Metagenomic analysis of plasmids in the deep-sea benthic biosphere

2016 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 26660154
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Challenging Exploratory Research
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Research Field: Aquatic bioproduction science
• Research Institution: Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology
• Principal Investigator: YOSHIDA Mitsuhiro 国立研究開発法人海洋研究開発機構, 深海・地殻内生物圏研究分野, 技術副主任 (60565555)
• Project Period (FY): 2014-04-01 – 2017-03-31
• Keywords: 深海 / 堆積物 / 極限環境 / プラスミド / メタゲノム

Outline of Final Research Achievements

In this study, we characterized the metagenome of plasmids as mobile genetic elements in the deep-sea benthic ecosystem. The total plasmid DNA that was obtained from the deep-sea surface sediment sample from off Tohoku, Japan (water depth = 500 m) was used for the plasmid metagenomics analysis. The metagenomic sequences associated with Firmicutes and Proteobacteia, such as Deltaproteobacteria and Gammaproteobacteria, dominated the plasmid metagenomic library. In the plasmid metegenome, most of the identified gene sequences were associated with genes involved in various metabolisms (including carbohydrate, amino acid, and energy), translation, signal transductionm and membrane transport. Thus, it suggests that plasmids play an important role in horizontal gene transfer and development in the diverse benthic bacterial community.

Free Research Field

環境微生物学