Breaking down microbial hierarchies

Article Ecology

Changes in interactions over ecological time scales influence single-cell growth dynamics in a metabolically coupled marine microbial community

Michael Daniels et al.

Summary: Microbial communities in different habitats participate in interactions through metabolite exchange, which can have variable effects on individuals and the community as a whole. Understanding the dynamic feedback effects of these interactions on growth dynamics is important. In this study, a microfluidic-based approach was used to analyze the changing interactions between two species in a marine microbial community, showing that the interactions are not static but rather depend on the state of the environment. This experimental approach provides new insights into how modifications of the environment affect species interactions and community-level processes in natural environments.

ISME JOURNAL (2023)

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Article Multidisciplinary Sciences

Metabolic cross-feeding structures the assembly of polysaccharide degrading communities

Sammy Pontrelli et al.

Summary: A study on a model marine microbial community that degrades chitin reveals that chitinases secreted by the degraders produce specific chain length oligomers, which select for specialized consumers and influence the metabolites secreted by these consumers. Each species in the breakdown cascade exhibits unique hierarchical preferences for substrates, leading to sequential colonization of metabolically distinct groups over time. This study uncovers a hierarchical cross-feeding structure that allows biopolymer degraders to shape the dynamics of community assembly.

SCIENCE ADVANCES (2022)

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Article Ecology

Dynamic metabolic interactions and trophic roles of human gut microbes identified using a minimal microbiome exhibiting ecological properties

Sudarshan A. Shetty et al.

Summary: This study investigates the ecological and metabolic interactions of 16 key bacteria in the human gut using a synthetic minimal microbiome, revealing crucial insights into their co-existence, metabolic niches, and trophic roles in a highly dynamic and competitive in vitro ecosystem.

ISME JOURNAL (2022)

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Article Microbiology

Tracking bacterial lineages in complex and dynamic environments with applications for growth control and persistence

Somenath Bakshi et al.

Summary: The study found that bacteria undergo significant changes in number, size, growth mode, etc. at different growth stages, and cells that undergo more divisions upon entering stationary phase have lower survival rates after long periods of dormancy, but still persist after antibiotic treatment.

NATURE MICROBIOLOGY (2021)

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Review Biochemistry & Molecular Biology