scholarly journals Diversity and evolution of surface polysaccharide synthesis loci in Enterobacteriales

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kathryn E. Holt ◽  
Florent Lassalle ◽  
Kelly L. Wyres ◽  
Ryan Wick ◽  
Rafal J. Mostowy

Bacterial capsules and lipopolysaccharides are diverse surface polysaccharides (SPs) that serve as the frontline for interactions with the outside world. While SPs can evolve rapidly, their diversity and evolutionary dynamics across different taxonomic scales has not been investigated in detail. Here, we focused on the bacterial order Enterobacteriales (including the medically-relevant Enterobacteriaceae), to carry out comparative genomics of two SP locus synthesis regions, cps and kps, using 27,334 genomes from 45 genera. We identified high-quality cps loci in 22 genera and kps in 11 genera, around 4% of which were detected in multiple species. We found SP loci to be highly dynamic genetic entities: their evolution was driven by high rates of horizontal gene transfer (HGT), both of whole loci and component genes, and relaxed purifying selection, yielding large repertoires of SP diversity. In spite of that, we found the presence of (near-)identical locus structures in distant taxonomic backgrounds that could not be explained by recent exchange, pointing to long-term selective preservation of locus structures in some populations. Our results reveal differences in evolutionary dynamics driving SP diversity within different bacterial species, with lineages of Escherichia coli, Enterobacter hormachei and Klebsiella aerogenes most likely to share SP loci via recent exchange; and lineages of Salmonella enterica, Citrobacter sakazakii and Serratia marcescens most likely to share SP loci via other mechanisms such as long-term preservation. Overall, the evolution of SP loci in Enterobacteriales is driven by a range of evolutionary forces and their dynamics and relative importance varies between different species.

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nandita R. Garud ◽  
Benjamin H. Good ◽  
Oskar Hallatschek ◽  
Katherine S. Pollard

AbstractGut microbiota are shaped by a combination of ecological and evolutionary forces. While the ecological dynamics have been extensively studied, much less is known about how species of gut bacteria evolve over time. Here we introduce a model-based framework for quantifying evolutionary dynamics within and across hosts using a panel of metagenomic samples. We use this approach to study evolution in ∼30 prevalent species in the human gut. Although the patterns of between-host diversity are consistent with quasi-sexual evolution and purifying selection on long timescales, we identify new genealogical signatures that challenge standard population genetic models of these processes. Within hosts, we find that genetic differences that accumulate over ∼6 month timescales are only rarely attributable to replacement by distantly related strains. Instead, the resident strains more commonly acquire a smaller number of putative evolutionary changes, in which nucleotide variants or gene gains or losses rapidly sweep to high frequency. By comparing these mutations with the typical between-host differences, we find evidence that some sweeps are seeded by recombination, in addition to new mutations. However, comparisons of adult twins suggest that replacement eventually overwhelms evolution over multi-decade timescales, hinting at fundamental limits to the extent of local adaptation. Together, our results suggest that gut bacteria can evolve on human-relevant timescales, and they highlight the connections between these short-term evolutionary dynamics and longer-term evolution across hosts.


2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
WR Shoemaker ◽  
JT Lennon

ABSTRACTDormancy is a bet-hedging strategy that allows organisms to persist through conditions that are sub-optimal for growth and reproduction by entering a reversible state of reduced metabolic activity. Dormancy allows a population to maintain a reservoir of genetic and phenotypic diversity (i.e., a seed bank) that can contribute to the long-term survival of a population. This strategy can be potentially adaptive and has long been of interest to ecologists and evolutionary biologists. However, comparatively little is known about how dormancy influences the fundamental evolutionary forces of genetic drift, mutation, selection, recombination, and gene flow. Here, we investigate how seed banks affect the processes underpinning evolution by reviewing existing theory, implementing novel simulations, and determining how and when dormancy can influence evolution as a population genetic process. We extend our analysis to examine how seed banks can alter macroevolutionary processes, including rates of speciation and extinction. Through the lens of population genetic theory, we can understand the extent that seed banks influence microbial evolutionary dynamics.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joel Sharbrough ◽  
Justin Conover ◽  
Matheus Fernandes Gyorfy ◽  
Corrinne Grover ◽  
Emma R Miller ◽  
...  

Whole-genome duplications (WGDs), in which the number of nuclear genome copies is elevated as a result of autopolyploidy or allopolyploidy, are a prominent process of diversification in eukaryotes. The genetic and evolutionary forces that WGD imposes upon cytoplasmic genomes are not well understood, despite the central role that cytonuclear interactions play in eukaryotic function and fitness. Cellular respiration and photosynthesis depend upon successful interaction between the 3000+ nuclear-encoded proteins destined for the mitochondria or plastids and the gene products of cytoplasmic genomes in multi-subunit complexes such as OXPHOS, organellar ribosomes, Photosystems I and II, and Rubisco. Allopolyploids are thus faced with the critical task of coordinating interactions between nuclear and cytoplasmic genes that were inherited from different species. Because cytoplasmic genomes share a more recent history of common descent with the maternal nuclear subgenome than the paternal subgenome, evolutionary "mismatches" between the paternal subgenome and the cytoplasmic genomes in allopolyploids might lead to accelerated rates of evolution in the paternal homoeologs of allopolyploids, either through relaxed purifying selection or strong directional selection to rectify these mismatches. We tested this hypothesis in maternal vs. paternal copies of organelle-targeted genes in six allotetraploids: Brachypodium hybridum, Chenopodium quinoa, Coffea arabica, Gossypium hirsutum, Nicotiana tabacum, and Triticum dicoccoides. We report evidence that allopolyploid subgenomes exhibit unequal rates of protein-sequence evolution, but we did not observe global effects of cytonuclear incompatibilities on paternal homoeologs of organelle-targeted genes. Analyses of gene content revealed mixed evidence for whether organelle-targeted genes re-diploidize more rapidly than non-organelle-targeted genes. Together, these global analyses provide insights into the complex evolutionary dynamics of allopolyploids, showing that allopolyploid subgenomes have separate evolutionary trajectories despite sharing the same nucleus, generation time, and ecological context.


2006 ◽  
Vol 73 (4) ◽  
pp. 1225-1238 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jos� A. Castillo ◽  
Jean T. Greenberg

ABSTRACT We investigated the genetic diversity, extent of recombination, natural selection, and population divergence of Ralstonia solanacearum samples obtained from sources worldwide. This plant pathogen causes bacterial wilt in many crops and constitutes a serious threat to agricultural production due to its very wide host range and aggressiveness. Five housekeeping genes, dispersed around the chromosome, and three virulence-related genes, located on the megaplasmid, were sequenced from 58 strains belonging to the four major phylogenetic clusters (phylotypes). Whereas genetic variation is high and consistent for all housekeeping loci studied, virulence-related gene sequences are more diverse. Phylogenetic and statistical analyses suggest that this organism is a highly diverse bacterial species containing four major, deeply separated evolutionary lineages (phylotypes I to IV) and a weaker subdivision of phylotype II into two subgroups. Analysis of molecular variations showed that the geographic isolation and spatial distance have been the significant determinants of genetic variation between phylotypes. R. solanacearum displays high clonality for housekeeping genes in all phylotypes (except phylotype III) and significant levels of recombination for the virulence-related egl and hrpB genes, which are limited mainly to phylotype strains III and IV. Finally, genes essential for species survival are under purifying selection, and those directly involved in pathogenesis might be under diversifying selection.


2014 ◽  
Author(s):  
Oana Carja ◽  
Uri Liberman ◽  
Marcus W. Feldman

The production and maintenance of genetic and phenotypic diversity under temporally fluctuating selection and the signatures of environmental and selective volatility in the patterns of genetic and phenotypic variation have been important areas of focus in population genetics. On one hand, stretches of constant selection pull the genetic makeup of populations towards local fitness optima. On the other, in order to cope with changes in the selection regime, populations may evolve mechanisms that create a diversity of genotypes. By tuning the rates at which variability is produced, such as the rates of recombination, mutation or migration, populations may increase their long-term adaptability. Here we use theoretical models to gain insight into how the rates of these three evolutionary forces are shaped by fluctuating selection. We compare and contrast the evolution of recombination, mutation and migration under similar patterns of environmental change and show that these three sources of phenotypic variation are surprisingly similar in their response to changing selection. We show that knowing the shape, size, variance and asymmetry of environmental runs is essential for accurate prediction of genetic evolutionary dynamics.


2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Arunas L. Radzvilavicius

AbstractSexual reproduction is a trait shared by all complex life, but explaining its origin and evolution remains a major theoretical challenge. Virtually all theoretical work on the evolution of sex has focused on the benefits of reciprocal recombination among nuclear genes, paying little attention to the dynamics of mitochondrial genes. Here I develop a mathematical model to study the evolution of alleles inducing cell fusion in an ancestral population of clonal proto-eukaryotes. Mitochondrial mixing masks the detrimental effects of faulty organelles and drives the evolution of sexual cell fusion despite the declining long-term population fitness. Cell-fusion alleles fix under negative epistatic interactions between mitochondrial mutations and strong purifying selection, low mutation load and weak mitochondrial-nuclear associations. I argue that similar conditions could have been maintained throughout the eukaryogenesis, favoring the evolution of sexual cell fusion and meiotic recombination without compromising the stability of the emerging complex cell.


2020 ◽  
Vol 110 (1) ◽  
pp. 49-57 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. Alcaide ◽  
M. P. Rabadán ◽  
M. Juárez ◽  
P. Gómez

Mixed viral infections are common in plants, and the evolutionary dynamics of viral populations may differ depending on whether the infection is caused by single or multiple viral strains. However, comparative studies of single and mixed infections using viral populations in comparable agricultural and geographical locations are lacking. Here, we monitored the occurrence of pepino mosaic virus (PepMV) in tomato crops in two major tomato-producing areas in Murcia (southeastern Spain), supporting evidence showing that PepMV disease-affected plants had single infections of the Chilean 2 (CH2) strain in one area and the other area exhibited long-term (13 years) coexistence of the CH2 and European (EU) strains. We hypothesized that circulating strains of PepMV might be modulating the differentiation between them and shaping the evolutionary dynamics of PepMV populations. Our phylogenetic analysis of 106 CH2 isolates randomly selected from both areas showed a remarkable divergence between the CH2 isolates, with increased nucleotide variability in the geographical area where both strains cocirculate. Furthermore, the potential virus–virus interaction was studied further by constructing six full-length infectious CH2 clones from both areas, and assessing their viral fitness in the presence and absence of an EU-type isolate. All CH2 clones showed decreased fitness in mixed infections and although complete genome sequencing indicated a nucleotide divergence of those CH2 clones by area, the magnitude of the fitness response was irrespective of the CH2 origin. Overall, these results suggest that although agroecological cropping practices may be particularly important for explaining the evolutionary dynamics of PepMV in tomato crops, the cocirculation of both strains may have implications on the genetic variability of PepMV populations.


2016 ◽  
Vol 113 (18) ◽  
pp. 5036-5040 ◽  
Author(s):  
Manabu Sakamoto ◽  
Michael J. Benton ◽  
Chris Venditti

Whether dinosaurs were in a long-term decline or whether they were reigning strong right up to their final disappearance at the Cretaceous–Paleogene (K-Pg) mass extinction event 66 Mya has been debated for decades with no clear resolution. The dispute has continued unresolved because of a lack of statistical rigor and appropriate evolutionary framework. Here, for the first time to our knowledge, we apply a Bayesian phylogenetic approach to model the evolutionary dynamics of speciation and extinction through time in Mesozoic dinosaurs, properly taking account of previously ignored statistical violations. We find overwhelming support for a long-term decline across all dinosaurs and within all three dinosaurian subclades (Ornithischia, Sauropodomorpha, and Theropoda), where speciation rate slowed down through time and was ultimately exceeded by extinction rate tens of millions of years before the K-Pg boundary. The only exceptions to this general pattern are the morphologically specialized herbivores, the Hadrosauriformes and Ceratopsidae, which show rapid species proliferations throughout the Late Cretaceous instead. Our results highlight that, despite some heterogeneity in speciation dynamics, dinosaurs showed a marked reduction in their ability to replace extinct species with new ones, making them vulnerable to extinction and unable to respond quickly to and recover from the final catastrophic event.


Author(s):  
Jasmina Cilerdzic ◽  
Mirjana Stajic ◽  
Jelena Vukojevic

Even though numerous lichen species possess significant medical potentials they are still unexplored, and particularly species and strains originating from Serbia. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate the antioxidative and antimicrobial potential of ethanol extracts of Parmelia saxatilis and Pseudoevernia furfuracea collected in Serbia. The tested extracts were good scavengers of DPPH radicals, with capacities ranging from 14.76% to 79.76% in P. saxatilis and from 21.39% to 90.04% in P. furfuracea. In P. saxatilis level of DPPH? neutralisation was highly correlated with phenol content (r2 = 0.9981) and in P. furfuracea with amount of total flavonoides (r2 = 0.9641). The extract of P. furfuracea inhibited the growth of all tested microorganisms with exception of Aspergillus flavus, while P. saxatilis extract affected only growth of bacterial species. Among tested microorganisms, Staphylococcus aureus and Klebsiella pneumoniae were the most sensitive, while Enterococcus faecalis, Pseudomonas aeruginosa as well as micromycetes were the least sensitive to tested extracts. Because of these potentials and the fact that their long term usage does not have any negative side effects on organism and development of microbial resistance, the extracts could be included in conventional therapy.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shadi Zabad ◽  
Alan M Moses

AbstractWe study the evolution of quantitative molecular traits in the absence of selection. Using a simple theory based on Felsenstein’s 1981 DNA substitution model, we predict a linear restoring force on the mean of an additive phenotype. Remarkably, the mean dynamics are independent of the effect sizes and genotype and are similar to the widely-used OU model for stabilizing selection. We confirm the predictions empirically using additive molecular phenotypes calculated from ancestral reconstructions of putatively unconstrained DNA sequences in primate genomes. We show that the OU model is favoured by inference software even when applied to GC content of unconstrained sequences or simulations of DNA evolution. We predict and confirm empirically that the dynamics of the variance are more complicated than those predicted by the OU model, and show that our results for the restoring force of mutation hold even for non-additive phenotypes, such as number of transcription factor binding sites, longest encoded peptide and folding propensity of the encoded peptide. Our results have implications for efforts to infer selection based on quantitative phenotype dynamics as well as to understand long-term trends in evolution of quantitative molecular traits.


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