Ecology of inorganic sulfur auxiliary metabolism in widespread bacteriophages

Kristopher Kieft, Zhichao Zhou, Rika E. Anderson, Alison Buchan, Barbara J. Campbell, Steven J. Hallam, Matthias Hess, Matthew B. Sullivan, David A. Walsh, Simon Roux and Karthik Anantharaman ()
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Kristopher Kieft: University of Wisconsin–Madison
Zhichao Zhou: University of Wisconsin–Madison
Rika E. Anderson: Carleton College
Alison Buchan: University of Tennessee
Barbara J. Campbell: Life Science Facility, Clemson University
Steven J. Hallam: University of British Columbia
Matthias Hess: University of California Davis
Matthew B. Sullivan: The Ohio State University
David A. Walsh: Concordia University
Simon Roux: Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
Karthik Anantharaman: University of Wisconsin–Madison

Nature Communications, 2021, vol. 12, issue 1, 1-16

Abstract: Abstract Microbial sulfur metabolism contributes to biogeochemical cycling on global scales. Sulfur metabolizing microbes are infected by phages that can encode auxiliary metabolic genes (AMGs) to alter sulfur metabolism within host cells but remain poorly characterized. Here we identified 191 phages derived from twelve environments that encoded 227 AMGs for oxidation of sulfur and thiosulfate (dsrA, dsrC/tusE, soxC, soxD and soxYZ). Evidence for retention of AMGs during niche-differentiation of diverse phage populations provided evidence that auxiliary metabolism imparts measurable fitness benefits to phages with ramifications for ecosystem biogeochemistry. Gene abundance and expression profiles of AMGs suggested significant contributions by phages to sulfur and thiosulfate oxidation in freshwater lakes and oceans, and a sensitive response to changing sulfur concentrations in hydrothermal environments. Overall, our study provides fundamental insights on the distribution, diversity, and ecology of phage auxiliary metabolism associated with sulfur and reinforces the necessity of incorporating viral contributions into biogeochemical configurations.

Date: 2021
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:nat:natcom:v:12:y:2021:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-021-23698-5

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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-23698-5

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