How do interactions between mobile genetic elements enhance microbial community resilience?

Many ecologically-important traits, including bioremediation, symbiosis, virulence, and resistance, are transmitted between bacteria by horizontal gene transfer (HGT), driven by the activity of mobile genetic elements (MGEs). MGEs routinely interact with one another, e.g., different transposons on a plasmid enables multiple traits to transfer between bacterial lineages at once, and transposon movement between replicons releases traits from limited plasmid host-range.

This modularity of MGEs may help microbial communities in the face of a changing environment, increasing resilience by accelerating the spread of adaptive traits across community members. This project combines computer modelling with experiments to test how MGE interactions enhance trait spread in spatially-structured, multi-species, soil microbial communities.

The objectives of this project are to model the effects of MGE mobility, association, and modularity on trait spread; experimentally test how MGE modularity affects community resilience using a laboratory microcosm system and characterise the major vehicles of horizontal gene transfer in natural microbial communities, by capturing, sequencing, and analysing recipients of HGT.

Background

Many ecologically-important traits, including bioremediation, symbiosis, virulence, and resistance, are transmitted between bacteria by horizontal gene transfer (HGT), driven by the activity of mobile genetic elements (MGEs). MGEs routinely interact with one another, e.g. different transposons on a plasmid enables multiple traits to transfer between bacterial lineages at once, and transposon movement between replicons releases traits from limited plasmid host-range.

This modularity of MGEs may help microbial communities in the face of a changing environment, increasing resilience by accelerating the spread of adaptive traits across community members. This project combines computer modelling with experiments to test how MGE interactions enhance trait spread in spatially-structured, multi-species, soil microbial communities.

Objectives 1 Model the effects of MGE mobility, association, and modularity on trait spread. 2 Experimentally test how MGE modularity affects community resilience using a laboratory microcosm system.

3 Characterise the major vehicles of horizontal gene transfer in natural microbial communities, by capturing, sequencing, and analysing recipients of HGT.