Environmental micro-compartment genomics provides efficient and high-throughput single-particle DNA sequencing that captures overlooked members of microbial communities.

Abstract. A large amount of a photoautotroph’s fixed carbon is released as dissolved organic matter, from both exudation and solubilized detritus. This dis

Ozempic, MRI machines and flat screen televisions all emerged out of fundamental research decades earlier — the very types of study being slashed by the US government.

Abstract. Heterotrophic bacteria process nearly half of the organic matter produced by phytoplankton in the surface ocean. Much of this organic matter consists of high-molecular-weight (HMW) biopolyme...

Chlorophyll a is declining in low- to mid-latitude oceans, indicating reduced ocean productivity and fewer phytoplankton blooms.

Abstract. The order Pelagibacterales (SAR11) is the most abundant group of heterotrophic bacteria in the global surface ocean, where individual sublineages

Nature Microbiology - An exploration of the viromes of haloarchaea and their ultra-small DPANN symbionts reveals plasmid-derived satellites of viruses from both archaeal groups, highlighting the...

Clams reveal North Atlantic destabilization in the early 20th century and at present.

Abstract. Viruses play key roles in controlling microbial abundance and community composition, nutrient cycling, and productivity in marine systems. Rising

This Perspective discusses virus-encoded auxiliary metabolic genes and provides a framework for the biological interpretation of these genes.

A study reports whole-genome sequences for 490,640 participants from the UK Biobank and combines these data with phenotypic data to provide new insights into the relationship between human variation a...

Marine viral ecology emerged as a distinct discipline approximately 25 years ago. Despite significant progress, direct assessments of viral impacts on carbon flux remain scarce. Here, we integrate rec...

Plastic packaging — at every stage of its lifecycle — may contribute to the development and spread of antimicrobial resistance (AMR), which poses “one of the greatest threats to mode...

Exclusive: Research on burden of antibiotic resistance for 122 countries predicts dire economic and health outcomes

Oligotrophic bacteria with reduced genomes have relatively few transcriptional regulators and are thought to rely more than other bacteria on post-transcriptional regulation to respond to environmental stimuli. SAR11 bacteria are the most abundant group of heterotrophic bacteria in marine planktonic systems and are a model for understanding genome reduction in other free-living microorganisms. Here, we report a comprehensive, quantitative protein phosphorylation profile for SAR11 strain HTCC1062 grown under various environmentally relevant conditions, including light/dark cycles, temperature differences, and nutrient limitations, to investigate phosphorylation dynamics in this streamlined organism. Nearly half of proteins encoded by the genome were detected in phosphorylated forms under at least one condition. 1014 Ser/Thr/Tyr phosphorylation sites were observed in 1576 phosphopeptides from 555 phosphoproteins. Protein phosphorylation was concentrated in proteins for functions associated with nutrient acquisition and growth, such as ABC transporters, RNA polymerase, and ribosomal proteins. Prominent patterns in protein phosphorylation were detected across a range of culture conditions. In these cells, which previously have been shown to continuously express nearly their entire proteome, protein phosphorylation was more dynamic than protein abundance, supporting the hypothesis that post-transcriptional regulation by protein phosphorylation might play a large role in modulating protein activity. Our findings support a regulatory model characterized by minimal variation in protein expression but extensive protein phosphorylation. This model diverges from bacterial regulatory paradigms reliant on transcriptional control, and may be relevant to understanding other abundant heterotrophs with reduced genomes.