Genomic Features Predict Bacterial Life History Strategies in Soil, as Identified by Metagenomic Stable Isotope Probing
Samuel E. Barnett, Rob Egan, Brian Foster, Emiley A. Eloe‐Fadrosh, Daniel H. Buckley
Abstract
Soil microbes are major players in the global carbon cycle, yet we still have little understanding of how the carbon cycle operates in soil communities. A major limitation is that carbon metabolism lacks discrete functional genes that define carbon transformations. Instead, carbon transformations are governed by anabolic processes associated with growth, resource acquisition, and survival. We use metagenomic stable isotope probing to link genome information to microbial growth and carbon assimilation dynamics as they occur in soil. From these data, we identify genomic traits that can predict bacterial ecological strategies which define bacterial interactions with soil carbon.