title: Genome sequence of Synechococcus CC9311: Insights into adaptation to a coastal environment.
abstract: Coastal aquatic environments are typically more highly productive and dynamic than open ocean ones. Despite these differences, cyanobacteria from the genus Synechococcus are important primary producers in both types of ecosystems. We have found that the genome of a coastal cyanobacterium, Synechococcus sp. strain CC9311, has significant differences from an open ocean strain, Synechococcus sp. strain WH8102, and these are consistent with the differences between their respective environments. CC9311 has a greater capacity to sense and respond to changes in its (coastal) environment. It has a much larger capacity to transport, store, use, or export metals, especially iron and copper. In contrast, phosphate acquisition seems less important, consistent with the higher concentration of phosphate in coastal environments. CC9311 is predicted to have differences in its outer membrane lipopolysaccharide, and this may be characteristic of the speciation of some cyanobacterial groups. In addition, the types of potentially horizontally transferred genes are markedly different between the coastal and open ocean genomes and suggest a more prominent role for phages in horizontal gene transfer in oligotrophic environments.
authors.affiliation: Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California at San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093, USA.
authors.forename: Brian
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Palenik
authors.forename: Qinghu
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Ren
authors.forename: Chris L
authors.initials: CL
authors.lastname: Dupont
authors.forename: Garry S
authors.initials: GS
authors.lastname: Myers
authors.forename: John F
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: Heidelberg
authors.forename: Jonathan H
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Badger
authors.forename: Ramana
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Madupu
authors.forename: William C
authors.initials: WC
authors.lastname: Nelson
authors.forename: Lauren M
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Brinkac
authors.forename: Robert J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Dodson
authors.forename: A Scott
authors.initials: AS
authors.lastname: Durkin
authors.forename: Sean C
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Daugherty
authors.forename: Stephen A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Sullivan
authors.forename: Hoda
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Khouri
authors.forename: Yasmin
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Mohamoud
authors.forename: Rebecca
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Halpin
authors.forename: Ian T
authors.initials: IT
authors.lastname: Paulsen
mesh_terms: D000222:Adaptation, Physiological; D020029:Base Pairing; D001483:Base Sequence; D002876:Chromosomes, Bacterial; D004777:Environment; D016368:Frameshift Mutation; D016680:Genome, Bacterial; D008954:Models, Biological; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D016366:Open Reading Frames; D009876:Operon; D010802:Phylogeny; D017354:Point Mutation; D012343:RNA, Transfer; D046940:Synechococcus / Q000235:genetics* / Q000502:physiology*
chemical_list: D012343:RNA, Transfer