New perspectives on picocyanobacteria and understudied cyanobacterial diversity in the Albemarle Pamlico sound system, North Carolina, USA
Cyanobacteria are important primary producers, sources of secondary metabolites, and sentinels of environmental change in aquatic ecosystems – including large estuaries. Here, we newly investigated cyanobacterial diversity within the Albemarle Pamlico Sound System (APES) using (16S rRNA) gene amplic...
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Frontiers Media S.A.
2025-05-01
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| Series: | Frontiers in Microbiology |
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| Online Access: | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2025.1539050/full |
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| author | Joel Sánchez-Gallego Joel Sánchez-Gallego Nathaniel P. Curtis Hans W. Paerl Ryan W. Paerl |
| author_facet | Joel Sánchez-Gallego Joel Sánchez-Gallego Nathaniel P. Curtis Hans W. Paerl Ryan W. Paerl |
| author_sort | Joel Sánchez-Gallego |
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| description | Cyanobacteria are important primary producers, sources of secondary metabolites, and sentinels of environmental change in aquatic ecosystems – including large estuaries. Here, we newly investigated cyanobacterial diversity within the Albemarle Pamlico Sound System (APES) using (16S rRNA) gene amplicon sequencing analyses. Substantial cyanobacterial diversity including lineages lacking current isolates were recovered (46 genera, 17 potentially cyanotoxic), with oligohaline waters of the Albemarle Sound and its tributaries being notable regional hotspot for diversity. Salinity and temperature were influential drivers of cyanobacterial community composition. Picocyanobacteria (cells <3 µm in diameter) were abundant in amplicon sequence libraries (72% of cyanobacterial sequences) – especially populations within Synechococcus SubClade 5.2. Picocyanobacteria along with picoeukaryotes were large contributors to total phytoplankton biomass comprising ~47% of chlorophyll a. Further, the picocyanobacterial genera Synechococcus, Cyanobium, and Synechocystis (55.4%, 14.8%, and 12.9% of cyanobacterial sequences, respectively) formed a core community spanning from freshwater regions (eastern AST, D949) to polyhaline environments (NRE100 downstream stations to PS5), suggesting resilience to significant salinity fluctuations and associated environmental changes. Amplicon sequence variant (ASV) and environmental data indicate the presence of several putative ecotypes, as well as distinct abundance patterns among closely related populations, highlighting substantial fitness variability among subspecies. Notably, potentially cyanotoxic genera, Synechocystis, Planktothrix, Plectonema, and Dolichospermum were the four more abundant detected in polyhaline APES regions, far beyond conspicuous freshwater sources. These findings reveal previously unrecognized potential sources of cyanotoxics in estuarine food webs and habitats, underscoring the ecological significance of cyanobacterial community dynamics across salinity gradients. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-4be85407b07447d595ed224e6200d5d8 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1664-302X |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-05-01 |
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| series | Frontiers in Microbiology |
| spelling | doaj-art-4be85407b07447d595ed224e6200d5d82025-08-20T03:52:51ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Microbiology1664-302X2025-05-011610.3389/fmicb.2025.15390501539050New perspectives on picocyanobacteria and understudied cyanobacterial diversity in the Albemarle Pamlico sound system, North Carolina, USAJoel Sánchez-Gallego0Joel Sánchez-Gallego1Nathaniel P. Curtis2Hans W. Paerl3Ryan W. Paerl4Department of Marine, Earth, and Atmospheric Sciences, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, United StatesCoiba Scientific Station, City of Knowledge, Clayton, PanamaDepartment of Marine, Earth, and Atmospheric Sciences, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, United StatesDepartment of Earth, Marine and Environmental Sciences, Institute of Marine Sciences, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Morehead City, NC, United StatesDepartment of Marine, Earth, and Atmospheric Sciences, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, United StatesCyanobacteria are important primary producers, sources of secondary metabolites, and sentinels of environmental change in aquatic ecosystems – including large estuaries. Here, we newly investigated cyanobacterial diversity within the Albemarle Pamlico Sound System (APES) using (16S rRNA) gene amplicon sequencing analyses. Substantial cyanobacterial diversity including lineages lacking current isolates were recovered (46 genera, 17 potentially cyanotoxic), with oligohaline waters of the Albemarle Sound and its tributaries being notable regional hotspot for diversity. Salinity and temperature were influential drivers of cyanobacterial community composition. Picocyanobacteria (cells <3 µm in diameter) were abundant in amplicon sequence libraries (72% of cyanobacterial sequences) – especially populations within Synechococcus SubClade 5.2. Picocyanobacteria along with picoeukaryotes were large contributors to total phytoplankton biomass comprising ~47% of chlorophyll a. Further, the picocyanobacterial genera Synechococcus, Cyanobium, and Synechocystis (55.4%, 14.8%, and 12.9% of cyanobacterial sequences, respectively) formed a core community spanning from freshwater regions (eastern AST, D949) to polyhaline environments (NRE100 downstream stations to PS5), suggesting resilience to significant salinity fluctuations and associated environmental changes. Amplicon sequence variant (ASV) and environmental data indicate the presence of several putative ecotypes, as well as distinct abundance patterns among closely related populations, highlighting substantial fitness variability among subspecies. Notably, potentially cyanotoxic genera, Synechocystis, Planktothrix, Plectonema, and Dolichospermum were the four more abundant detected in polyhaline APES regions, far beyond conspicuous freshwater sources. These findings reveal previously unrecognized potential sources of cyanotoxics in estuarine food webs and habitats, underscoring the ecological significance of cyanobacterial community dynamics across salinity gradients.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2025.1539050/fullcyanobacteriapicocyanobacteriaAlbemarle-Pamlico Sound Systemcore microbiomeflow cytometrycyanotoxic populations |
| spellingShingle | Joel Sánchez-Gallego Joel Sánchez-Gallego Nathaniel P. Curtis Hans W. Paerl Ryan W. Paerl New perspectives on picocyanobacteria and understudied cyanobacterial diversity in the Albemarle Pamlico sound system, North Carolina, USA Frontiers in Microbiology cyanobacteria picocyanobacteria Albemarle-Pamlico Sound System core microbiome flow cytometry cyanotoxic populations |
| title | New perspectives on picocyanobacteria and understudied cyanobacterial diversity in the Albemarle Pamlico sound system, North Carolina, USA |
| title_full | New perspectives on picocyanobacteria and understudied cyanobacterial diversity in the Albemarle Pamlico sound system, North Carolina, USA |
| title_fullStr | New perspectives on picocyanobacteria and understudied cyanobacterial diversity in the Albemarle Pamlico sound system, North Carolina, USA |
| title_full_unstemmed | New perspectives on picocyanobacteria and understudied cyanobacterial diversity in the Albemarle Pamlico sound system, North Carolina, USA |
| title_short | New perspectives on picocyanobacteria and understudied cyanobacterial diversity in the Albemarle Pamlico sound system, North Carolina, USA |
| title_sort | new perspectives on picocyanobacteria and understudied cyanobacterial diversity in the albemarle pamlico sound system north carolina usa |
| topic | cyanobacteria picocyanobacteria Albemarle-Pamlico Sound System core microbiome flow cytometry cyanotoxic populations |
| url | https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2025.1539050/full |
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