Biology subjects

Minch, B.

Publications and source records attributed to Minch, B..

6 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2024

BEREN: A bioinformatic tool for recovering Giant viruses, Polinton-like Viruses, and Virophages in metagenomic data

Viruses in the kingdom Bamfordvirae, specifically giant viruses (NCLDVs) in the phylum Nucleocytoviricota and smaller members in the Preplasmiviricota phylum, are widespread and important groups of viruses that infect eukaryotes. While viruses in this kingdom such as giant viruses, polinton-like viruses, and virophages have gained large interest from researchers in recent years, there is still a lack of streamlined tools for the recovery of their genomes from metagenomic datasets. Here, we present BEREN, a comprehensive bioinformatic tool to unlock the diversity of these viruses in metagenomes through five modules for NCLDV genome, contig, and marker gene recovery, metabolic protein annotation, and Preplasmiviricota genome identification and annotation. BERENs performance was benchmarked against other mainstream virus recovery tools using a mock metagenome, demonstrating superior recovery rates of NCLDV contigs and Preplasmiviricota genomes. Applied to a real-world dataset from the Baltic Sea, BEREN identified diverse Bamfordvirae members, giving insight into viral interactions and metabolic functions in this region. Overall, BEREN offers a user-friendly, transparent bioinformatic solution for studying the ecological and functional roles of these eukaryotic viruses, facilitating broader access to their metagenomic analysis.

microbiology↗

bioRxiv2024

Phylogenetic proximity drives temporal succession of marine giant viruses in a five-year metagenomic time-series

Nucleocytoplasmic Large DNA Viruses (NCLDVs, also called giant viruses) are widespread in marine systems and infect a broad range of microbial eukaryotes (protists). Recent biogeographic work has provided global snapshots of NCLDV diversity and community composition across the worlds oceans, yet little information exists about the guiding rules underpinning their community dynamics over time. We leveraged a five-year monthly metagenomic time-series to quantify the community composition of NCLDVs off the coast of Southern California and characterize these populations temporal dynamics. NCLDVs were dominated by Algavirales (Phycodnaviruses, 59%) and Imitervirales (Mimiviruses, 36%). We identified clusters of NCLDVs with distinct classes of seasonal and non-seasonal temporal dynamics. Overall, NCLDV population abundances were often highly dynamic with a strong seasonal signal. The Imitervirales group had highest relative abundance in the more oligotrophic late summer and fall, while Algavirales did so in winter. Generally, closely related strains had similar temporal dynamics, suggesting that evolutionary history is a key driver of the temporal niche of marine NCLDVs. However, a few closely-related strains had drastically different seasonal dynamics, suggesting that while phylogenetic proximity often indicates ecological similarity, occasionally phenology can shift rapidly, possibly due to host-switching. Finally, we identified distinct functional content and possible host interactions of two major NCLDV orders-including connections of Imitervirales with primary producers like the diatom Chaetoceros and widespread marine grazers like Paraphysomonas and Spirotrichea ciliates. Together, our results reveal key insights on season-specific effect of phylogenetically distinct giant virus communities on marine protist metabolism, biogeochemical fluxes and carbon cycling.

ecology↗

bioRxiv2024

Expansion of the genomic and functional diversity of global ocean giant viruses

Giant viruses (GVs) play crucial roles in the global ocean microbial food web and biogeochemistry by infecting protists. Traditionally, insights into GV ecology and functions have been limited to culture-based studies. However, recent metagenomic advances have uncovered over 1,800 new GV genomes from the worlds oceans. While this rapid increase in genomic information marks an impressive advance for the field, it is nowhere close to the extensive genomic information available for other marine entities - e.g., prokaryotes and their virome. Addressing this gap, we present 230 novel, high-quality GV genomes and 398 partial genomes from nine global ocean datasets using an open-source bioinformatic workflow we developed. Notably, we identified numerous GV genomes from the Baltic Sea, offering insights into their phylogenomics, metabolic potential, and environmental drivers in one of the largest brackish water ecosystems. We discovered new GV functions, including photosynthetic proteins, and identified a significant functional divide between the Imitervirales and Algavirales orders. Additionally, we evaluated best practices for GV genome recovery from metagenomic datasets through a case study on the Baltic Sea dataset. Our study significantly expands the marine GV genomic and functional diversity, broadening our understanding of their roles in the food web and biogeochemistry.

microbiology↗

bioRxiv2024

Active prokaryotic and eukaryotic viral ecology across spatial scale in a deep-sea brine pool

Deep-sea brine pools represent rare, extreme environments that focus biodiversity at bathyal to abyssal depths. Despite their small size and distribution, brine pools represent important ecosystems to study because they provide unique insight into the limits of life on Earth, and by analogy, the plausibility of life beyond it. A distinguishing feature of many brine pools is the presence of thick benthic microbial mats which develop at the brine-seawater interface. While these bacterial and archaeal communities have received moderate attention, little is known about the viral communities and their interactions with host populations in these environments. To bridge this knowledge gap, we leveraged metagenomic and metatranscriptomic data from three distinct zones within the NEOM brine pool system (Gulf of Aqaba) to gain insights into the active viral ecology around the pools. Here, we report a remarkable diversity and activity of viruses of all nucleic acid types and genome sizes that infect prokaryotic and eukaryotic hosts in this environment. These include giant viruses (phylum: Nucleocytoviricota), RNA viruses, jumbo phages, and polinton-like viruses (PLVs). Many of these appeared to form distinct clades showing the possibility of untapped viral diversity in the brine pool ecosystem. Zone-specific differences in viral community composition and infection strategy were also observed with lysogenic phages seeming to dominate the bacterial mat further away from the pools center. Through host matching, viruses infecting metabolically important bacteria and archaea were observed - including a linkage between a jumbo phage and a key manganese-oxidizing and arsenic-metabolizing bacterium. Our findings shed light on the role of viruses in modulating the brine pool microbial community dynamics and biogeochemistry through revealing novel viral diversity, host-virus associations, and spatial-scale heterogeneity in viral dynamics in these extreme environments. These results will provide crucial foundation for further investigation into the adaptations of viruses and their microbial hosts in extreme habitats in the marine ecosystem.

microbiology↗

bioRxiv2023

Phylogenetic diversity and functional potential of large and cell-associated viruses in the Bay of Bengal

The Bay of Bengal (BoB), the largest bay in the world, provides valuable ecosystem services such as fishing and recreation to millions of people living along its coast and has a significant economic value. The BoB is impacted by various environmental factors such as seasonal monsoons and multiple freshwater inputs, and this region is particularly vulnerable to sea-level rise and increased frequency of devastating cyclones that are predicted to be exacerbated due to global climate change. These factors are also compounded by anthropogenic influences from tourism and development, making it an important ecosystem to understand and study from a global change perspective. Despite its importance, microbial diversity and ecology have remained largely understudied in this region. In this study, we describe the diversity and putative functional importance of large and cell-associated (that is, originating from the cellular size fraction) viruses from two coastal sites in the BoB, with an emphasis on giant viruses and large phages. Sites chosen for this study include Coxs Bazar, a populated beach with multiple freshwater inputs, and Saint Martin Island, a resort island that has considerably less human influence compared to Coxs Bazar. Through metagenomic sequencing, we were able to identify a more abundant and more diverse viral community at Coxs Bazar consisting of many viruses that are indicators of freshwater intrusion and runoff. Overall, 1962 putative phage genome bins were obtained ranging from 10 - 655 kilobase pairs (kbp) in sizes. Of these genomes, 16 from Saint Martin were found to be larger than 100kbp which we deemed "large" phages, and we were able to reconstruct a phylogeny of these large phages using the TerL gene as a marker. This phylogeny revealed clades enriched in large phages and a high diversity of large phage candidates in the Bay of Bengal coast. Protein annotation analysis showed a wide variety of functionality from both sites with more auxiliary metabolic genes (AMGs) found in the Coxs Bazar viral community. Five giant virus (Phylum Nucleocytoviricota) genomes were also reconstructed from Coxs Bazar and identified as belonging to the orders Imitervirales and Pandoravirales. These genomes ranged from 83 - 876 kbp in size and contained a wide range of encoded functionalities. To the best of our knowledge, our study represents the first insights on the phylogenetic and functional diversity of viruses in the Bay of Bengal. These results thus provide an important foundation for further studies on the impact of host-virus interactions on biogeochemical cycles and microbial food web in this understudied marine environment.

microbiology↗

bioRxiv2023

Exploring Microbial Diversity and Functional Potential along the Bay of Bengal Coastline in Bangladesh: Insights from Amplicon Sequencing and Shotgun Metagenomics

Although the Bay of Bengal (BoB) is the worlds largest bay, possessing distinct physiochemical properties, it has garnered little research focus concerning its microbial diversity and ecological importance. Here, we present amplicon (16S and 18S) profiling and shotgun metagenomics data regarding microbial communities from BoBs eastern coast, viz., Saint Martin and Coxs Bazar, Bangladesh. From the 16S sequencing data, Proteobacteria appeared to be the dominant phylum in both locations, with Alteromonas, Methylophaga, Anaerospora, Marivita, and Vibrio dominating in Coxs Bazar and Pseudoalteromonas, Nautella, Marinomonas, Vibrio, and Alteromonas dominating the Saint Martin site. From the 18S sequencing data, Ochrophyta, Chlorophyta, and Protalveolata appeared among the most abundant eukaryotic divisions in both locations, with significantly higher abundance of Choanoflagellida, Florideophycidae, and Dinoflagellata in Coxs Bazar. Functional annotations revealed that the microbial communities in these samples harbor genes for biofilm formation, quorum sensing, xenobiotics degradation, antimicrobial resistance, and a variety of other processes. Together, these results provide the first molecular insight into the functional and phylogenetic diversity of microbes along the BoB coast of Bangladesh and lay the foundation for further in-depth assessment of microbial community dynamics and functional potential in the context of global change in this region.

microbiology↗