Variation in permissiveness for broad-host-range plasmids among genetically indistinguishable isolates of Dickeya sp. from a small field plot

Heuer, Holger; Ebers, Jonas; Weinert, N.; Smalla, Kornelia

doi:10.1111/j.1574-6941.2010.00880.x

Cited by 17 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 28 publications

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“…Transfer of an IncP-1 plasmid from E. coli to phylogenetically distant Flavobacteria was detected in soil microcosms (Pukall et al, 1996), indicating that transfer to distant nodes of the phylogenetic tree is not only possible, but also realized in undisturbed soil environments. In pure culture, permissiveness toward broad host range plasmids of isolates that are indistinguishable by 16S rRNA gene analysis can differ by more than 100-fold (Heuer et al, 2010). Here we confirm that inferring plasmid uptake and transfer frequency cannot be predicted based on the phylogenetic identity of an OTU.…”

Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 68%

Broad host range plasmids can invade an unexpectedly diverse fraction of a soil bacterial community

et al. 2014

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Conjugal plasmids can provide microbes with full complements of new genes and constitute potent vehicles for horizontal gene transfer. Conjugal plasmid transfer is deemed responsible for the rapid spread of antibiotic resistance among microbes. While broad host range plasmids are known to transfer to diverse hosts in pure culture, the extent of their ability to transfer in the complex bacterial communities present in most habitats has not been comprehensively studied. Here, we isolated and characterized transconjugants with a degree of sensitivity not previously realized to investigate the transfer range of IncP-and IncPromA-type broad host range plasmids from three proteobacterial donors to a soil bacterial community. We identified transfer to many different recipients belonging to 11 different bacterial phyla. The prevalence of transconjugants belonging to diverse Gram-positive Firmicutes and Actinobacteria suggests that inter-Gram plasmid transfer of IncP-1 and IncPromAtype plasmids is a frequent phenomenon. While the plasmid receiving fractions of the community were both plasmid-and donor-dependent, we identified a core super-permissive fraction that could take up different plasmids from diverse donor strains. This fraction, comprising 80% of the identified transconjugants, thus has the potential to dominate IncP-and IncPromA-type plasmid transfer in soil. Our results demonstrate that these broad host range plasmids have a hitherto unrecognized potential to transfer readily to very diverse bacteria and can, therefore, directly connect large proportions of the soil bacterial gene pool. This finding reinforces the evolutionary and medical significances of these plasmids.

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Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 68%

Broad host range plasmids can invade an unexpectedly diverse fraction of a soil bacterial community

et al. 2014

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“…4) in two gammaproteobacterial species. Our empirical knowledge about plasmid host range is limited by the availability of model hosts, and can also be confounded by strain-and speciesspecific plasmid permissiveness (De Gelder et al, 2007;Heuer et al, 2007Heuer et al, , 2010. Future systematic host range analyses using additional model hosts will be important to strengthen the host-specialization hypothesis.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Host range diversification within the IncP-1 plasmid group

et al. 2013

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Broad-host-range plasmids play a critical role in the spread of antibiotic resistance and other traits. In spite of increasing information about the genomic diversity of closely related plasmids, the relationship between sequence divergence and host range remains unclear. IncP-1 plasmids are currently classified into six subgroups based on the genetic distance of backbone genes. We investigated whether plasmids from two subgroups exhibit a different host range, using two IncP1c plasmids, an IncP-1b plasmid and their minireplicons. Efficiencies of plasmid establishment and maintenance were compared using five species that belong to the Alphaproteobacteria, Betaproteobacteria and Gammaproteobacteria. The IncP-1b plasmid replicated and persisted in all five hosts in the absence of selection. Of the two IncP-1c plasmids, both were unable to replicate in alphaproteobacterial host Sphingobium japonicum, and one established itself in Agrobacterium tumefaciens but was very unstable. In contrast, both IncP-1c minireplicons, which produced higher levels of replication initiation protein than the wild-type plasmids, replicated in all strains, suggesting that poor establishment of the native plasmids is in part due to suboptimal replication initiation gene regulation. The findings suggest that host ranges of distinct IncP-1 plasmids only partially overlap, which may limit plasmid recombination and thus result in further genome divergence.

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“…Fifty days after introducing the E. coli donor pTH16 and recipients into non-sterile soil, rhizosphere bacteria that captured the nourseothricin resistance plasmid were isolated and identified by BIOLOG as Agrobacterium , Pseudomonas and Flavobacterium . A similar approach was also taken to identify the host range of the IncP-1ε pHH3414 in soil microcosms planted with Acacia caven [63]. In this experiment soil bacteria that received pHH3414 were identified by 16S rRNA gene sequencing as Gammaproteobacteria ( Enterobacter amnigenus , Xanthomonas codiaei ) and Betaproteobacteria ( Cupriavidus campinensis , Alcaligenes sp.).…”

Section: Plasmid Host Range Determination and Plasmid Cost And Benmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This was already known from matings in the laboratory [69], and is now confirmed for in situ plasmid spread. Additionally, it was shown that the permissiveness of a bacterial community and even of isolates to receive and maintain plasmids can change by several orders of magnitude in response to irregular environmental change such as manure fertilization [63,70]. …”

Section: Plasmid Host Range Determination and Plasmid Cost And Benmentioning

confidence: 99%

Plasmid Detection, Characterization, and Ecology

2015

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Plasmids are important vehicles for rapid adaptation of bacterial populations to changing environmental conditions. To reduce the cost of plasmid carriage, it is thought that only a fraction of a local population carries plasmids or is permissive to plasmid uptake. Plasmids provide various accessory traits which might be beneficial under particular conditions. The genetic variation generated by plasmid carriage within populations ensures the robustness towards environmental change. Plasmid-mediated gene transfer plays an important role not only in the mobilization and dissemination of antibiotic resistance genes but also in the spread of degradative pathways and pathogenicity determinants of pathogens. Here we summarize the state-of-the-art methods to study the occurrence, abundance and diversity of plasmids in environmental bacteria. Increasingly, cultivation independent total community DNA methods are being used to characterize and quantify the diversity and abundance of plasmids in relation to various biotic and abiotic factors. An improved understanding of the ecology of plasmids and their hosts is crucial in the development of intervention strategies for antibiotic resistance gene spread. We discuss the potentials and limitations of methods used to determine the host range of plasmids as the ecology of plasmids is tightly linked to their hosts. The recent advances in sequencing technologies provide an enormous potential for plasmid classification, diversity and evolution studies but numerous challenges still exist.

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Variation in permissiveness for broad-host-range plasmids among genetically indistinguishable isolates of Dickeya sp. from a small field plot

Cited by 17 publications

References 28 publications

Broad host range plasmids can invade an unexpectedly diverse fraction of a soil bacterial community

Broad host range plasmids can invade an unexpectedly diverse fraction of a soil bacterial community

Host range diversification within the IncP-1 plasmid group

Plasmid Detection, Characterization, and Ecology

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