Title | Single-cell genomics reveals hundreds of coexisting subpopulations in wild prochlorococcus |
Publication Type | Journal Article |
Year of Publication | 2014 |
Authors | Kashtan N, Roggensack SE, Rodrigue S, Thompson JW, Biller SJ, Coe A, Ding H, Marttinen P, Malmstrom RR, Stocker R, Follows MJ, Stepanauskas R, Chisholm SW |
Journal | Science |
Volume | 344 |
Pagination | 416–420 |
Keywords | RCC278 |
Abstract | Extensive genomic diversity within coexisting members of a microbial species has been revealed through selected cultured isolates and metagenomic assemblies. Yet, the cell-by-cell genomic composition of wild uncultured populations of co-occurring cells is largely unknown. In this work, we applied large-scale single-cell genomics to study populations of the globally abundant marine cyanobacterium Prochlorococcus. We show that they are composed of hundreds of subpopulations with distinct “genomic backbones,” each backbone consisting of a different set of core gene alleles linked to a small distinctive set of flexible genes. These subpopulations are estimated to have diverged at least a few million years ago, suggesting ancient, stable niche partitioning. Such a large set of coexisting subpopulations may be a general feature of free-living bacterial species with huge populations in highly mixed habitats. |
URL | http://www.sciencemag.org/content/344/6182/416.abstract |
DOI | 10.1126/science.1248575 |