Ecological and Evolutionary Science
Research Article | Ecological and Evolutionary ScienceAdaptive Evolution of Phosphorus Metabolism in ProchlorococcusMicrobes are known to employ three basic strategies to compete for limiting elemental resources: (i) cell quotas may be adjusted by alterations to cell physiology or by substitution of a more plentiful resource, (ii) stressed cells may synthesize high-affinity transporters, and (iii) cells may access more costly sources from internal stores, by degradation, or by petitioning other microbes. In the case of phosphorus, a limiting resource...
Editor's Pick Research Article | Ecological and Evolutionary ScienceMicrobial Communities Are Well Adapted to Disturbances in Energy InputWithin the broader ecological context, biological communities are often viewed as stable and as only experiencing succession or replacement when subject to external perturbations, such as changes in food availability or the introduction of exotic species. Our findings indicate that microbial communities can exhibit strong internal dynamics that may be more important in shaping community succession than external drivers. Dynamic “...
Editor's Pick Research Article | Ecological and Evolutionary ScienceLong-Term Evolution of Burkholderia multivorans during a Chronic Cystic Fibrosis Infection Reveals Shifting Forces of SelectionBacteria may become genetically and phenotypically diverse during long-term colonization of cystic fibrosis (CF) patient lungs, yet our understanding of within-host evolutionary processes during these infections is lacking. Here we combined current genome sequencing technologies and detailed phenotypic profiling of the opportunistic pathogen Burkholderia multivorans...
Research Article | Ecological and Evolutionary ScienceDifferential Functional Constraints Cause Strain-Level Endemism in Polynucleobacter PopulationsUnderstanding the biological factors influencing habitat-wide genetic endemism is important for explaining observed biogeographic patterns. Polynucleobacter is a genus of bacteria that seems to have found a way to colonize myriad freshwater ecosystems and by doing so has become one of the most abundant bacteria in these environments. We sequenced metagenomes from locations across the Chicago River system and assembled ...
Editor's Pick Research Article | Ecological and Evolutionary ScienceDiversity and Activity of Communities Inhabiting Plastic Debris in the North Pacific GyreMarine plastic debris is a growing concern that has captured the general public’s attention. While the negative impacts of plastic debris on oceanic macrobiota, including mammals and birds, are well documented, little is known about its influence on smaller marine residents, including microbes that have key roles in ocean biogeochemistry. Our work provides a new perspective on microbial communities inhabiting microplastics that includes...
Research Article | Ecological and Evolutionary ScienceOpen-Source Sequence Clustering Methods Improve the State Of the ArtMassive collections of next-generation sequencing data call for fast, accurate, and easily accessible bioinformatics algorithms to perform sequence clustering. A comprehensive benchmark is presented, including open-source tools and the popular USEARCH suite. Simulated, mock, and environmental communities were used to analyze sensitivity, selectivity, species diversity (alpha and beta), and taxonomic composition. The results demonstrate...
Research Article | Ecological and Evolutionary ScienceClades of Photosynthetic Bacteria Belonging to the Genus Rhodopseudomonas Show Marked Diversity in Light-Harvesting Antenna Complex Gene Composition and ExpressionRhodopseudomonas palustris is a phototrophic purple nonsulfur bacterium that adapts its photosystem to allow growth at a range of light intensities. It does this by adjusting the amount and composition of peripheral light-harvesting (LH) antenna complexes that it synthesizes. Rhodopseudomonas strains are notable for containing numerous sets of light-...