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Application of metagenome analysis to characterize the molecular diversity and saxitoxin-producing potentials of a cyanobacterial community: a case study in the North Han River, Korea

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Abstract

A wide variety of cyanobacterial species that inhabit freshwater systems are known to produce diverse toxins and off-flavor compounds during the development of environmentally harmful blooms. However, cyanobacterial community development and toxin production potential have not been well studied. In this study, we examined the taxonomic diversity and saxitoxin production potential of cyanobacteria in the water and sediments of a large river, the North Han River in South Korea, by metagenome analysis using next-generation sequencing (NGS) and molecular biological approaches, respectively. NGS revealed that the entire cyanobacterial community in the study area consisted of 39 genera and 47 species. The most abundant genera were Microcystis, Anabaena, Cyanobium, and Synechococcus, which accounted for more than 90% of the entire community. The saxitoxin production potential of the cyanobacterial community was assessed by detecting the sxtA and sxtG genes related to saxitoxin production. Eleven sxtA and 24 sxtG genes were identified through molecular cloning and sequencing. Phylogenic analysis revealed that three sxtA genes that grouped in one phylogenic branch with Scytonema sp. were distinctly separated from the sxtA genes of Anabaena, Aphanizomenon, Lyngbya, and Cylindrospermopsis. Sixteen of the detected sxtG genes were phylogenically similar to those of Anabaena circinalis (Dolichospermum circinale), Aphanizomenon gracile, and Aphanizomenon flos-aquae. Our study demonstrates the utility of the metagenomics approach for characterizing the natural community structure of cyanobacteria containing diverse and even rare species, and the evaluation of saxitoxin-producing potential in the cyanobacterial community.

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Acknowledgments

This study was financially supported by the Basic Environmental Research Program of the Han River System (2013–2015) of the Han River Watershed Environmental Office (the Ministry of Environment, Republic of Korea). The authors are grateful to the members of Limnology Laboratory in Konkuk University for their field assistance.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Environmental Health Science, Konkuk University, Seoul, 05029, Republic of Korea

    Keon Hee Kim, Youngdae Yoon & Soon-Jin Hwang

  2. Department of Biomedical Science and Engineering, Konkuk University, Seoul, 05029, Republic of Korea

    JaeBum Kim

  3. Department of Animal Biotechnology, Konkuk University, Seoul, 05029, Republic of Korea

    Woon-Young Hong

  4. Department of Environmental Engineering, Chungbuk National University, Cheongju, 28644, Republic of Korea

    Yung-Chul Cho

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  1. Keon Hee Kim
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Correspondence to Soon-Jin Hwang.

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Kim, K.H., Yoon, Y., Hong, WY. et al. Application of metagenome analysis to characterize the molecular diversity and saxitoxin-producing potentials of a cyanobacterial community: a case study in the North Han River, Korea. Appl Biol Chem 61, 153–161 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13765-017-0342-4

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