Host-symbiont coevolution: Exploring the parasitism-mutualism continuum

宿主-共生体共同进化：探索寄生-互惠连续体

• 批准号: NE/H005250/1
• 负责人: Andrew Spiers
• 金额: $ 1.85万
• 依托单位: Abertay University
• 依托单位国家: 英国
• 项目类别: Research Grant
• 财政年份: 2010
• 资助国家: 英国
• 起止时间: 2010 至 无数据
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://gtr.ukri.org/projects?ref=NE%2FH005250%2F1
• 关键词: Host; symbiont; coevolution; Exploring; parasitism

Intimate and prolonged associations between different organisms - symbioses - are widespread and important in the natural environment. Symbiotic associations can range from being parasitic, where one organism benefits at the expense of the other, to being mutualistic, where both organisms benefit from the association. Such symbiotic associations underpin the functioning of ecosystems: mutualism can allow pairs of organisms to survive where otherwise neither would and parasitism can limit the growth of host populations. These symbioses are particularly important in microbial communities but little is known about how these associations shape the evolution and diversity of microbial symbionts. Here we want to understand how the evolution of symbiotic organisms is different under conditions that range from parasitic to mutualistic. Our approach is to study the evolution of a bacterial-plasmid symbiosis where the nature of the association ranges from parasitic to mutualistic depending on the environment: in the presence of mercury the association is mutualistic because the plasmid has a gene for mercury resistance; and in the absence of mercury the association is parasitic because carrying the plasmid slows the growth of the bacteria. In nature carrying the plasmid allows bacteria to survive in otherwise toxic mercury contaminated soils. We will exploit the short generation times, and large population sizes of bacteria to observe evolution in action. We will discover and contrast the genetic changes that occur in the genomes of both the bacteria and the plasmid as they co-evolve on a continuum of environments that change the symbiosis from parasitic to mutualistic. - Our study is novel because we will, for the first time, study evolution across a parasitic-mutualistic symbiosis continuum using a single symbiotic association. - Our study is relevant to the natural environment because such bacterial-plasmid associations are widespread, but poorly understood, in microbial communities and are likely to play an important role in maintaining biodiversity and ecosystem function, particularly in response to heavy metal contamination of soils. - Our study is powerful because we will use an experimental approach to study evolution in action. - Our study is timely because we will exploit the latest technologies in DNA sequencing to directly observe evolution of genetic sequences in bacterial and plasmid genomes.

在自然环境中，不同生物体之间的亲密和长时间关联 - 共生 - 很重要。共生关联的范围从寄生虫，一个生物以牺牲另一个生物为代价，到互惠的，两种生物都会受益于联想。这种共生的关联是生态系统的功能：互助的能力可以使成对的生物体生存，否则否则却既不会寄生，又不能限制宿主种群的生长。这些共生在微生物群落中尤为重要，但是对于这些关联如何影响微生物共生体的演变和多样性，知之甚少。在这里，我们想了解共生生物的演变在从寄生虫到相互主义范围内的条件下如何不同。我们的方法是研究细菌 - 质粒共生的演变，其中缔合的性质从寄生虫到相互的，取决于环境：在存在汞的情况下，缔合是相互主义的，因为质粒具有汞耐性的志向；在没有汞的情况下，缔合是寄生的，因为携带质粒会减慢细菌的生长。在携带质粒的自然界中，细菌可以在其他有毒的汞污染的土壤中生存。我们将利用短的生成时间，大量人口大小，以观察行动中的进化。我们将发现并对比细菌和质粒的基因组中发生的遗传变化，因为它们在将共生从寄生虫变为相互作用的环境中共进。 - 我们的研究之所以新颖，是因为我们将首次使用单个共生缔合跨寄生虫共生连续体研究进化。 - 我们的研究与自然环境有关，因为这种细菌 - 质量质粒的关联在微生物群落中广泛，但知之甚少，并且很可能在维持生物多样性和生态系统功能方面发挥重要作用，尤其是在响应重金属污染土壤方面。 - 我们的研究很强​​大，因为我们将使用实验方法来研究作用进化。 - 我们的研究之所以及时，是因为我们将利用DNA测序中的最新技术来直接观察细菌和质粒基因组中遗传序列的演变。

项目成果

Rapid compensatory evolution promotes the survival of conjugative plasmids.

• DOI: 10.1080/2159256x.2016.1179074
• 发表时间: 2016-05
• 期刊: Mobile genetic elements
• 作者: Harrison E;Dytham C;Hall JP;Guymer D;Spiers AJ;Paterson S;Brockhurst MA
• 通讯作者: Brockhurst MA

Bacteriophages limit the existence conditions for conjugative plasmids.

• DOI: 10.1128/mbio.00586-15
• 发表时间: 2015-06-02
• 期刊: mBio
• 影响因子: 6.4
• 作者: Harrison E;Wood AJ;Dytham C;Pitchford JW;Truman J;Spiers A;Paterson S;Brockhurst MA
• 通讯作者: Brockhurst MA

Conflicting selection alters the trajectory of molecular evolution in a tripartite bacteria-plasmid-phage interaction.

• DOI: 10.1111/mec.14080
• 发表时间: 2017-05
• 期刊: Molecular ecology
• 影响因子: 4.9
• 作者: Harrison E;Hall JPJ;Paterson S;Spiers AJ;Brockhurst MA
• 通讯作者: Brockhurst MA

Environmentally co-occurring mercury resistance plasmids are genetically and phenotypically diverse and confer variable context-dependent fitness effects.

• DOI: 10.1111/1462-2920.12901
• 发表时间: 2015-12
• 期刊: Environmental microbiology
• 影响因子: 5.1
• 作者: Hall JP;Harrison E;Lilley AK;Paterson S;Spiers AJ;Brockhurst MA
• 通讯作者: Brockhurst MA