Metatranscriptomics by in situ RNA stabilization directly and comprehensively revealed episymbiotic microbial communities of deep-sea squat lobsters.

Abstract

Deep-sea hydrothermal vent ecosystems remain mysterious. To depict in detail the enigmatic life of chemosynthetic microbes there, which are key primary producers, metatranscriptomic analysis is expected to be a promising approach. However, this has been hindered by substantial perturbation (e.g., RNA degradation) during time-consuming retrieval from the deep sea. In this study, we conducted direct metatranscriptome analysis of microbial episymbionts of deep-sea squat lobsters (Shinkaia crosnieri) by applying in situ RNA stabilization equipment. Compared to conventional metatranscriptomics (i.e., RNA stabilization after retrieval), our method provided substantially different RNA expression profiles. Moreover, we discovered that S. crosnieri and its episymbiotic microbes constitute complex and resilient ecosystems, where closely related but various episymbionts are stably maintained by horizontal exchange and partly by their sulfur storage ability for survival even when sulfur compounds are not usable, likely also in a detached and free-living state.

Publication
mSystems

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初めての主著です。もうすぐ出るはずです。

この研究はお蔵入りになる可能性もあった研究だと思うので、出版までいったことにホッと一息つくとともに、横浜国立大学の和仁先生、それから共著でもあるJAMSTECの高井さん、和辻さん、高木さん、そしてスーパーバイザーである東大の岩崎さんには大変お世話になりました。

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