African Origin and Europe-Mediated Global Dispersal of The Cyanobacterium Microcystis aeruginosa

• Published in: Current microbiology Vol. 69; no. 5; pp. 628 - 633
• Main Authors: Moreira, Cristiana, Spillane, Charles, Fathalli, Afef, Vasconcelos, Vitor, Antunes, Agostinho
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Boston Springer US 01-11-2014; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Bacteria; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Biotechnology; Continents; Cyanobacteria; Dispersal; Genetic diversity; Genetic markers; Life Sciences; Microbiology; Microcystis - classification; Microcystis - genetics; Microcystis - isolation & purification; Microcystis aeruginosa; Molecular Epidemiology; Molecular Typing; Phylogenetics; Phylogeography; Public health; Water Microbiology; Microcystis Aeruginosa; Phylogeographic Structure; African Continent; Cosmopolitan Distribution; Genetic Pool
• ISSN: 0343-8651; 1432-0991
• DOI: 10.1007/s00284-014-0628-2

Microcystis aeruginosa
is a bloom-forming cyanobacteria, which currently has a cosmopolitan distribution. Since
M. aeruginosa
can produce toxic compounds across all continents that it inhabits, it is of major public health relevance to assess its origin and dispersal. Thus, we conducted a worldwide study using 29 isolates representative of all the main continents, and used a concatenated genetic system for phylogenetic analyses consisting of four genetic markers (spanning ca. 3,485 bp). Our results support an early origin of
M. aeruginosa
in the African continent, with a subsequent dispersal to establish a second genetic pool in the European continent, from where
M. aeruginosa
then colonized the remaining continental regions. Our findings indicate that the European population has a cosmopolitan distribution, and is genetically closer to populations from Africa and North America. Our study also highlights the utility of using a concatenated dataset for phylogenetic inferences in cyanobacteria.