physiology Assay: Cold Shock Recovery under Ambient Conditions
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The community background alters the evolution of thermal performance
Joseph Westley1, Francisca C García1,2, Ruth Warfield1
1Environment and Sustainability Institute, The Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn, Cornwall, United Kingdom.
Evolution Letters
|August 5, 2024
Summary
Microbial communities adapt to warming temperatures differently than single species. Community interactions enhance thermal adaptation, leading to higher growth rates and varied tolerance changes in diverse microbial systems.
Area of Science:
- Microbial ecology
- Evolutionary biology
- Environmental microbiology
Background:
- Microbes drive global biogeochemical cycles, with temperature significantly impacting their functions.
- Understanding microbial evolutionary responses to warming is crucial but remains limited, especially in diverse communities.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate how interspecific interactions within microbial communities influence thermal adaptation.
- To compare the evolutionary responses of bacteria to temperature change in monoculture versus community settings.
Main Methods:
- High-throughput experimental evolution of bacterial populations.
- Selection across a thermal gradient in both monoculture and community contexts.
- Analysis of bacterial thermal tolerance curves and growth rates.
Main Results:
- Community-evolved isolates showed higher maximum growth rates across the temperature gradient than monoculture-evolved isolates.
- Limited systematic evolutionary changes were observed in the shapes of bacterial thermal tolerance curves.
- The impact of community background and selection temperature on thermal tolerance evolution was taxon-specific.
- Temperature acted as an environmental filter, causing local extinctions and shaping the community structure.
Conclusions:
- Interspecific interactions within microbial communities can enhance thermal adaptation compared to monocultures.
- Ecological changes driven by temperature (e.g., extinctions) significantly influence the evolutionary trajectories of microbial communities.
- Community context is a critical factor in microbial thermal adaptation, with variable impacts across different taxa.
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