1. Introduction
The limitation of nutrients in ecosystems is a significant constraint on the vitality of microbial life [
1]. Numerous microorganisms that thrive in nutrient-poor environments, including freshwater lakes, deserts, plateaus, and oceans, have been identified[
2,
3,
4,
5]. Among these microorganisms, nutrient-poor bacteria can be classified as specialized or parthenogenetic. obligately oligotrophic bacteria can only proliferate in media containing carbon concentrations ranging from 1 to 15 mg/L and are not well-suited to nutrient-rich conditions [
6,
7]. Conversely, facultatively oligotrophic bacterium is capable of growth and adaptation in both high and low concentrations of organic carbon [
8]. Due to their predominant distribution in highly nutrient-depleted environmental settings, this particular assemblage of bacteria exhibits sluggish growth rates, protracted growth cycles, diminutive size, and the ability to traverse 0.45 μm filter membranes. Consequently, researchers have designated them as Filterable bacteria and ultramicrobacteria [
9,
10]. Given their exacting requirements for survival conditions, the oligotrophic bacterium is difficult to culture in the laboratory [
11]. For example,The discovery of
Planctomycetes can be attributed to the Hungarian biologist Nador Gimesi in 1924, who initially found it at the lake of Langymanyos. However, due to the unavailability of a pure culture strain, researchers worldwide were limited to studying it solely through morphological description. It was not until 1973 that Staley successfully isolated the strain, marking a significant milestone in the understanding of Planctomycetes [
12]. In 1976, Bauld and Staley provided a formal description of this strain as the inaugural species within the phylum Planctomycetes, relying on phenotypic and genetic characterization. Subsequently, from 1987 to 2006, Carl Woese and Strous et al. further substantiated the relationship between Planctomycetes and Chlamydomonas through phenotypic observations and comparisons of protein sequences [
13]. It took a total of 76 years (1924-2020) for the precise identification of the strain, with 49 of those years (1924-1973) attributed to the inability to acquire a pure culture of the strain, which hindered comprehensive study by microbiologists [
14].
Bacteria are required to swiftly acclimate to ongoing fluctuations in their surroundings, encompassing scarcities in nutrients, variations in oxygen availability, and exposure to abiotic stresses (e.g., alterations in temperature)[
7,
15,
16]. This adaptability is especially crucial for bacteria that exist independently. Glucose is the optimum carbon source for bacteria, as it supplies both energy and material resources necessary for strain growth. Therefore, a diminished concentration of glucose has an adverse effect on strain growth[
9,
17,
18]. Previous studies have demonstrated that propionic acid, a metabolite known for its growth inhibitory properties, accumulates significantly in the culture medium under controlled glucose concentrations of 1 g/L and 0.2 g/L, consequently impacting the growth conditions of
B. subtilis [
10]. Additionally, it has been proposed that the presence of β-glucosidase (UnBgl1A) enables
B. subtilis to withstand a glucose concentration of 0.9 M [
9,
19]. However, previous research investigating the adaptation of Bacillus subtilis to low sugar conditions has employed glucose concentration as a manipulated variable to examine its impact on strain growth rate, production of fermentation products (such as microbial fibrillases), feedback inhibition of β-glucosidase, and glucose transport [
9,
10,
19,
20]. The phosphoenolpyruvate-dependent phosphotransferase system (PTS) is of utmost importance in the bacterial glucose transportation process, facilitating the movement of specific sugars across the bacterial inner membrane through sugar phosphorylation [
21,
22,
23,
24,
25]. It has been observed that bacteria commonly possess PTS systems for glucose uptake, and it has been discovered that non-glucose PTS systems can transport glucose as well (e.g., the cellobiose PTS system can facilitate intracellular glucose transport) [
22]. The study has revealed that the phosphotransferase system (PTS) is capable of detecting variations in nutrient levels within the surrounding environment, thereby facilitating appropriate cellular responses to these fluctuations [
26].
Bacterial small regulatory RNAs (sRNAs), which typically range from 50 to 500 nucleotides in length, serve as significant post-transcriptional regulators of gene expression in response to environmental stimuli stressors [
27,
28,
29,
30,
31,
32]. sRNAs, which are transcribed from intergenic regions and do not undergo translation, exhibit a high degree of conservation among homologs [
33]. These sRNAs exert their influence on mRNA stability and translation by forming base pairs with the 5'-untranslated region (5'-UTR) of the target mRNA or with bases in the ribosome-binding site (RBS) [
28,
34,
35,
36]. sRNA can positively or negatively regulate target genes. For example,sRNAs can negatively regulate their targets by inhibiting translation or stimulating degradation via ribonuclease RNase E[
37,
38,
39,
40]. The interaction of sRNAs with target mRNAs generally requires the RNA chaperone Hfq, which binds to sRNAs, promotes sRNA-mRNA base pairing, and directly binds and regulates the translation of certain mRNAs[
39,
41,
42,
43]. Furthermore, one sRNA usually regulates multiple mRNAs, and one mRNA can be handled by various sRNAs, thus forming a regulatory network to respond to changing environments[
44]. sRNAs have been identified in many bacteria, including Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, and Vibrio cholerae, where they play key roles in bacterial adaptation to environmental stress and virulence[
45,
41,
42]. sRNAs also affect the pathogenesis of Gram-positive Enterococcus faecalis by regulating their growth and survival under various environmental stresses, including iron stress [
43]. Studies have shown that approximately 10-30% of bacterial genes are regulated by sRNAs [
42].
Many researchers have comprehensively studied the response of oligotrophic bacteria to low nutrition. For example, Prochlorococcus adapts to the evolutionary strategy of oligotrophy by minimizing the necessary resources by reducing the bacteria's size and the coding genes [
43]. ABC transport-binding proteins are critical for the transport and metabolism of nutrients in oligotrophic bacteria in the ocean [
46,
47]. In addition, eutrophic bacteria mainly transport external nutrients through the ABC transport system, while oligotrophic bacteria prefer to use the PTS system to absorb external nutrients [
47,
48,
49,
50]. Oligotrophic bacteria grow slowly in media and pick low molecular weight (LMW) organic molecules for growth compared to high concentrations of organic matter (HMW biopolymers)[
51,
52,
53]. The many researchers have explored the hunger stress response of the oligotrophic bacteria in the water environment.However,There are few reports on the low-sugar tolerance strategies of the oligotrophic bacteria of poor soil, and the mechanism of their adaptation to low sugar is still unclear. Due to the impact of climate change, land use, and human activities, the ecosystem may become unstable, necessitating the implementation of a strategy to detect microbial responses to environmental changes. This approach can serve as an early warning system, enabling the timely detection of environmental changes and facilitating the implementation of appropriate remedial measures. Research has demonstrated that the assessment of cyanobacteria density in aquatic environments can effectively predict alterations in water quality, thereby assisting managers in mitigating water quality issues[
54]. In addition, researchers have used qRT-PCR to quantify Microcystis spp. toxin genes in lakes to determine the dynamics of cyanobacterial blooms [
55,
56]. Ningxia is one of the provinces with the most severe desertification in China, with a desertification area of 2.898 million hm2, accounting for 55.8% of the total land area of Ningxia. Land degradation has seriously affected the local ecological environment and people's lives[
19,
57]. Hence, the accurate anticipation of alterations in soil nutrient levels holds significant relevance in the context of managing sandy soils.This study employed global transcriptome analysis (RNA-Seq) to elucidate the adaptation patterns of
B. subtilis BS-G1 under varying glucose concentrations. In addition, the study aims to identify the crucial mRNAs and sRNAs involved in low-glucose adaptation and establish a theoretical foundation for the development of biogenetic early warning indicators for soil impoverishment.
4. Discussion
It has been shown in previous reports that the transport system is closely related to stress [
58,
59]. In this study, we explored possible mechanisms of sugar stress through transcriptome analysis. This study showed that the four pathways and PTS systems related to transporter activity were significantly enriched in the LvsH group by GO functional enrichment and KEGG enrichment (
Tables S8 and S10). It was reported that the transporter activity genes of Lactiplantibacillus plantarum ZDY2013 were significantly differentially expressed under acid stress [
58]. This is consistent with the results of this study. In this study, the DEGs associated with LvsH transporter activity were mainly divided into ABC transporters, MFS transporters, and PTS transporters. Studies have shown that under acid-stress conditions, the related genes of ABC and PTS transporters in L. plantarum ZDY2013 changed significantly [
58]. The MFS transporter is the most important secondary active transporter on the cell membrane, which can selectively transport monosaccharides, oligosaccharides, nucleotides, and other substrates. Studies have shown that under pH stress, the expression of the MFS transporter of Enterococcus faecalis is upregulated, thereby enhancing the efflux capacity of hydrogen ions and enhancing the strain's tolerance to acid [
59]. Glucose is mainly transported across membranes through the PTS system. Studies have shown that under butanol stress, the transcription of PTS genes transporting mannitol and cellobiose in L. plantarum WCFS1 is down-regulated [
60]. It has been reported that under oxidative stress, the expression of multiple PTS genes in Listeria monocytogenes YjbH is down-regulated, and the down-regulation fold is as high as hundreds of times [
61]. In addition, transport proteins are important osmoregulatory responsible for the uptake and excretion of vital substances such as inorganic ions, sugars, and amino acids. This plays a critical role in regulating the osmotic pressure of the BS-G1 strain in a low-concentration glucose environment.
Metal ions play an essential role in maintaining cellular homeostasis and controlling transport. Among them, K
+ and Na
+ play a vital role in cell homeostasis, membrane transport, and regulation of osmotic pressure [
62,
63,
64]. Ktr system potassium transporter A (gene3042) was significantly upregulated in both LvsH and MvsH, and the up-regulation fold of LvsH was more prominent (
Tables S28 and S29). There are two forms of Na+ transporter, symport and anti-transport. Na+ symport may be related to the absorption of amino acids, sugars, organic cations, or anions. The sodium: proton antiporter (gene0984) was significantly upregulated in both LvsH and MvsH. Studies have shown that
Dietzia sp. DQ12-45-1b after Na
+/H
+ antiporter mutation and wild-type
Dietzia sp. DQ12-45-1b was cultured in 0.25M-1M NaCl simultaneously and the cells of the wild-type strain. The degree of enrichment was significantly higher than that of the mutant strain [
65]. K
+ and Na
+ are closely related to the spore germination process, and spore germination will stimulate the release of K
+ and Na
+[
66]. In addition, studies have shown that the accumulation of K
+ also induces the germination of spores [
67]. In this study, "endospore-forming prespores" and "intracellular immature spores" were highly enriched among GO functional enrichments in DEGs of the LvsH group. Under harsh conditions, Bacillus subtilis can be transformed into endospores to survive under the regulation of
SigB[
68]. When favorable growing conditions return, the spores exit dormancy and germinate. Mg2+ is an essential divalent cation for every cell and an important cofactor in DNA replication, transcription, and translation [
69,
70,
71]. Mg
2+ must pass through the biomembrane through Mg
2+ transporters. So far, there are four Mg
2+ transporters: CorA, MgtA/B, MgtA, and NramP[
72]. But in prokaryotes, Mg2+ is mainly transported by CorA and MgtA [
69,
70,
71]. In this study,
corA (gene0850) was significantly upregulated in both LvsH and MvsH, and the upregulation degree of LvsH was higher than that of MvsH. Jayanti Saha et al. analyzed the genome and comparative genome of
Pseudomonas aeruginosa and believed that
corA might be necessary for strains to resist heavy metal toxicity [
73]. It indicated that in group L, BS-G1 tried to maintain the homeostasis of cells by strengthening the transport of Mg
2+ in the medium. Iron ions are essential cofactors for cellular processes, playing important roles in respiration, nitrogen fixation, DNA synthesis, the TCA cycle, and oxygen transport [
74,
75,
76]. As a regulator of iron uptake, Fur can bind to Fe2+ to control the vehicle of Fe
2+[
75,
77]. In this study, both LvsH and MvsH iron transporters (gene0417, gene0416, gene3287) were significantly down-regulated, but the degree of down-regulation of LvsH was lower than that of MvsH (
Tables S28 and S29). Transcriptome analysis of the metal ion uptake system of
Clostridium beijerinckii NRRL B-598 by Maryna Vasylkivska's team found that the expression of genes related to the iron uptake system increased during the sporulation stage [
62]. Iron has been reported to help facilitate the germination process of spores [
78]. When Samuel Plante et al. studied spore germination and the siderophore transporter Str1, they believed siderophores might be secreted when the bacteria transformed from a swollen round reproductive body to a vase-shaped dormant body[
78]. As a second messenger, Ca
2+ can participate in many physiological activities of organisms, including maintaining cell membrane homeostasis, regulating the growth and development of organisms, and regulating enzyme activities[
78,
79]. Studies have shown that Ca2+ helps to reduce the accumulation of cadmium in Phanerochaete chrysosporium, thereby reducing the toxic effect of cadmium on the strain [
79]. This study showed that the calcium/proton exchanger chaA (gene0837) was significantly upregulated in LvsH but not significantly differentially expressed in MvsH. Studies by Yingkun Wan et al. showed that after chaA-knockout
E.coil and wild-type
E.coil were treated with gentamicin for six days, the number of cells in the knockout strain was notably reduced compared to the wild-type strain[
80].
Chemotaxis in Bacillus subtilis and other bacteria is a widely studied adaptive mechanism by which bacteria detect chemical compounds and exhibit movements towards or away from specific compounds [
81,
82,
83]. This mechanism plays an important role in cell growth, biofilm formation, virulence, and infectivity. The bacterial flagellum is a macromolecular complex consisting of approximately 20,000-30,000 protein subunits, including about 30 different proteins [
82]. Our results show that there is a significant up-regulation of flagellar synthesis genes in group M. The study demonstrated that P. extremaustralis exhibited upregulation of flagellar genes (
flgB, flgN, flgM) in response to an oxygen stress environment. This upregulation led to an increased motility of the strain, enabling it to evade toxic compounds such as H
2O
2 [
84].
sRNAs are regulators involved in gene expression in organisms. Under adverse circumstances, organisms will regulate gene transcription levels through sRNA or produce new proteins to cope with the stress [
85]. In this study, LvsH and MvsH identified 156 and 161 differentially expressed sRNA target genes related to carbohydrate metabolism and transport, respectively (
Tables S32 and S33). The researchers placed Salmonella enterica under non-starvation and carbon source starvation treatments and found that the differentially expressed sRNA target genes contained multiple genes related to carbohydrate transport and metabolism[
86]. In Caulobacter crescentus with oligotrophic characteristics, an sRNA closely related to carbon starvation was identified, that is, CrfA, which can target and regulate the mRNA of various membrane transporters [
87]. In this study, LvsH and MvsH significantly differentially expressed sRNA target genes GO, and KEGG functional enrichment showed that ABC transporters, membrane functions, and fatty acid biosynthesis were enriched considerably, indicating that under different carbon source conditions, sRNA may be transported. Protein diversification regulates the strain's carbon source uptake capacity. In addition, we found that sacA (gene3825, gene3444) in LvsH and
sacA (gene3825),
sacB (gene4085), and
sacC (gene4086) of MvsH strains were all significantly upregulated (
Tables S30 and S31). Sac proteins belong to the Bgl-Sac anti-termination protein family, which is essential in responding to carbon source starvation. Sac anti-termination protein consists of 1 RNA-binding domain and two regulatory domains (PRD1 and PRD2), reversible phosphorylation binding sites in response to cognate carbon sources. In the absence of carbon sources, Under this condition, the protein phosphorylates PRD1 through the EII transporter of the PTS system, making it inactive [
77]. In the presence of a carbon source, the EII transporter dephosphorylates PRD1, while the HPr protein (a non-sugar-specific component of the PTS system) phosphorylates PRD2. When PRD1 is not phosphorylated and PRD2 is phosphorylated, the anti-terminator protein will form a homodimer, which can combine with the target gene to form an anti-terminator structure, thereby ensuring the regular operation of the PTS system[
88].
Histidine is the α-amino β-imidazolyl propionic acid of the eight-gene operon hisGDC[NB]HAF[IE]) [
89]. The HisF gene encodes a cyclase that forms a heterodimer holoenzyme imidazole glycerol phosphate synthase (IGPS) with HisH (a transglutaminase), and this enzyme connects three different biological pathways, namely; nitrogen metabolism, histidine biosynthesis, and de novo synthesis of purines [
90,
91]. At a glucose concentration of 0.015g/L, histidine is converted into glutamic acid under the action of iminomethylglutamic acid, and glutamic acid is converted to glutamic acid by glutamic acid dehydrogenase (GDH) or alanine or aspartic acid Transaminases (TAs) convert TCA cycle intermediate α-ketoglutarate (α-KG). After α-KG enters the tricarboxylic acid cycle, it is converted into oxaloacetate, which is converted into phosphoenolpyruvate by phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase and enters the gluconeogenesis pathway to generate glucose, thus providing the medium with carbon source. Coxiella burnetiid IC bacteria can use glutamate as the sole carbon source and metabolize glutamate to produce ketoglutarate and enter the TCA cycle and gluconeogenesis pathway[
92]. In addition, the 0.015g/L glucose environment strengthens purine metabolism, and purine, as the most abundant metabolic substrate in all organisms, provides essential components for synthesizing DNA and RNA. In addition to being the building blocks of DNA and RNA, purines provide crucial energy and cofactors for cell survival and proliferation. Under the environment of 5g/L glucose, the glutamine produced by nitrogen metabolism of BS-G1 can enter the histidine synthesis pathway through HisF[
90]. The imidazole group of histidine forms a coordination compound with metal ions (Ca
2+, Mg
2+, K
+), which is beneficial for the strain to maintain cell homeostasis, membrane transport, and regulation of osmotic pressure. Therefore, the synthesis and metabolism of histidine played a crucial regulatory role in adapting BS-G1 to different grape concentrations.
This study identified seven critical mRNAs adapted to the glucose concentration of 0.015 g/L, among which
mtlA (gene0435) and
celB (gene3876, gene3860) are used for the specific transport of mannitol and cellobiose, respectively [
93,
94]. Studies have shown that when the mannitol-specific PTS transporter (
mtlA) was overexpressed, the strain enhanced the uptake rate of PTS sugars, including N-acetylglucosamine, methyl α-glucoside and 2-deoxyglucose [
95]. The researchers propose that overexpression of PTS transporter genes specifically enhances the uptake rate of PTS substrates, which may be caused by stimulatory protein-protein interactions between MtlA and target PTS transporters, but the specific mechanism is unclear [
95]. In the environment of 0.015g/L glucose, the strain can transport ammonium ions in the culture medium into the cell through the glutamine ABC transporter (gene2655, gene2653) across the membrane [
96]. Previous research has demonstrated that the utilization of ABC transporter proteins, which are connected to the transportation of heavy metal ions, can serve as biomarkers for the identification of heavy metal pollution in soil through the examination of their expression [
50]. Glucose serves as a primary carbon source for microorganisms, and prior empirical findings have demonstrated that the expression of seven crucial mRNAs related to carbohydrate transport is notably elevated under conditions of low glucose levels. Notably, the genes
mtlA (gene0435) and
celB (gene3876, gene3860) are prevalent across various strains, including Vibrio cholerae, Escherichia coli, Lactococcus lactis, Clavibacter michiganensis, and Listeria monocytogenes[
97,
98,
99,
100]. The subsequent research direction of our team involves utilizing
mtlA (gene0435) and
celB (gene3876, gene3860) as bio-alert indicators to assess the nutrient status of the soil based on their expression.