Metabolomic and Genomic Exploration of Acidobacteriota Reveals Novel Phytosanitary Potential
Acidobacteriota is one of the most abundant phyla in soils and has recently attracted attention for its potential role in promoting phytosanitary benefits. The metabolomic capabilities of this phylum remain poorly characterised, with only a few experimentally confirmed metabolites described to date. To address these gaps, we combined untargeted metabolomic profiling with comparative genomic analyses to explore the functional potential of newly isolated Acidobacteriaceae strains. Genome mining across the Acidobacteriota phylum revealed the presence and taxon-specific enrichment of genes associated with plant-related traits, including phytohormone biosynthesis. In parallel, metabolomic analyses of OSMAC-derived extracts uncovered pronounced condition-dependent metabolic variation. Tryptophan supplementation was associated with marked metabolomic reprogramming, including notable changes in indole-derived metabolites, such as indole-3-acetic acid. Subsequent analyses linked these metabolic shifts to the suppression of phytopathogenic fungi and enabled the identification of malassezindoles and pityriacitrins as the key active compounds, confirmed through structure elucidation using NMR spectroscopy. Collectively, these findings shed light on the previously unexplored metabolic potential of the Acidobacteriota phylum, emphasizing its ecological importance for phytosanitary applications.
Acidobacteriota is one of the most abundant phyla in soils and has recently attracted attention for its potential role in promoting phytosanitary benefits. The metabolomic capabilities of this phylum remain poorly characterised, with only a few experimentally confirmed metabolites described to date. To address these gaps, we combined untargeted metabolomic profiling with comparative genomic analyses to explore the functional potential of newly isolated Acidobacteriaceae strains. Genome mining across the Acidobacteriota phylum revealed the presence and taxon-specific enrichment of genes associated with plant-related traits, including phytohormone biosynthesis. In parallel, metabolomic analyses of OSMAC-derived extracts uncovered pronounced condition-dependent metabolic variation. Tryptophan supplementation was associated with marked metabolomic reprogramming, including notable changes in indole-derived metabolites, such as indole-3-acetic acid. Subsequent analyses linked these metabolic shifts to the suppression of phytopathogenic fungi and enabled the identification of malassezindoles and pityriacitrins as the key active compounds, confirmed through structure elucidation using NMR spectroscopy. Collectively, these findings shed light on the previously unexplored metabolic potential of the Acidobacteriota phylum, emphasizing its ecological importance for phytosanitary applications.
Fraunhofer Institute for Molecular Biology and Applied Ecology IME, Branch for Bioresources