Ecological and Evolutionary Science
Research Article | Ecological and Evolutionary ScienceCompetitive Exclusion and Metabolic Dependency among Microorganisms Structure the Cellulose Economy of an Agricultural SoilOur study reveals the ecogenomic traits of microorganisms participating in the cellulose economy of soil. We identified three major categories of participants in this economy: (i) independent primary degraders, (ii) interdependent primary degraders, and (iii) secondary consumers (mutualists, opportunists, and parasites).
Research Article | Ecological and Evolutionary ScienceParacoccidioides Genomes Reflect High Levels of Species Divergence and Little Interspecific Gene FlowParacoccidioides is the causal agent of a systemic mycosis in Latin America. Most of the inference of the evolutionary history of Paracoccidioides has used only a few molecular markers.
Research Article | Ecological and Evolutionary ScienceWomen Are Underrepresented and Receive Differential Outcomes at ASM Journals: a Six-Year Retrospective AnalysisBarriers in science and academia have prevented women from becoming researchers and experts that are viewed as equivalent to their colleagues who are men. We evaluated the participation and success of women researchers at ASM journals to better understand their success in the field of microbiology. We found that women are underrepresented as expert scientists at ASM journals. This is, in part, due to a combination of both low...
Observation | Ecological and Evolutionary SciencePotential Rhodopsin- and Bacteriochlorophyll-Based Dual Phototrophy in a High Arctic GlacierOver the course of evolution for billions of years, bacteria that are capable of light-driven energy production have occupied every corner of surface Earth where sunlight can reach. Only two general biological systems have evolved in bacteria to be capable of net energy conservation via light harvesting: one is based on the pigment of (bacterio-)chlorophyll and the other is based on proton-pumping rhodopsin. There is emerging genomic...
Research Article | Ecological and Evolutionary SciencePervasive RNA Secondary Structure in the Genomes of SARS-CoV-2 and Other CoronavirusesThe detection and characterization of large-scale RNA secondary structure in the genome of SARS-CoV-2 indicate an extraordinary and unsuspected degree of genome structural organization; this could be effectively visualized through a newly developed contour plotting method that displays positions, structural features, and conservation of RNA secondary structure between related viruses. Such RNA structure imposes a substantial...
Research Article | Ecological and Evolutionary ScienceThe Role of Phosphorus Limitation in Shaping Soil Bacterial Communities and Their Metabolic CapabilitiesPhosphorus (P) is an essential nutrient that is often in limited supply, with P availability constraining biomass production in many terrestrial ecosystems. Despite decades of work on plant responses to P deficiency and the importance of soil microbes to terrestrial ecosystem processes, how soil microbes respond to, and cope with, P deficiencies remains poorly understood. We studied 583 soils from two independent sample sets that each...
Commentary | Ecological and Evolutionary ScienceTell Me Where You’ve Been and I’ll Tell You How You’ll EvolveThe reproducibility of adaptive evolution is a long-standing debate in evolutionary biology. Kempher et al. (M. L. Kempher, X. Tao, R. Song, B. Wu, et al., mBio 11:e00569-20, 2020, https://doi.org/10.1128/mBio.00569-20) used experimental evolution to investigate the effect of previous evolutionary trajectories on the ability of microbial populations to adapt to high temperatures....
Research Article | Ecological and Evolutionary ScienceBiotic Interactions Are More Important than Propagule Pressure in Microbial Community InvasionsWith increasing frequency, humans are introducing new microbes into preexisting microbiomes to alter functioning. Example applications include modification of microflora in human guts for better health and those of soil for food security and/or climate management. Probiotic applications are often approached as trial-and-error endeavors and have mixed outcomes. We propose that increased success in microbiome engineering may be achieved...
Research Article | Ecological and Evolutionary ScienceAncestral Reconstructions Decipher Major Adaptations of Ammonia-Oxidizing Archaea upon Radiation into Moderate Terrestrial and Marine EnvironmentsUnlike all other archaeal lineages, ammonia-oxidizing archaea (AOA) of the phylum Thaumarchaeota are widespread and abundant in all moderate and oxic environments on Earth. The evolutionary adaptations that led to such unprecedented ecological success of a microbial clade characterized by highly conserved energy and carbon metabolisms have, however, remained...
Research Article | Ecological and Evolutionary SciencePervasive Effects of Wolbachia on Host Temperature PreferenceMicrobes infect a diversity of species, influencing the performance and fitness of their hosts. Maternally transmitted Wolbachia bacteria infect most insects and other arthropods, making these bacteria some of the most common endosymbionts in nature. Despite their global prevalence, it remains mostly unknown how Wolbachia influence host physiology and behavior to proliferate. We demonstrate pervasive effects of ...