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Insight into the Metabolic Machinery of Deep‐Marine Microbes Grown with Light and Heavy Petroleum
Author(s) -
Tejeda-Mora Andres Javier,
Maturano Luis Donis,
Macias-Contreras Marla I.,
Guerrero Abraham,
Gonzalez-Sanchez Ricardo,
Hernandez-Lopez Edna,
Vazquez-Duhalt Rafael,
Licea-Navarro Alexei,
Moreno-Ulloa Aldo
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
the faseb journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.709
H-Index - 277
eISSN - 1530-6860
pISSN - 0892-6638
DOI - 10.1096/fasebj.2020.34.s1.09751
Subject(s) - metagenomics , metabolic pathway , petroleum , environmental chemistry , microbial biodegradation , chemistry , 16s ribosomal rna , biology , microorganism , biochemistry , bacteria , organic chemistry , metabolism , gene , genetics
Degradation of hydrocarbons by marine microbes is well studied and specific metabolic routes have been delineated. Deep‐marine sediments (>1000 m) harbor bacterial communities but remain poorly studied compared to those inhabiting shallow waters. While metagenomics studies have evidenced the metabolic potential of microbes from deep‐sea origins, more exploration through novel approaches of their metabolic machinery is warranted. In this study, we profiled the bacterial taxa (16S rRNA amplicon sequencing) and metabolome (Liquid chromatography coupled to high‐resolution mass spectrometry [LC‐HR‐MS]) of microbes from deep‐sea sediments of the Gulf of Mexico cultured with heavy and light petroleum (four distinct types, according to API classification). We utilized a comprehensive chemoinformatic analysis to detect the microbial chemistries using a repertoire of novel chemoinformatic software, and results were integrated with those obtained by the prediction of functional profiles using 16S rRNA data. We noted a better microbial growth in lighter vs. heavier petroleum after 28 days of culturing, wherein the genus Pseudomonas prevailed, to a similar extent, in all conditions. Hydrocarbon‐degradation pathways (e.g., benzoate, naphthalene, and toluene degradation) were represented by predicted functional profiles, but no differences were observed among petroleum types. PCA analysis of metabolic data showed differences among petroleum type. The number of metabolites and chemical diversity were reduced in heavier vs. lighter petroleum. The predominant chemical classes were coumarins and derivatives, prenol lipids, benzene and substituted derivatives (equal to prenol lipids), and prenol lipids for API 7–10, API 16–20, API 35, and API 40, respectively. Also, other chemical classes linked to hydrocarbon‐metabolism were detected. Manual inspection of selected metabolite clusters or groups of structurally‐related metabolites led to the putative identification of aminated, carboxylated, and hydroxylated chemistries linked to microbial metabolism of hydrocarbons. In conclusion, our study provides valuable microbiological and metabolomic information about one of the most understudied ecosystems in the world, the deep‐marine sediments. Support or Funding Information This research was funded by the National Council of Science and Technology of México – Mexican Ministry of Energy – Hydrocarbon Trust, project 201441. This is a contribution of the Gulf of México Research Consortium (CIGoM).