Data from: The genome and phenome of the green alga Chloroidium sp. UTEX 3007 reveal adaptive traits for desert acclimatization

To investigate the phenomic and genomic traits that allow green algae to survive in deserts, we characterized a ubiquitous species, Chloroidium sp. UTEX 3007, which we isolated from multiple locations in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Metabolomic analyses of Chloroidium sp. UTEX 3007 indicated that the alga accumulates a broad range of carbon sources, including several desiccation tolerance-promoting sugars and unusually large stores of palmitate. Growth assays revealed capacities to grow in salinities from zero to 60 g/L and to grow heterotrophically on >40 distinct carbon sources. Assembly and annotation of genomic reads yielded a 52.5 Mbp genome with 8153 functionally annotated genes. Comparison with other sequenced green algae revealed unique protein families involved in osmotic stress tolerance and saccharide metabolism that support phenomic studies. Our results reveal the robust and flexible biology utilized by a green alga to successfully inhabit a desert coastline.

为解析绿藻在沙漠生境中存活所需的表型组与基因组特征，本研究对广布物种绿球藻属未定种（Chloroidium sp.）UTEX 3007进行了系统表征。该菌株分离自阿拉伯联合酋长国（UAE）的多个采样区域。针对该菌株的代谢组学分析表明，此藻类可积累多种碳源物质，包括若干可促进脱水耐受的糖类，以及异常大量的棕榈酸储存库。生长实验结果显示，该藻可在盐度范围为0至60 g/L的环境中生长，并能利用超过40种不同碳源进行异养代谢。通过对基因组读段进行组装与注释，我们获得了一个大小为52.5 Mbp的基因组，其中包含8153个具备功能注释的基因。与其他已测序绿藻的比较分析揭示，该藻存在参与渗透胁迫耐受与糖类代谢的独特蛋白家族，这与表型组研究结果相互佐证。本研究结果阐明了该绿藻为成功定居沙漠海岸所采用的强健且灵活的生物学策略。