Abstract
Biological features can be inferred, based on genomic data, for many microbial lineages that remain uncultured. However, cultivation is important for characterizing an organism's physiology and testing its genome-encoded potential. Here we use single-cell genomics to infer cultivation conditions for the isolation of an ectosymbiotic Nanoarchaeota ('Nanopusillus acidilobi') and its host (Acidilobus, a crenarchaeote) from a terrestrial geothermal environment. The cells of 'Nanopusillus' are among the smallest known cellular organisms (100-300 nm). They appear to have a complete genetic information processing machinery, but lack almost all primary biosynthetic functions as well as respiration and ATP synthesis. Genomic and proteomic comparison with its distant relative, the marine Nanoarchaeum equitans illustrate an ancient, common evolutionary history of adaptation of the Nanoarchaeota to ectosymbiosis, so far unique among the Archaea.
Original language | English |
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Article number | 12115 |
Journal | Nature Communications |
Volume | 7 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Jul 5 2016 |
Funding
This research was supported by grants from the National Science Foundation (DEB1134877) and from the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Biological and Environmental Research (DE-SC0006654). Oak Ridge National Laboratory is managed by UT-Battelle, LLC, for the U.S. Department of Energy under contract DE-AC05- 00OR22725.