Environmental Microbiology and Microbial Ecology Commons^™

Using Single Cell Genomics To Explore The Impact Of Marine Viruses On Microbial Respiration., Paxton Tomko

MCB Articles

Viral metabolic reprograming of marine prokaryotes, through the use of virally encoded auxiliary metabolic genes (AMGs), plays a critical role in marine ecosystem function by influencing biochemical cycles and genetic diversity in these environments. Despite the fundamental role viruses play in global environmental ecosystems, they remain an understudied aspect of microbial ecology and evolution, in part due to the methods available for studying virus host interactions in natural systems. Thus far, metagenomic analyses have been used to study the interactions of virus host pairs, but these types of analyses have their limitations in accurately linking viruses to hosts, or culture-based …

Friends With Benefits: How Picking The Right Partner Pays Off, Patrick T. Stillson

Biology Dissertations - Archive

Animals are highly dependent on microbial symbionts for nutrient supplementation, parasite protection, toxin resistance, and more. While these microbes are important, these associations have the potential to shift from mutualistic to parasitic across environments and over time. Eight insect families from the hemipteran infraorder Pentatomomorpha have evolved a highly specialized relationship with bacteria in the genus Caballeronia. The symbiont is a free-living microbe, acquired from the environment each generation during early host development. By manipulating environmental conditions, I used the bug-Caballeronia model 1) to investigate whether symbionts with greater growth rates at high temperatures prevent hosts from experiencing …

Role Of Extracytoplasmic Function (Ecf) Sigma Factors In The Survival And Symbiosis Of Nitrogen-Fixing Bradyrhizobium Under Desiccation Stress And Comparative Analysis Of Desiccation-Tolerant Rhizobial Isolates, Mohammad Kamruzzaman

Biology Dissertations - Archive

Rhizobia are soil bacteria that facilitate biological nitrogen fixation (BNF) through a symbiotic relationship with legumes such as soybeans. As an eco-friendly alternative to chemical nitrogen fertilizers, rhizobial inoculants can enhance plant growth and yield. However, they face various stresses, including drought (i.e., desiccation). Rhizobia can manage desiccation stress by accumulating trehalose, a disaccharide produced by genes such as otsA, otsB, and treS. Extracytoplasmic function (ECF) sigma factors sense external signals and regulate these desiccation-related genes during the stress. Previous studies have highlighted the importance of EcfG in response to desiccation stress and symbiosis. Based on the protein sequence …

Antibiotic Resistance In A Coastal River In Mississippi, Usa – Potential Drivers, Shuo Shen, Wei Wu, Eric A. Saillant, Darrell Jay Grimes

Gulf and Caribbean Research

Wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) are major sources of antibiotic resistant bacteria (ARB) and antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) in water bodies. Most studies on the impact of WWTPs on antibiotic resistance have focused on freshwater systems, with little information on coastal and estuarine waters with variable salinity. This study monitored seasonal levels of ARGs at the effluent and downstream of the Pascagoula— Moss Point WWTP in the lower Pascagoula River, a coastal river in southeastern Mississippi, USA. Surface water samples were collected seasonally at upstream, outflow, and 3 downstream sites from February to November 2016. Bacterial resistance to sulfamethazine, tetracycline, and …

Borate-Based Bioactive Glasses Properties: Clinical And Biomedical Applications, Sarah Fakher, David J. Westenberg

Biological Sciences Faculty Research & Creative Works

Borate bioactive glasses (BBGs) constitute the recently produced bioactive glasses (BGs) in the domain of bioactive materials, offering enhanced functionalities over conventional silicate and phosphate BGs. This advancement is primarily characterized by BBGs' rapid yet controllable degradation rates, superior bioactivity, and the ability to swiftly form a hydroxyapatite layer (HAP) upon interaction with physiological fluids. A distinguishing feature of BBGs lies in their customizability; doping with therapeutic metal ions tailors their bioactivity towards specific physiological responses, including promoting angiogenesis, antibacterial activity, and osteogenesis. This versatility of BBGs' applications extends to bone regeneration, wound healing, drug delivery systems, and potentially nerve …

In Vitro Assessment Of The Anti-Biofilm Effectiveness Of Copper And Zinc Enhanced Borate Bioactive Glass Using Processed Microscopic Images, Sarah Fakher, David J. Westenberg

Biological Sciences Faculty Research & Creative Works

The escalating burden of nosocomial infections presents a formidable challenge to healthcare systems worldwide, leading to increased morbidity, prolonged hospital stays, and elevated healthcare costs. These infections are often resistant to conventional antibiotic therapies due to their association with biofilms which contribute to the persistence and resistance of pathogens. In addressing the challenge of biofilm-associated nosocomial infections, borate bioactive glasses (BBGs) have emerged as promising biomaterials. Doping these glasses with antimicrobial metals could potentially harness their antibacterial properties to prevent biofilm formation. This study undertakes a rigorous evaluation of the anti-biofilm efficacy of copper and zinc-doped BBGs by employing processed …

Persistence Of Wastewater-Associated Antibiotic Resistant Bacteria In River Microcosms, Aoife P. Mahaney

Theses and Dissertations

The spread of antibiotic-resistant bacteria (ARB) associated with wastewater is a significant environmental concern, but little is known about the persistence and proliferation of these organisms in receiving water bodies after discharge. To address this knowledge gap, we performed a series of microcosm experiments in which river water was amended with either untreated or treated wastewater, and the abundance of viable ciprofloxacin-, Bactrim-, and erythromycin-resistant bacteria was monitored for 72 hours.

Both types of wastewater amendments increased the initial abundance of ARB compared to microcosms containing only river water. The increase was greatest with untreated wastewater, but that effect decreased …

Characterization Of Serx: A Putative Periplasmic Binding Protein In A Selenate Respiring Bacteria, Henry Jacques, Susan E. Childers

Honors Theses

A selenate respiring bacterium, Dechloromonas sp. A34, was isolated from a seleniferous mining site in southeastern Idaho. A34 was of interest due to its ability to respire up to 20 mM selenate, the highest concentration tested. The strain has been proposed to represent a new species of bacteria within the Dechloromonas genera, with the prospective name Dechloromonas selenatirespirans (manuscript in preparation). Our research presents characterization of a putative periplasmic binding protein found within an operon that contains genes encoding a putative selenate reductase. The gene, named serX (selenate reductase gene X), is 855 base pairs and encodes a putative …

Developing Methods For Analysis Of Chiral Small Molecules And D-Amino Acid Containing Peptides, Joshua I. Putman

Chemistry & Biochemistry Dissertations - Archive

This dissertation covers the development of methods to analyze chiral small molecules and d-amino acid containing peptides. The first section covers the development of liquid chromatographic chiral screening approaches for newly synthesized chiral molecules. The next part of the dissertation covers methodologies for the analysis of d-amino acid containing peptides. Lastly the bacterial degradation of three commonly used pesticides by bacteria harvested from Colorado potato beetles (Leptinotarsa decemliniata) is presented.

Twelve new azole compounds and eleven racemic ethanolamine derivatives were synthesized. These twenty-three compounds were evaluated using eight chiral columns, four macrocylic glycopeptides, a cyclodextrin derivative …

Role Of Ph And Plant Age On The Selection Of Rhizobial Endophytes In Soybean Root Nodules, Cole Alexander Roman

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

Soybeans form symbiotic relationships with nitrogen-fixing bacteria in their root nodules to acquire most of their nitrogen requirement; nitrogen is often one of the limiting nutrients in the soil. Members of the Bradyrhizobium, Sinorhizobium, Mesorhizobium, and Rhizobium genera can nodulate soybeans. Bradyrhizobium is preferentially selected over other types of rhizobia in varying environmental conditions and is often found in acidic soils. Sinorhizobium is often identified in the root nodules of soybeans in neutral and alkaline soil. So far, the potential role of soil pH on the selection of rhizobial endophytes with soybean root nodules is unknown. Likewise, …

Examining The Role Of Microbial Communities In Soil Carbon Cycling Across Levels Of Complexity, Chansotheary Dang

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Microorganisms provide the foundation for many ecosystem processes and are important drivers of carbon and nutrient cycling. The advancement of next generation sequencing has allowed researchers to lift open the lid on the ‘black box’ in microbial ecology. While previously unculturable microbes can now be characterized with the 16S rRNA gene, answering ‘who’s there?’ is only part of the challenge. Hidden inside the ‘black box’ remains the question, ‘who’s doing what?’. Recent development in trait-based methods like quantitative stable isotope probing (qSIP) equipped microbial ecologists with the tool to connect taxon-specific traits to ecosystem processes. Despite the growing body of …

Social Interactions And Spatial Structure Drive Community Assembly Of Bacterial Biofilm, Matthew C. Bond

Dartmouth College Ph.D Dissertations

Despite the critical nature which microbial communities play in the natural world and human civilization, the breadth of understanding remains shallow. Challenged by scale, high variability between environments, and extensive diversity, microbial ecologists strive to understand connections between a community’s structure and function, as well as the ecological and evolutionary mechanisms underlying observed natural patterning of communities. Biofilms are the predominate mode of growth for microbial communities—characterized by cellular attachment to a surface via a self-produced matrix and heterogeneous structure, often resulting in a primary growth front along the biofilm surface due to differential access to bulk nutrients (cite). This …

Poor Water Quality As A Trigger Of Harmful Algal Blooms In Lake Manzala, Mohammed A. Hussein, Alaa Eldin Eissa, Reham M. Eltarabily, Mohamed F. Abdelghany, Mahmoud A. Elnakeeb, Eman M. Ismail, Reham H. Ragab, Amina A. Dessouki

Mansoura Veterinary Medical Journal

Objective: The current study aimed to assess the direct effects of poor water quality on the eruption of heavy harmful algal blooms and to assess the physicochemical properties of water in Lake Manzala, as well as the molecular identification of the retrieved green algae.

Procedures: Subsurface water samples were collected from three different sites in September 2023 for water quality assessment. Moreover, morphological and molecular identification of suspected harmful algae is the most reliable diagnostic tool for this eruption.

Results: This study was conducted in the northern and northeastern regions of Lake Manzala. These regions receive large amounts of municipal, …

Synthetic Microbial Communities For Plastic Upcycling, Isabel B. A. Valencia

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Plastic waste and human hunger pose major threats to the health and wellbeing of populations world-wide. Using microbial methods to upcycle polyethylene terephthalate (PET) plastic into value-added compounds such as single cell protein (SCP) for human consumption is a unique solution to both these issues. Two monomers of chemically deconstructed PET (DCPET), terephthalate (TPA) and ethylene glycol (EG), have been previously shown to be biodegradable by enriched microbial communities. Using this top-down knowledge to inform the reconstruction of a minimal microbial community constructed from isolated members of these communities is a novel way to efficiently process these monomers via a …

Application Of Environmental Dna Metabarcoding To Differentiate Algal Communities By Littoral Zonation And Detect Unreported Algal Species, Sergei Bombin, Andrei Bombin, Brian Wysor, Juan M. Lopez-Bautista

Arts & Sciences Faculty Publications

Coastal areas are the most biologically productive and undoubtedly among the most complex ecosystems. Algae are responsible for most of the gross primary production in these coastal regions. However, despite the critical importance of algae for the global ecosystem, the biodiversity of many algal groups is understudied, partially due to the high complexity of morphologically identifying algal species. The current study aimed to take advantage of the recently developed technology for biotic community assessment through the high-throughput sequencing (HTS) of environmental DNA (eDNA), known as the “eDNA metabarcoding”, to characterize littoral algal communities in the Northern Gulf of Mexico (NGoM). …

Co-Divergence Of Lemur Hosts And Gut Microbiomes Across Multiple Evolutionary Scales, Mariah E. Donohue

Theses and Dissertations--Biology

This dissertation bridges micro- and macroevolutionary approaches to understand the co-diversification of animal hosts and their gut microbiomes at different evolutionary timescales. I examined these dynamics using wild lemurs, a diverse Primate clade endemic to the island of Madagascar.

First, I tested the relative effects of host phylogenetic relationships, diet, and habitat in shaping the gut microbiome through deep evolutionary time and across distinct microbial kingdoms. I designed a natural experiment sampling feces from rainforest and dry forest lemur communities with similar phylogenetic assemblages and considerable variation in dietary strategy. Then, I amplified and sequenced two metabarcoding genes, the V4 …

Interactions Between Multiple Stressors, Nanomaterials And A Pathogen, In Caenorhabditis Elegans, Jarad Cochran

Theses and Dissertations--Plant and Soil Sciences

Metal and metal oxide nanoparticles (NP), which have received interest for use in agriculture, show in vitro and in vivo toxicity at relatively low concentrations. Silver nanoparticles (Ag NP) and zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO NP) cause adverse effects in model soil organisms under environmentally relevant conditions. In most toxicity assessments of nanomaterials, model organisms are exposed to a single stressor. Though single stressor experiments are essential to understanding the fate and effects of released NP, in nature, organisms are affected by multiple stressors, including pathogens, which might exacerbate or mitigate negative effects of NP exposure. There is limited research on …

Temporal Distribution Of Potential Waterborne Pathogens In Sequiota Spring, William J. Durstock

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

Waterborne pathogens from human fecal matter pose a significant health risk in karst environments, where domestic wastewater can easily be transferred to the shallow groundwater system via old, leaky septic tanks and damaged sewer lines. This study monitored fecal indicator bacteria (FIB) and potential pathogens in Sequiota Spring located in the karst region of southwest Missouri, using Microbial Source Tracking (MST) and Illumina DNA sequencing of bacterial 16S rRNA genes. MST identified high levels of human fecal indicator bacteria (HFIB) (up to 110,000 cells/L) in July 2020. By June 2022, HFIB levels had dropped significantly (55-fold reduction) after the City …

Effects Of Subchronic Oral Pfos Exposure Via Drinking Water On Gut Microbiota Composition, Emma Ann Loder

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

Perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS) has been phased out of production in the United States, but because of its resistance to degradation and its persistence in the environment, PFOS can be found in drinking water across America. Oral exposure to PFOS has been linked to adverse developmental, immunological, hepatic, and endocrine health. Oral PFOS exposure may alter the gut microbiota and cause dysbiosis, which is implicated in the pathology of inflammatory diseases like Crohn’s disease, diabetes, and ulcerative colitis. The goal of the study was to investigate the effects of subchronic oral PFOS exposure on the composition of the gut microbiota. Adult …

Patterns Of Epiphytic Bacterial Growth On Flower Surfaces: Relationships With Flower Longevity And Environmental Factors, Rita Nkem Afagwu

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

Flowers host diverse communities of epiphytic bacteria, which can impact floral functions, pollinator interactions, and overall plant fitness. However, little is known about how the abundance of these bacteria change as flowers age, and how these shifts may correlate with floral longevity. In this study I investigate the change in bacterial abundance across the lifespan of a flower from anthesis (opening of bud to flower) to senescence (wilting of flower) and to explore the potential implications for floral longevity. We tracked the age of the flowers by determining the average age to senescence in flowers of 8 plant species over …