Overview

• Researchers analyzed 20 years of water samples from Wisconsin's Lake Mendota, creating the longest metagenome time series from a natural environment to date.
• Bacteria in the lake exhibit rapid seasonal genetic adaptations, with species resetting to near-original genetic states annually despite evolutionary pressures.
• A 2012 extreme weather event caused lasting genetic shifts in bacterial nitrogen metabolism, highlighting the impact of abrupt environmental changes.
• The findings suggest that microbes adapt to both gradual climate shifts and sudden extreme events, with potential implications for ecosystems facing climate change.
• The study utilized advanced computational resources to reconstruct over 30,000 bacterial genomes, providing unprecedented insights into microbial evolution in dynamic conditions.