Virus ecology and 7-year temporal dynamics across a permafrost thaw gradient
(2024) In Environmental Microbiology 26(8).- Abstract
Soil microorganisms are pivotal in the global carbon cycle, but the viruses that affect them and their impact on ecosystems are less understood. In this study, we explored the diversity, dynamics, and ecology of soil viruses through 379 metagenomes collected annually from 2010 to 2017. These samples spanned the seasonally thawed active layer of a permafrost thaw gradient, which included palsa, bog, and fen habitats. We identified 5051 virus operational taxonomic units (vOTUs), doubling the known viruses for this site. These vOTUs were largely ephemeral within habitats, suggesting a turnover at the vOTU level from year to year. While the diversity varied by thaw stage and depth-related patterns were specific to each habitat, the virus... (More)
Soil microorganisms are pivotal in the global carbon cycle, but the viruses that affect them and their impact on ecosystems are less understood. In this study, we explored the diversity, dynamics, and ecology of soil viruses through 379 metagenomes collected annually from 2010 to 2017. These samples spanned the seasonally thawed active layer of a permafrost thaw gradient, which included palsa, bog, and fen habitats. We identified 5051 virus operational taxonomic units (vOTUs), doubling the known viruses for this site. These vOTUs were largely ephemeral within habitats, suggesting a turnover at the vOTU level from year to year. While the diversity varied by thaw stage and depth-related patterns were specific to each habitat, the virus communities did not significantly change over time. The abundance ratios of virus to host at the phylum level did not show consistent trends across the thaw gradient, depth, or time. To assess potential ecosystem impacts, we predicted hosts in silico and found viruses linked to microbial lineages involved in the carbon cycle, such as methanotrophy and methanogenesis. This included the identification of viruses of Candidatus Methanoflorens, a significant global methane contributor. We also detected a variety of potential auxiliary metabolic genes, including 24 carbon-degrading glycoside hydrolases, six of which are uniquely terrestrial. In conclusion, these long-term observations enhance our understanding of soil viruses in the context of climate-relevant processes and provide opportunities to explore their role in terrestrial carbon cycling.
(Less)
- author
- Sun, Christine L.
; Pratama, Akbar Adjie
; Gazitúa, Maria Consuelo
; Cronin, Dylan
; McGivern, Bridget B.
; Wainaina, James M.
; Vik, Dean R.
; Zayed, Ahmed A.
; Bolduc, Benjamin
; Wrighton, Kelly C.
; Rich, Virginia I.
; Sullivan, Matthew B.
and Mondav, Rhiannon
LU
(Less) - author collaboration
- organization
- publishing date
- 2024-07-05
- type
- Contribution to journal
- publication status
- published
- subject
- keywords
- element cycling, Climate and environmental change, microbial ecology
- in
- Environmental Microbiology
- volume
- 26
- issue
- 8
- article number
- e16665
- publisher
- Wiley-Blackwell
- external identifiers
-
- scopus:85200334501
- pmid:39101434
- ISSN
- 1462-2912
- DOI
- 10.1111/1462-2920.16665
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- yes
- additional info
- Publisher Copyright: © 2024 The Author(s). Environmental Microbiology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
- id
- 86b72b13-a79f-4c73-8541-5a7317485052
- date added to LUP
- 2024-12-11 11:40:54
- date last changed
- 2025-07-10 04:43:46
@article{86b72b13-a79f-4c73-8541-5a7317485052,
abstract = {{<p>Soil microorganisms are pivotal in the global carbon cycle, but the viruses that affect them and their impact on ecosystems are less understood. In this study, we explored the diversity, dynamics, and ecology of soil viruses through 379 metagenomes collected annually from 2010 to 2017. These samples spanned the seasonally thawed active layer of a permafrost thaw gradient, which included palsa, bog, and fen habitats. We identified 5051 virus operational taxonomic units (vOTUs), doubling the known viruses for this site. These vOTUs were largely ephemeral within habitats, suggesting a turnover at the vOTU level from year to year. While the diversity varied by thaw stage and depth-related patterns were specific to each habitat, the virus communities did not significantly change over time. The abundance ratios of virus to host at the phylum level did not show consistent trends across the thaw gradient, depth, or time. To assess potential ecosystem impacts, we predicted hosts in silico and found viruses linked to microbial lineages involved in the carbon cycle, such as methanotrophy and methanogenesis. This included the identification of viruses of Candidatus Methanoflorens, a significant global methane contributor. We also detected a variety of potential auxiliary metabolic genes, including 24 carbon-degrading glycoside hydrolases, six of which are uniquely terrestrial. In conclusion, these long-term observations enhance our understanding of soil viruses in the context of climate-relevant processes and provide opportunities to explore their role in terrestrial carbon cycling.</p>}},
author = {{Sun, Christine L. and Pratama, Akbar Adjie and Gazitúa, Maria Consuelo and Cronin, Dylan and McGivern, Bridget B. and Wainaina, James M. and Vik, Dean R. and Zayed, Ahmed A. and Bolduc, Benjamin and Wrighton, Kelly C. and Rich, Virginia I. and Sullivan, Matthew B. and Mondav, Rhiannon}},
issn = {{1462-2912}},
keywords = {{element cycling; Climate and environmental change; microbial ecology}},
language = {{eng}},
month = {{07}},
number = {{8}},
publisher = {{Wiley-Blackwell}},
series = {{Environmental Microbiology}},
title = {{Virus ecology and 7-year temporal dynamics across a permafrost thaw gradient}},
url = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/1462-2920.16665}},
doi = {{10.1111/1462-2920.16665}},
volume = {{26}},
year = {{2024}},
}