Genetic barriers more than environmental associations explain Serratia marcescens population structure.
Commun Biol
; 7(1): 468, 2024 Apr 17.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-38632370
ABSTRACT
Bacterial species often comprise well-separated lineages, likely emerged and maintained by genetic isolation and/or ecological divergence. How these two evolutionary actors interact in the shaping of bacterial population structure is currently not fully understood. In this study, we investigate the genetic and ecological drivers underlying the evolution of Serratia marcescens, an opportunistic pathogen with high genomic flexibility and able to colonise diverse environments. Comparative genomic analyses reveal a population structure composed of five deeply-demarcated genetic clusters with open pan-genome but limited inter-cluster gene flow, partially explained by Restriction-Modification (R-M) systems incompatibility. Furthermore, a large-scale research on hundred-thousands metagenomic datasets reveals only a partial habitat separation of the clusters. Globally, two clusters only show a separate gene composition coherent with ecological adaptations. These results suggest that genetic isolation has preceded ecological adaptations in the shaping of the species diversity, an evolutionary scenario coherent with the Evolutionary Extended Synthesis.
Texto completo:
1
Coleções:
01-internacional
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Serratia marcescens
/
Variação Genética
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Commun Biol
Ano de publicação:
2024
Tipo de documento:
Article
País de afiliação:
Itália