Complex Microbiome Underlying Secondary and Primary Metabolism in the Tunicate-Prochloron Symbiosis

Authors

Mohamed S. Donia, University of Utah
W. Florian Fricke, University of Maryland - Baltimore
Frédéric Partensky, Université Pierre et Marie Curie
James Cox, University of Utah
Sherif Elshahawi, Chapman UniversityFollow
James R. White, University of Maryland - Baltimore
Adam M. Phillippy, University of Maryland - Baltimore
Michael C. Schatz, University of Maryland - Baltimore
Joern Piel, University of Bonn
Martha G. Haygood, Oregon Health and Science University
Jacques Ravel, University of Maryland - Baltimore
Eric W. Schmidt, University of Utah

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

12-20-2011

Abstract

The relationship between tunicates and the uncultivated cyanobacterium Prochloron didemni has long provided a model symbiosis. P. didemni is required for survival of animals such as Lissoclinum patella and also makes secondary metabolites of pharmaceutical interest. Here, we present the metagenomes, chemistry, and microbiomes of four related L. patella tunicate samples from a wide geographical range of the tropical Pacific. The remarkably similar P. didemni genomes are the most complex so far assembled from uncultivated organisms. Although P. didemni has not been stably cultivated and comprises a single strain in each sample, a complete set of metabolic genes indicates that the bacteria are likely capable of reproducing outside the host. The sequences reveal notable peculiarities of the photosynthetic apparatus and explain the basis of nutrient exchange underlying the symbiosis. P. didemni likely profoundly influences the lipid composition of the animals by synthesizing sterols and an unusual lipid with biofuel potential. In addition, L. patella also harbors a great variety of other bacterial groups that contribute nutritional and secondary metabolic products to the symbiosis. These bacteria possess an enormous genetic potential to synthesize new secondary metabolites. For example, an antitumor candidate molecule, patellazole, is not encoded in the genome of Prochloron and was linked to other bacteria from the microbiome. This study unveils the complex L. patella microbiome and its impact on primary and secondary metabolism, revealing a remarkable versatility in creating and exchanging small molecules.

Comments

This article was originally published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, volume 108, issue 51, in 2011. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1111712108

Recommended Citation

Donia M , Fricke WF, Partensky F, et al. Complex microbiome underlying secondary and primary metabolism in the tunicate-Prochloron symbiosis. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. 2011;108(51):E1423-E1432. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1111712108

Copyright

The authors