Towards the biogeography of butyrate-producing bacteria

Joel E Brame; Craig Liddicoat; Catherine A Abbott; Robert A Edwards; Jake M Robinson; Nicolas E Gauthier; Martin F Breed

doi:10.1101/2022.10.07.510278

Towards the biogeography of butyrate-producing bacteria

Joel E Brame, Craig Liddicoat, Catherine A Abbott, Robert A Edwards, Jake M Robinson, Nicolas E Gauthier, Martin F Breed

Research output: Working paper/Preprint › Preprint

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Abstract

Aim: Butyrate-producing bacteria are found in many outdoor ecosystems and host organisms, including humans, and are vital to ecosystem functionality and human health. These bacteria ferment organic matter, producing the short-chain fatty acid butyrate. However, few (if any) studies have examined the macroecological influences on their large-scale biogeographical distribution. Here we aimed to characterise their global biogeography together with key explanatory climatic, geographic, and physicochemical variables.

Location: Global, and the Australian continent

Time period: 2005-2020

Major taxa studied: Butyrate-producing bacteria

Methods: We developed new normalised butyrate production capacity (BPC) indices derived from global metagenomic (n=13,078) and Australia-wide soil 16S rRNA (n=1,331) data, using Geographic Information System (GIS) and modelling techniques to detail their ecological and biogeographical associations.

Results: The highest BPC scores were found in anoxic and fermentative environments, including the human and non-human animal gut, and in some plant-soil systems. Within plant-soil systems, roots and rhizospheres had the highest BPC scores. Among soil samples, geographic and climatic variables had the strongest overall influence on BPC scores, with human influence also making key contributions. Higher BPC scores were in soils from seasonally productive sandy rangelands, temperate rural residential areas, and sites with moderate-to-high soil iron concentrations.

Main conclusions: Abundances of butyrate-producing bacteria in outdoor soils follow complex ecological patterns influenced by geography, climate, soil chemistry, and hydrological fluctuations. Human population density and soil iron also play substantial roles, and their effects are dependent on a combination of ecological variables. These new biogeographical insights further our understanding of the global ecology patterns of butyrate-producing bacteria, with implications for emerging microbially-focussed ecological and human health policies.

Original language	English
Publisher	bioRxiv, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
Number of pages	37
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1101/2022.10.07.510278
Publication status	Published - 17 May 2023

Keywords

butyrate
ecosystem services
gut microbiome
metagenomics
microbial ecology
soil microbiota

UN SDGs

This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

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http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2023/05/17/2022.10.07.510278.abstract

Cite this

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abstract = "Aim: Butyrate-producing bacteria are found in many outdoor ecosystems and host organisms, including humans, and are vital to ecosystem functionality and human health. These bacteria ferment organic matter, producing the short-chain fatty acid butyrate. However, few (if any) studies have examined the macroecological influences on their large-scale biogeographical distribution. Here we aimed to characterise their global biogeography together with key explanatory climatic, geographic, and physicochemical variables.Location: Global, and the Australian continentTime period: 2005-2020Major taxa studied: Butyrate-producing bacteriaMethods: We developed new normalised butyrate production capacity (BPC) indices derived from global metagenomic (n=13,078) and Australia-wide soil 16S rRNA (n=1,331) data, using Geographic Information System (GIS) and modelling techniques to detail their ecological and biogeographical associations.Results: The highest BPC scores were found in anoxic and fermentative environments, including the human and non-human animal gut, and in some plant-soil systems. Within plant-soil systems, roots and rhizospheres had the highest BPC scores. Among soil samples, geographic and climatic variables had the strongest overall influence on BPC scores, with human influence also making key contributions. Higher BPC scores were in soils from seasonally productive sandy rangelands, temperate rural residential areas, and sites with moderate-to-high soil iron concentrations.Main conclusions: Abundances of butyrate-producing bacteria in outdoor soils follow complex ecological patterns influenced by geography, climate, soil chemistry, and hydrological fluctuations. Human population density and soil iron also play substantial roles, and their effects are dependent on a combination of ecological variables. These new biogeographical insights further our understanding of the global ecology patterns of butyrate-producing bacteria, with implications for emerging microbially-focussed ecological and human health policies.",

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author = "Brame, {Joel E} and Craig Liddicoat and Abbott, {Catherine A} and Edwards, {Robert A} and Robinson, {Jake M} and Gauthier, {Nicolas E} and Breed, {Martin F}",

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AU - Liddicoat, Craig

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AU - Gauthier, Nicolas E

AU - Breed, Martin F

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N2 - Aim: Butyrate-producing bacteria are found in many outdoor ecosystems and host organisms, including humans, and are vital to ecosystem functionality and human health. These bacteria ferment organic matter, producing the short-chain fatty acid butyrate. However, few (if any) studies have examined the macroecological influences on their large-scale biogeographical distribution. Here we aimed to characterise their global biogeography together with key explanatory climatic, geographic, and physicochemical variables.Location: Global, and the Australian continentTime period: 2005-2020Major taxa studied: Butyrate-producing bacteriaMethods: We developed new normalised butyrate production capacity (BPC) indices derived from global metagenomic (n=13,078) and Australia-wide soil 16S rRNA (n=1,331) data, using Geographic Information System (GIS) and modelling techniques to detail their ecological and biogeographical associations.Results: The highest BPC scores were found in anoxic and fermentative environments, including the human and non-human animal gut, and in some plant-soil systems. Within plant-soil systems, roots and rhizospheres had the highest BPC scores. Among soil samples, geographic and climatic variables had the strongest overall influence on BPC scores, with human influence also making key contributions. Higher BPC scores were in soils from seasonally productive sandy rangelands, temperate rural residential areas, and sites with moderate-to-high soil iron concentrations.Main conclusions: Abundances of butyrate-producing bacteria in outdoor soils follow complex ecological patterns influenced by geography, climate, soil chemistry, and hydrological fluctuations. Human population density and soil iron also play substantial roles, and their effects are dependent on a combination of ecological variables. These new biogeographical insights further our understanding of the global ecology patterns of butyrate-producing bacteria, with implications for emerging microbially-focussed ecological and human health policies.

AB - Aim: Butyrate-producing bacteria are found in many outdoor ecosystems and host organisms, including humans, and are vital to ecosystem functionality and human health. These bacteria ferment organic matter, producing the short-chain fatty acid butyrate. However, few (if any) studies have examined the macroecological influences on their large-scale biogeographical distribution. Here we aimed to characterise their global biogeography together with key explanatory climatic, geographic, and physicochemical variables.Location: Global, and the Australian continentTime period: 2005-2020Major taxa studied: Butyrate-producing bacteriaMethods: We developed new normalised butyrate production capacity (BPC) indices derived from global metagenomic (n=13,078) and Australia-wide soil 16S rRNA (n=1,331) data, using Geographic Information System (GIS) and modelling techniques to detail their ecological and biogeographical associations.Results: The highest BPC scores were found in anoxic and fermentative environments, including the human and non-human animal gut, and in some plant-soil systems. Within plant-soil systems, roots and rhizospheres had the highest BPC scores. Among soil samples, geographic and climatic variables had the strongest overall influence on BPC scores, with human influence also making key contributions. Higher BPC scores were in soils from seasonally productive sandy rangelands, temperate rural residential areas, and sites with moderate-to-high soil iron concentrations.Main conclusions: Abundances of butyrate-producing bacteria in outdoor soils follow complex ecological patterns influenced by geography, climate, soil chemistry, and hydrological fluctuations. Human population density and soil iron also play substantial roles, and their effects are dependent on a combination of ecological variables. These new biogeographical insights further our understanding of the global ecology patterns of butyrate-producing bacteria, with implications for emerging microbially-focussed ecological and human health policies.

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KW - ecosystem services

KW - gut microbiome

KW - metagenomics

KW - microbial ecology

KW - soil microbiota

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DO - 10.1101/2022.10.07.510278

M3 - Preprint

BT - Towards the biogeography of butyrate-producing bacteria

PB - bioRxiv, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory

ER -

Towards the biogeography of butyrate-producing bacteria

Abstract

Keywords

UN SDGs

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