Genomic foundations of salt tolerance in desert cyanobacteria.
Ye T, Jakovlić I, Chen Z, Wei X, Zhang D
Summary
PubMedScientists discovered how microscopic salt-loving organisms called cyanobacteria thrive in hypersaline deserts by expanding genes for energy and photosynthesis, then accumulating special amino acids under salt stress. These findings could inform strategies to engineer more salt-tolerant crops.
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Key Findings
Comparative genomics of 76 cyanobacterial strains revealed significant gene expansion in photosynthesis, signal transduction, and energy metabolism in desert-adapted lineages
Four genes with adaptive convergence signatures were identified as central to salt tolerance, confirmed through functional validation in laboratory experiments
Salt stress triggers a multi-pathway response critically dependent on accumulation of specific amino acids as the primary adaptation mechanism
Original Abstract
Cyanobacteria dominate the foundational biological soil crusts (biocrusts) of hypersaline deserts, but how they adapt to extreme hypersaline environments remains a fundamental question. Here, we assemble the genome and investigate the adaptation of the halotolerant cyanobacterium Nostoc sp. FACHB-892, a prevalent species of the Tengger Desert. Comparative phylogenomics across 76 cyanobacterial strains from diverse habitats reveals that this desert lineage underwent a significant expansion of genes involved in photosynthesis, signal transduction, and energy metabolism. Integrated transcriptomic and metabolomic analyses under salt stress demonstrate a concentration-dependent, multi-pathway response, critically involving the accumulation of key amino acid metabolism. We identify four genes putatively central to haloadaptation exhibiting signatures of adaptive convergence. Their essential roles in salt tolerance are confirmed through functional validation in Escherichia coli. This study uncovers the coordinated genomic and metabolic mechanisms underpinning cyanobacterial resilience in one of Earth's harshest environments.
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