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Abstract:
Plasmids have the potential to transfer genetic traits within bacterial communities and thereby serve as a crucial tool for the
rapid adaptation of bacteria in response to changing environmental conditions. Our knowledge of the environmental pool of
plasmids (the metaplasmidome) and encoded functions is still limited due to a lack of sufficient extraction methods and tools
for identifying and assembling plasmids from metagenomic datasets. Here, we present the first insights into the functional
potential of the metaplasmidome of permafrost-affected active-layer soil—an environment with a relatively low biomass and
seasonal freeze–thaw cycles that is strongly affected by global warming. The obtained results were compared with plasmidderived
sequences extracted from polar metagenomes. Metaplasmidomes from the Siberian active layer were enriched via
cultivation, which resulted in a longer contig length as compared with plasmids that had been directly retrieved from the
metagenomes of polar environments. The predicted hosts of plasmids belonged to Moraxellaceae, Pseudomonadaceae,
Enterobacteriaceae, Pectobacteriaceae, Burkholderiaceae, and Firmicutes. Analysis of their genetic content revealed the
presence of stress-response genes, including antibiotic and metal resistance determinants, as well as genes encoding
protectants against the cold.
