Exploring Symbioses by Single-Cell Genomics

Single-cell genomics has advanced the field of microbiology from the analysis of microbial metagenomes where information is "drowning in a sea of sequences," to recognizing each microbial cell as a separate and unique entity. Single-cell genomics employs Phi29 polymerasemediated whole-geno...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The Biological bulletin (Lancaster) 2012-08, Vol.223 (1), p.30-43
Main Authors: KAMKE, JANINE, BAYER, KRISTINA, WOYKE, TANJA, HENTSCHEL, UTE
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animals
Bacteria
Bacteria - genetics
Bacteria - isolation & purification
Bacterial Physiological Phenomena
Cells
Cytogenetics
Deoxyribonucleic acid
DNA
Gene amplification
Genomes
Genomics
Genomics - methods
Invertebrates - microbiology
Metagenomics
Microbial genetics
Microbiology
Microorganisms
Nucleic Acid Amplification Techniques - methods
REVIEWS
Sequencing
Sponges
Symbionts
Symbiosis
Vertebrates - microbiology
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Summary:Single-cell genomics has advanced the field of microbiology from the analysis of microbial metagenomes where information is "drowning in a sea of sequences," to recognizing each microbial cell as a separate and unique entity. Single-cell genomics employs Phi29 polymerasemediated whole-genome amplification to yield microgramrange genomic DNA from single microbial cells. This method has now been applied to a handful of symbiotic systems, including bacterial symbionts of marine sponges, insects (grasshoppers, termites), and vertebrates (mouse, human). In each case, novel insights were obtained into the functional genomic repertoire of the bacterial partner, which, in turn, led to an improved understanding of the corresponding host. Single-cell genomics is particularly valuable when dealing with uncultivated microorganisms, as is still the case for many bacterial symbionts. In this review, we explore the power of single-cell genomics for symbiosis research and highlight recent insights into the symbiotic systems that were obtained by this approach.
ISSN:0006-3185
1939-8697
DOI:10.1086/BBLv223n1p30