Do lanthanide-dependent microbial metabolisms drive the release of REEs from weathered granites?
Prior to soil formation, phosphate liberated by rock weathering is often sequestered into highly insoluble lanthanide phosphate minerals. Dissolution of these minerals is critical for the release of phosphate to the biosphere, yet the microorganisms involved, and the genes required for lanthanide metabolism, are poorly understood. Here, we sampled weathered granite and associated soil to identify the zones of lanthanide phosphate mineral solubilization and genomically define the organisms implicated in lanthanide utilisation. We reconstructed 136 genomes from 11 bacterial phyla and found gene clusters implicated in lanthanide-based metabolism of methanol (primarily XoxF3 and XoxF5) are surprisingly common in microbial communities in moderately weathered granite where lanthanide phosphate minerals are dissolving. Notably, XoxF3 systems were found in Verrucomicrobia for the first time, and in Acidobacteria, Gemmatimonadetes, and Alphaproteobacteria. The XoxF-containing gene clusters are shared by diverse Acidobacteria and Gemmatimonadetes, and include conserved hypothetical proteins and transporters not associated with the few well studied XoxF systems. Given that siderophore-like molecules that strongly bind lanthanides may be required to solubilize lanthanide phosphates, it is notable that candidate siderophore biosynthesis systems were most prevalent in bacteria in moderately weathered rock, especially in Acidobacteria with lanthanide-based systems. We conclude that the confluence in the zone of moderate weathering of phosphate mineral dissolution, lanthanide utilisation, and methanol oxidation (thus carbonic acid production) may be important during the conversion of granitic rock to soil.