Metagenomics unveils the attributes of the alginolytic guilds of sediments from four distant cold coastal environments: Alginolytic guilds from cold sediments

• Published in: Environmental microbiology Vol. 18; no. 12
• Main Authors: Matos, Marina N., Lozada, Mariana, Anselmino, Luciano E., Musumeci, Matías A., Henrissat, Bernard, Jansson, Janet K., Mac Cormack, Walter P., Carroll, JoLynn, Sjöling, Sara, Lundgren, Leif, Dionisi, Hebe M.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Wiley 18-07-2016
• ISSN: 1462-2912; 1462-2920
• DOI: 10.1111/1462-2920.13433

Alginates are abundant polysaccharides in brown algae that constitute an important energy source for marine heterotrophic bacteria. Despite the key role of alginate assimilation processes in the marine carbon cycle, little information is available on the bacterial populations involved in these processes. The goal of this work was to gain insight into the structure and functional traits of the alginolytic communities from sediments of cold coastal environments. Sediment metagenomes from high-latitude regions of both Hemispheres were interrogated for alginate lyase gene homolog sequences and their genomic context. Sediments contained highly abundant and diverse bacterial assemblages with alginolytic potential, including members of Bacteroidetes and Proteobacteria, as well as several poorly characterized taxa. Temperature and salinity were correlated to the variation in community structure. The microbial communities in Arctic and Antarctic sediments exhibited the most similar alginolytic profiles, whereas brackish sediments had a higher proportion of novel members. Examination of the gene context of the alginate lyase homologs revealed distinct patterns according to the phylogenetic origin of the scaffolds, with evidence of evolutionary relationships among lineages. This information is relevant for understanding carbon fluxes in cold coastal environments and provides valuable information for the development of biotechnological applications from brown algae biomass.