Obligate Microbial Communities Associated with the Toxic Diatom Pseudo-Nitzschia australis Genome? Implications for Genome Assemblies
Date of Award
2017
Degree Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Science in Biology
Department
Biology
Chief Instructor
Deborah Robertson
Second Reader
John Gibbons
Third Reader
G. Jason Smith
Keywords
Microbiology, Bioinformatics
Abstract
Initial genomic sequencing of the diatom isolate Pseudo-nitzschia australis HAB200 revealed "contamination" of the diatom genome with bacterial sequences. This study examined potential impacts bacterial associations have on the diatom genome assembly. P. australis paired-end MiSeq and PacBio sequences were mapped to different bacterial reference genomes. Surprisingly, P. australis reads mapped to entire bacterial genomes despite three months of treatment with Provasoli's antibiotics prior to DNA isolation. Both MiSeq and PacBio reads mapped to approximately 80% of Rhodobacteraceae bacterium HTCC2083 genome suggesting that this species associates with P. australis. P. australis mapped best to the genomes of bacteria belonging to the Roseobacter clade. Removing mapped bacterial reads slightly reduced the estimated genome size of P.autralis but the genome remains larger than any previously published diatom genome. The presence of entire microbial genomes may reveal an evolved obligate symbiotic relationship between bacteria and diatoms.
Recommended Citation
Stone, Emily Elizabeth, "Obligate Microbial Communities Associated with the Toxic Diatom Pseudo-Nitzschia australis Genome? Implications for Genome Assemblies" (2017). Biology. 4.
https://commons.clarku.edu/biology_masters_papers/4