A comparative analysis of metal transportomes from metabolically versatile Pseudomonas

BACKGROUND: The availability of complete genome sequences of versatile Pseudomonas occupying remarkably diverse ecological niches enabled to gain insights into their adaptative assets. The objective of this study was to analyze the complete genetic repertoires of metal transporters (metal transportomes) from four representative Pseudomonas species and to identify metal transporters with "Genomic Island" associated features. METHODS: A comparative metal transporter inventory was built for the following four Pseudomonas species: P.putida (Ppu) KT2440, P.aeruginosa (Pae) PA01, P.fluorescens (Pfl) Pf-5 and P.syringae (Psy)pv.tomato DC3000 using TIGR-CMR and Transport DB. Genomic analysis of essential and toxic metal ion transporters was accomplished from the above inventory. Metal transporters with "Genomic Island" associated features were identified using Islandpath analysis. RESULTS: Dataset cataloguing has been executed for 262 metal transporters from the four spp. Additional metal ion transporters belonging to NiCoT, Ca P-type ATPase, Cu P-type ATPases, ZIP and MgtC families were identified. In Psy DC3000, 48% of metal transporters showed strong GI features while it was 45% in Ppu KT2440. In Pfl Pf-5 and Pae PA01 only 26% of their metal transporters exhibited GI features. CONCLUSION: Our comparative inventory of 262 metal transporters from four versatile Pseudomonas spp is the complete suite of metal transportomes analysed till date in a prokaryotic genus. This study identified differences in the basic composition of metal transportomes from Pseudomonas occupying diverse ecological niches and also elucidated their novel features. Based on this inventory we analysed the role of horizontal gene transfer in expansion and variability of metal transporter families.