In a flagship seven-year study, published this January in the journal Nature Microbiology, ENIGMA researchers explored how environmental stresses influence the composition and structure of microbial communities in the groundwater of the Oak Ridge Reservation (ORR), a former nuclear waste disposal site.
ENIGMA
Rainfall Impacts Hydrology Of Test Site More Than Field Sampling
ENIGMA researchers measured physical and geochemical effects of cone penetrometer testing on nearby shallow groundwater wells. They found that the effects of cone penetration on water level and conductivity were minimal.
New Platform Explores Ecological Drivers of Change in Microbial Communities
ENIGMA researchers assess mechanisms for microbial taxa and community dynamics using process models.
Genome Editing in Rhodanobacter denitrificans
ENIGMA researchers demonstrated the development and application of a markerless deletion mutagenesis system in nitrate-reducing bacterium Rhodanobacter denitrificans. This method marks a crucial step in advancing Rhodanobacter as a model denitrifying bacterium for the study of denitrification in groundwater ecosystems and diverse molecular mechanisms of low-pH resistance.
Disentangling Direct and Indirect Relationships in Association Networks
New iDIRECT framework could help scientists better understand biological systems by disentangling direct from indirect relationships in association networks.
Bacterial community composition impacts the transformation of carbon in soils
Microorganisms have evolved various life-history strategies to survive fluctuating resource conditions in soils. However, it remains elusive how the life-history strategies of microorganisms influence their processing of organic carbon, which may affect microbial interactions and carbon cycling in soils. Here, ENIGMA researchers characterized the genomic traits, exometabolite profiles, and interactions of soil bacteria representing copiotrophic and oligotrophic strategists. I
Two model phages characterized by new CRISPR based technology extensible to diverse phages
ENIGMA researchers demonstrated for the first time that they can, on a genome-wide scale, identify phage genes that are essential (or not) to infecting bacteria, and then replace non-essential DNA with distinctive barcode tags. Their method could unlock potent biotechnology applications.
Mixed Nitrate and Metal Contamination Influences Operational Speciation of Toxic and Essential Elements
ENIGMA researchers compared the availability of elements in non-contaminated and acidic nitrate contaminated sediment and found that contamination impacted the bioavailability of essential elements.