Genome fluctuations in cyanobacteria reflect evolutionary, developmental and adaptive traits

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Cyanobacteria belong to an ancient group of photosynthetic prokaryotes with pronounced variations in their cellular differentiation strategies, physiological capacities and choice of habitat. Sequencing efforts have shown that genomes within this phylum are equally diverse in terms of size and protein-coding capacity. To increase our understanding of genomic changes in the lineage, the genomes of 58 contemporary cyanobacteria were analysed for shared and unique orthologs.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>A total of 404 protein families, present in all cyanobacterial genomes, were identified. Two of these are unique to the phylum, corresponding to an AbrB family transcriptional regulator and a gene that escapes functional annotation although its genomic neighbourhood is conserved among the organisms examined. The evolution of cyanobacterial genome sizes involves a mix of gains and losses in the clade encompassing complex cyanobacteria, while a single event of reduction is evident in a clade dominated by unicellular cyanobacteria. Genome sizes and gene family copy numbers evolve at a higher rate in the former clade, and multi-copy genes were predominant in large genomes. Orthologs unique to cyanobacteria exhibiting specific characteristics, such as filament formation, heterocyst differentiation, diazotrophy and symbiotic competence, were also identified. An ancestral character reconstruction suggests that the most recent common ancestor of cyanobacteria had a genome size of approx. 4.5 Mbp and 1678 to 3291 protein-coding genes, 4%-6% of which are unique to cyanobacteria today.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The different rates of genome-size evolution and multi-copy gene abundance suggest two routes of genome development in the history of cyanobacteria. The expansion strategy is driven by gene-family enlargment and generates a broad adaptive potential; while the genome streamlining strategy imposes adaptations to highly specific niches, also reflected in their different functional capacities. A few genomes display extreme proliferation of non-coding nucleotides which is likely to be the result of initial expansion of genomes/gene copy number to gain adaptive potential, followed by a shift to a life-style in a highly specific niche (e.g. symbiosis). This transition results in redundancy of genes and gene families, leading to an increase in junk DNA and eventually to gene loss. A few orthologs can be correlated with specific phenotypes in cyanobacteria, such as filament formation and symbiotic competence; these constitute exciting exploratory targets.</p

A putative new ampelovirus associated with grapevine leafroll disease

A putative new ampelovirus was detected in Vitis vinifera cv. Carnelian showing mild leafroll symptoms and molecularly characterized. The complete genome consisted of 13,625 nt and had a structure similar to that of members of subgroup I in the genus Ampelovirus (fam. Closteroviridae). In-depth analyses showed that the virus from cv. Carnelian is the most distinct member of the “GLRaV-4 lineage” of ampeloviruses, which comprises GLRaV-4, -5, -6, -9, and the recently characterized GLRaV-Pr, and GLRaV-De. This virus appears to be a new member of the family Closteroviridae, for which the provisional name grapevine leafroll-associated Carnelian virus is proposed

Thermally stable Pt/mesoporous silica core-shell nanocatalysts for high-temperature reactions

Recent advances in colloidal synthesis enabled the precise control of the size, shape and composition of catalytic metal nanoparticles, enabling their use as model catalysts for systematic investigations of the atomic-scale properties affecting catalytic activity and selectivity. The organic capping agents stabilizing colloidal nanoparticles, however, often limit their application in high-temperature catalytic reactions. Here, we report the design of a high-temperature-stable model catalytic system that consists of a Pt metal core coated with a mesoporous silica shell (Pt@mSiO&quot;2). Inorganic silica shells encaged the Pt cores up to 750??C in air and the mesopores providing direct access to the Pt core made the Pt@mSiO&quot;2 nanoparticles as catalytically active as bare Pt metal for ethylene hydrogenation and CO oxidation. The high thermal stability of Pt@mSiO&quot;2 nanoparticles enabled high-temperature CO oxidation studies, including ignition behaviour, which was not possible for bare Pt nanoparticles because of their deformation or aggregation. The results suggest that the Pt@mSiO&quot;2 nanoparticles are excellent nanocatalytic systems for high-temperature catalytic reactions or surface chemical processes, and the design concept used in the Pt@mSiO&quot;2 core-shell catalyst can be extended to other metal/metal oxide compositions.close48143