Composition and Ecological Roles of the Core Microbiome along the Abyssal-Hadal Transition Zone Sediments of the Mariana Trench
ABSTRACT The unique geological features of hadal trenches are known to influence both the structure and ecological function of microbial communities. It is also well known that heterotrophs and chemoautotrophs dominate the hadal and abyssal pelagic zones, respectively. Here, a metagenomic investigat...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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American Society for Microbiology
2022-06-01
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| Series: | Microbiology Spectrum |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/spectrum.01988-21 |
| _version_ | 1818255524086415360 |
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| author | Hongmei Jing Xiang Xiao Yue Zhang Zhiyong Li Huahua Jian Yingfeng Luo Zhuang Han |
| author_facet | Hongmei Jing Xiang Xiao Yue Zhang Zhiyong Li Huahua Jian Yingfeng Luo Zhuang Han |
| author_sort | Hongmei Jing |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | ABSTRACT The unique geological features of hadal trenches are known to influence both the structure and ecological function of microbial communities. It is also well known that heterotrophs and chemoautotrophs dominate the hadal and abyssal pelagic zones, respectively. Here, a metagenomic investigation was conducted on sediment samples obtained from the abyssal-hadal transition zone in the Mariana Trench to gain a better understanding of the general diversity and potential function of the core microbiome in this zone. A high level of cosmopolitanism existed in the core microbiome referred from a high community similarity among different stations. Niche differentiation along the fine-scale of different sediment layers was observed, especially for major archaeal groups, largely due to sediment depth and the source of organic matter. A prevalence of nitrogen biogeochemical cycles driven by various nitrifying groups with the capability of dark carbon fixation in the abyssal-hadal biosphere was also demonstrated. The predominance of heterotrophic over chemolithoautotrophic pathways in this transition zone was found, and a high abundance of genes related to respiration and carbon fixation (i.e., the intact Calvin and rTCA cycles) were detected as well, which might reflect the intensive microbial activities known to occur in this deep biosphere. The presence of those metabolic processes and associated microbes were reflected by functional and genetic markers generated from the metagenomic data in the current study. However, their roles and contributions to the nitrogen/carbon biogeochemical cycles and flux in the abyssal-hadal transition zone still need further analysis. IMPORTANCE The Mariana Trench is the deepest oceanic region on earth, its microbial ecological exploration has become feasible with the rapid progress of submersible and metagenomic sequencing. We investigated the community compositions and metabolic functions of the core microbiome along the abyssal-hadal transition zone of the Mariana Trench, although most studies by far were focused on the pelagic zone. We found a predominance of heterotrophic groups and related metabolic pathways, which were closely associated with nitrogen biogeochemical cycles driven by various nitrifying groups with the capability of dark carbon fixation. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-12T17:13:13Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-26f0f71768d74a4d80e001320d69dc54 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2165-0497 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-12T17:13:13Z |
| publishDate | 2022-06-01 |
| publisher | American Society for Microbiology |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Microbiology Spectrum |
| spelling | doaj.art-26f0f71768d74a4d80e001320d69dc542022-12-22T00:17:50ZengAmerican Society for MicrobiologyMicrobiology Spectrum2165-04972022-06-0110310.1128/spectrum.01988-21Composition and Ecological Roles of the Core Microbiome along the Abyssal-Hadal Transition Zone Sediments of the Mariana TrenchHongmei Jing0Xiang Xiao1Yue Zhang2Zhiyong Li3Huahua Jian4Yingfeng Luo5Zhuang Han6Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) Key Laboratory for Experimental Study under Deep-Sea Extreme Conditions, Institute of Deep-Sea Science and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Sanya, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Ocean Engineering, School of Naval Architecture, Ocean and Civil Engineering, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, ChinaChinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) Key Laboratory for Experimental Study under Deep-Sea Extreme Conditions, Institute of Deep-Sea Science and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Sanya, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Microbial Metabolism, Joint International Research Laboratory of Metabolic and Developmental Sciences, School of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, ChinaState Key Laboratory of Ocean Engineering, School of Naval Architecture, Ocean and Civil Engineering, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, ChinaCAS Key Laboratory of Genome Sciences and Information, Beijing Institute of Genomics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, ChinaChinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) Key Laboratory for Experimental Study under Deep-Sea Extreme Conditions, Institute of Deep-Sea Science and Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Sanya, ChinaABSTRACT The unique geological features of hadal trenches are known to influence both the structure and ecological function of microbial communities. It is also well known that heterotrophs and chemoautotrophs dominate the hadal and abyssal pelagic zones, respectively. Here, a metagenomic investigation was conducted on sediment samples obtained from the abyssal-hadal transition zone in the Mariana Trench to gain a better understanding of the general diversity and potential function of the core microbiome in this zone. A high level of cosmopolitanism existed in the core microbiome referred from a high community similarity among different stations. Niche differentiation along the fine-scale of different sediment layers was observed, especially for major archaeal groups, largely due to sediment depth and the source of organic matter. A prevalence of nitrogen biogeochemical cycles driven by various nitrifying groups with the capability of dark carbon fixation in the abyssal-hadal biosphere was also demonstrated. The predominance of heterotrophic over chemolithoautotrophic pathways in this transition zone was found, and a high abundance of genes related to respiration and carbon fixation (i.e., the intact Calvin and rTCA cycles) were detected as well, which might reflect the intensive microbial activities known to occur in this deep biosphere. The presence of those metabolic processes and associated microbes were reflected by functional and genetic markers generated from the metagenomic data in the current study. However, their roles and contributions to the nitrogen/carbon biogeochemical cycles and flux in the abyssal-hadal transition zone still need further analysis. IMPORTANCE The Mariana Trench is the deepest oceanic region on earth, its microbial ecological exploration has become feasible with the rapid progress of submersible and metagenomic sequencing. We investigated the community compositions and metabolic functions of the core microbiome along the abyssal-hadal transition zone of the Mariana Trench, although most studies by far were focused on the pelagic zone. We found a predominance of heterotrophic groups and related metabolic pathways, which were closely associated with nitrogen biogeochemical cycles driven by various nitrifying groups with the capability of dark carbon fixation.https://journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/spectrum.01988-21Mariana Trenchmetagenomicscore microbiomeabyssal-hadal transition zone |
| spellingShingle | Hongmei Jing Xiang Xiao Yue Zhang Zhiyong Li Huahua Jian Yingfeng Luo Zhuang Han Composition and Ecological Roles of the Core Microbiome along the Abyssal-Hadal Transition Zone Sediments of the Mariana Trench Microbiology Spectrum Mariana Trench metagenomics core microbiome abyssal-hadal transition zone |
| title | Composition and Ecological Roles of the Core Microbiome along the Abyssal-Hadal Transition Zone Sediments of the Mariana Trench |
| title_full | Composition and Ecological Roles of the Core Microbiome along the Abyssal-Hadal Transition Zone Sediments of the Mariana Trench |
| title_fullStr | Composition and Ecological Roles of the Core Microbiome along the Abyssal-Hadal Transition Zone Sediments of the Mariana Trench |
| title_full_unstemmed | Composition and Ecological Roles of the Core Microbiome along the Abyssal-Hadal Transition Zone Sediments of the Mariana Trench |
| title_short | Composition and Ecological Roles of the Core Microbiome along the Abyssal-Hadal Transition Zone Sediments of the Mariana Trench |
| title_sort | composition and ecological roles of the core microbiome along the abyssal hadal transition zone sediments of the mariana trench |
| topic | Mariana Trench metagenomics core microbiome abyssal-hadal transition zone |
| url | https://journals.asm.org/doi/10.1128/spectrum.01988-21 |
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