1
|
Wei J, Zhang Q, Yin Y, Peng K, Wang L, Cai Y, Gong Z. Limited Impacts of Water Diversion on Micro-eukaryotic Community along the Eastern Route of China's South-to-North Water Diversion Project. WATER RESEARCH 2024; 262:122109. [PMID: 39096537 DOI: 10.1016/j.watres.2024.122109] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/23/2024] [Revised: 06/11/2024] [Accepted: 07/15/2024] [Indexed: 08/05/2024]
Abstract
The Eastern Route of the South-to-North Water Diversion Project (ER-SNWDP) represents a crucial initiative aimed at alleviating water scarcity in China's northern region. Understanding the dynamics governing the composition and assembly processes of micro-eukaryotic communities within the canal during different water diversion periods holds paramount significance for the effective management of the ER-SNWDP. Our study systematically tracks the dynamics of the micro-eukaryotic community and its assembly processes along the 1045.4 km of canals and four impounded lakes, totaling 3455 km2, constituting the ER-SNWDP during a complete water diversion cycle, utilizing high-throughput sequencing, bioinformatics tools, and null modeling algorithms. The primary objectives of this study are to elucidate the spatial-temporal succession of micro-eukaryotic communities as the water diversion progresses, to delineate the relative importance of deterministic and stochastic processes in community assembly, and to identify the pivotal factors driving changes in micro-eukaryotic communities. Our findings indicate notable variations in the composition and diversity of micro-eukaryotic communities within the ER-SNWDP across different water diversion periods and geographic locations (P < 0.05). This variation is influenced by a confluence of temporal and environmental factors, with limited impacts from water diversion. In essence, the assembly of micro-eukaryotic communities within the ER-SNWDP primarily stemmed from heterogeneous selection driven by deterministic processes. Water diversion exhibited a tendency to decrease community beta diversity while augmenting the influence of stochastic processes in community assembly, albeit this effect attenuated over time. Furthermore, our analysis identified several pivotal environmental parameters, notably including nitrite-nitrogen, nitrate-nitrogen, orthophosphate, and water temperature, as exerting significant effects on micro-eukaryotic communities across different water diversion periods. Collectively, our study furnishes the inaugural comprehensive exploration of the dynamics, assembly processes, and influencing factors governing micro-eukaryotic communities within the ER-SNWDP, thus furnishing indispensable insights to inform the water quality management of this important project.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jiahao Wei
- School of Geography and Ocean Science, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, China; Key Laboratory of Lake and Watershed Science for Water Security, Nanjing Institute of Geography and Limnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing 210008, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Qingji Zhang
- School of Geography and Ocean Science, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, China; Key Laboratory of Lake and Watershed Science for Water Security, Nanjing Institute of Geography and Limnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing 210008, China
| | - Yi Yin
- Key Laboratory of Lake and Watershed Science for Water Security, Nanjing Institute of Geography and Limnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing 210008, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Kai Peng
- Key Laboratory of Lake and Watershed Science for Water Security, Nanjing Institute of Geography and Limnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing 210008, China
| | - Lachun Wang
- School of Geography and Ocean Science, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, China
| | - Yongjiu Cai
- Key Laboratory of Lake and Watershed Science for Water Security, Nanjing Institute of Geography and Limnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing 210008, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China.
| | - Zhijun Gong
- Key Laboratory of Lake and Watershed Science for Water Security, Nanjing Institute of Geography and Limnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing 210008, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Gan HY, Hohberg K, Schneider C, Ebner M, Marais E, Miranda T, Lehmitz R, Maggs-Kölling G, Bocherens H. The hidden oases: unveiling trophic dynamics in Namib's fog plant ecosystem. Sci Rep 2024; 14:13334. [PMID: 38858480 PMCID: PMC11164947 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-61796-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/27/2023] [Accepted: 05/09/2024] [Indexed: 06/12/2024] Open
Abstract
The Namib Desert is a hyperarid coastal desert where fog is a major moisture source. We hypothesized that the fog-harvesting grass Stipagrostis sabulicola establishes an important ecological niche, termed the "Fog-Plant-Oases" (FPOs), and serves as the primary carbon source for the invertebrate community. To determine this, we measured the natural variations of the stable carbon and nitrogen isotopes (δ13C and δ15N) of invertebrates as well as that of plant biomass and belowground detritus and estimated the contributions of the fog plants in their diets. Our findings revealed a complex trophic structure and demonstrated that S. sabulicola fuels carbon flow from lower to higher trophic levels in the aboveground food web. The distinct δ13C values of bacterial- and fungal-feeding nematodes indicated however the separation of the aboveground niche, which is primarily sustained by S. sabulicola, from the belowground niche, where wind-blown sediments may serve as the main energy source for the soil biota. Our findings further accentuate the critical role of S. sabulicola FPOs in establishing complex trophic dynamics and a distinctive food web within the hyperarid Namib dunes.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Huei Ying Gan
- Senckenberg Centre for Human Evolution and Palaeoenvironment, University of Tübingen, Hölderlindstr. 12, 72074, Tübingen, Germany.
| | - Karin Hohberg
- Senckenberg Museum of Natural History Görlitz, Am Museum 1, 02826, Görlitz, Germany
| | - Clément Schneider
- Senckenberg Museum of Natural History Görlitz, Am Museum 1, 02826, Görlitz, Germany
| | - Martin Ebner
- Department of Geosciences, Biogeology, University of Tübingen, Hölderlindstr. 12, 72074, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Eugene Marais
- Gobabeb-Namib Research Institute, Walvis Bay, 13013, Namibia
| | - Tatiana Miranda
- Senckenberg Centre for Human Evolution and Palaeoenvironment, University of Tübingen, Hölderlindstr. 12, 72074, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Ricarda Lehmitz
- Senckenberg Museum of Natural History Görlitz, Am Museum 1, 02826, Görlitz, Germany
| | | | - Hervé Bocherens
- Senckenberg Centre for Human Evolution and Palaeoenvironment, University of Tübingen, Hölderlindstr. 12, 72074, Tübingen, Germany
- Department of Geosciences, Biogeology, University of Tübingen, Hölderlindstr. 12, 72074, Tübingen, Germany
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
León-Sobrino C, Ramond JB, Coclet C, Kapitango RM, Maggs-Kölling G, Cowan D. Temporal dynamics of microbial transcription in wetted hyperarid desert soils. FEMS Microbiol Ecol 2024; 100:fiae009. [PMID: 38299778 PMCID: PMC10913055 DOI: 10.1093/femsec/fiae009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/12/2023] [Revised: 12/15/2023] [Accepted: 01/30/2024] [Indexed: 02/02/2024] Open
Abstract
Rainfall is rare in hyperarid deserts but, when it occurs, it triggers large biological responses essential for the long-term maintenance of the ecosystem. In drylands, microbes play major roles in nutrient cycling, but their responses to short-lived opportunity windows are poorly understood. Due to its ephemeral nature, mRNA is ideally suited to study microbiome dynamics upon abrupt changes in the environment. We analyzed microbial community transcriptomes after simulated rainfall in a Namib Desert soil over 7 days. Using total mRNA from dry and watered plots we infer short-term functional responses in the microbiome. A rapid two-phase cycle of activation and return to basal state was completed in a short period. Motility systems activated immediately, whereas competition-toxicity increased in parallel to predator taxa and the drying of soils. Carbon fixation systems were downregulated, and reactivated upon return to a near-dry state. The chaperone HSP20 was markedly regulated by watering across all major bacteria, suggesting a particularly important role in adaptation to desiccated ecosystems. We show that transcriptomes provide consistent and high resolution information on microbiome processes in a low-biomass environment, revealing shared patterns across taxa. We propose a structured dispersal-predation dynamic as a central driver of desert microbial responses to rainfall.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Carlos León-Sobrino
- Centre for Microbial Ecology and Genomics, Department of Biochemistry, Genetics and Microbiology, University of Pretoria, 0002 Pretoria, South Africa
- The Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Biosustainability, Technical University of Denmark, 2800 Kgs Lyngby, Denmark
| | - Jean-Baptiste Ramond
- Centre for Microbial Ecology and Genomics, Department of Biochemistry, Genetics and Microbiology, University of Pretoria, 0002 Pretoria, South Africa
- Extreme Ecosystem Microbiomics and Ecogenomics (E²ME) Lab., Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago, Chile
| | - Clément Coclet
- Centre for Microbial Ecology and Genomics, Department of Biochemistry, Genetics and Microbiology, University of Pretoria, 0002 Pretoria, South Africa
| | | | | | - Don A Cowan
- Centre for Microbial Ecology and Genomics, Department of Biochemistry, Genetics and Microbiology, University of Pretoria, 0002 Pretoria, South Africa
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Soil fungal diversity and assembly along a xeric stress gradient in the central Namib Desert. Fungal Biol 2023; 127:997-1003. [PMID: 37024159 DOI: 10.1016/j.funbio.2023.03.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/27/2022] [Revised: 03/02/2023] [Accepted: 03/06/2023] [Indexed: 03/09/2023]
Abstract
The Namib Desert of south-western Africa is one of the oldest deserts in the world and possesses unique geographical, biological and climatic features. While research through the last decade has generated a comprehensive survey of the prokaryotic communities in Namib Desert soils, little is yet known about the diversity and function of edaphic fungal communities, and even less of their responses to aridity. In this study, we have characterized soil fungal community diversity across the longitudinal xeric gradient across the Namib desert (for convenience, divided into the western fog zone, the central low-rainfall zone and the eastern high-rainfall zone), using internal transcribed sequence (ITS) metabarcoding. Ascomycota, Basidiomycota and Chytridiomycota consistently dominated the Namib Desert edaphic fungal communities and a core mycobiome composed of only 15 taxa, dominated by members of the class Dothideomycetes (Ascomycota), was identified. However, fungal community structures were significantly different in the fog, low-rainfall and high-rainfall zones. Furthermore, Namib Desert gravel plain fungal community assembly was driven by both deterministic and stochastic processes; the latter dominating in the all three xeric zones. We also present data that suggest that the inland limit of fog penetration represents an ecological barrier to fungal dispersal across the Namib Desert.
Collapse
|
5
|
Coulson LE, Feldbacher E, Pitzl B, Weigelhofer G. Effects of intermittent flow on biofilms are driven by stream characteristics rather than history of intermittency. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2022; 849:157809. [PMID: 35934041 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.157809] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/02/2022] [Revised: 07/07/2022] [Accepted: 07/31/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Intermittent streams are found all over the world, however most studies focus on intermittency in hot, arid climates. As flow intermittency is expected to increase with climate change, it is important to understand how stream biofilms in temperate regions respond to these changing conditions. In this study, 20 different streams from around Austria were sampled under flowing and non-flowing conditions to evaluate the effect of intermittency on temperate stream biofilms. These streams encompassed two distinct stream types: fine-grained with high agricultural land use and coarse sediments from relatively pristine areas. Half of these streams were historically intermittent and half historically perennial. Samples were taken from all streams during the spring and fall, when the intermittent streams were flowing and dry, respectively. Subsets of the sediments were subjected to controlled drying to evaluate the effects of history of intermittency on the biofilms. Samples were analyzed for respiration, extracellular enzyme activities, and extracellular polysaccharides in the wet and dry sediments from the field, as well as the lab-dried sediments. This study found that lab-dried perennial sediments showed similar responses to the intermittent sediments, indicating that history of intermittency does not affect biofilm response to drought. This study also found that the effects of grain size, seasonal growth, and nutrient levels have a larger impact on the biofilms than moisture content and history of intermittency.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Laura E Coulson
- Wassercluster Lunz - Biologische Station GmbH, Lunz am See, Austria; University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences (BOKU), Institute of Hydrobiology and Aquatic Ecosystem Management, Vienna, Austria.
| | - Eva Feldbacher
- University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences (BOKU), Institute of Hydrobiology and Aquatic Ecosystem Management, Vienna, Austria; Wassercluster Lunz - Biologische Station GmbH, Lunz am See, Austria
| | - Beate Pitzl
- Wassercluster Lunz - Biologische Station GmbH, Lunz am See, Austria
| | - Gabriele Weigelhofer
- University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences (BOKU), Institute of Hydrobiology and Aquatic Ecosystem Management, Vienna, Austria; Wassercluster Lunz - Biologische Station GmbH, Lunz am See, Austria
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
Diwan D, Rashid MM, Vaishnav A. Current understanding of plant-microbe interaction through the lenses of multi-omics approaches and their benefits in sustainable agriculture. Microbiol Res 2022; 265:127180. [PMID: 36126490 DOI: 10.1016/j.micres.2022.127180] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/11/2022] [Revised: 08/26/2022] [Accepted: 08/27/2022] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
The success of sustainable agricultural practices has now become heavily dependent on the interactions between crop plants and their associated microbiome. Continuous advancement in high throughput sequencing platforms, omics-based approaches, and gene editing technologies has remarkably accelerated this area of research. It has enabled us to characterize the interactions of plants with associated microbial communities more comprehensively and accurately. Furthermore, the genomic and post-genomic era has significantly refined our perspective toward the complex mechanisms involved in those interactions, opening new avenues for efficiently deploying the knowledge in developing sustainable agricultural practices. This review focuses on our fundamental understanding of plant-microbe interactions and the contribution of existing multi-omics approaches, including those under active development and their tremendous success in unraveling different aspects of the complex network between plant hosts and microbes. In addition, we have also discussed the importance of sustainable and eco-friendly agriculture and the associated outstanding challenges ahead.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Deepti Diwan
- Washington University School of Medicine, Saint Louis, MO 63110, USA.
| | - Md Mahtab Rashid
- Department of Plant Pathology, Bihar Agricultural University, Sabour, Bhagalpur, Bihar 813210, India; Department of Mycology and Plant Pathology, Institute of Agricultural Sciences, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh 221005, India
| | - Anukool Vaishnav
- Department of Biotechnology, GLA University, Mathura, Uttar Pradesh 281121, India; Department of Plant and Microbial Biology, University of Zürich, Zollikerstrasse 107, Zürich CH-8008, Switzerland; Plant-Soil Interaction Group, Agroscope (Reckenholz), Reckenholzstrasse 191, Zürich 8046, Switzerland
| |
Collapse
|
7
|
Treonis AM, Marais E, Maggs‐Kölling G. Nematode communities indicate diverse soil functioning across a fog gradient in the Namib Desert gravel plains. Ecol Evol 2022; 12:e9013. [PMID: 35784044 PMCID: PMC9205675 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.9013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/27/2021] [Revised: 05/09/2022] [Accepted: 05/23/2022] [Indexed: 11/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Soil nematodes are fundamentally aquatic animals, requiring water to move, feed, and reproduce. Nonetheless, they are ubiquitous in desert soils because they can enter an anhydrobiotic state that allows them to persist when water is biologically unavailable. In the hyper‐arid Namib Desert of Namibia, rain is rare, but fog routinely moves inland from the coast and supports plant and animal life. Very little is understood about how this fog may affect soil organisms. We investigated the role of fog moisture in the ecology of free‐living, soil nematodes across an 87‐km fog gradient in the gravel plains of the Namib Desert. We found that nematodes emerged from anhydrobiosis and became active during a fog event, suggesting that they can utilize fog moisture to survive. Nematode abundance did not differ significantly across the fog gradient and was similar under shrubs and in interplant spaces. Interplant soils harbor biological soil crusts that may sustain nematode communities. As fog declined along the gradient, nematode diversity increased in interplant soils. In areas where fog is rare, sporadic rainfall events can stimulate the germination and growth of desert ephemerals that may have a lasting effect on nematode diversity. In a 30‐day incubation experiment, nematode abundance increased when soils were amended with water and organic matter. However, these responses were not evident in field samples, which show no correlations among nematode abundance, location in the fog gradient, and soil organic matter content. Soil nematodes are found throughout the Namib Desert gravel plains under a variety of conditions. Although shown to be moisture‐ and organic matter‐limited and able to use moisture from the fog for activity, variation in fog frequency and soil organic matter across this unique ecosystem may be biologically irrelevant to soil nematodes in situ.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Amy M. Treonis
- Department of Biology University of Richmond Richmond Virginia USA
| | | | | |
Collapse
|
8
|
Abstract
Arid ecosystems cover ∼40% of the Earth's terrestrial surface and store a high proportion of the global nitrogen (N) pool. They are low-productivity, low-biomass, and polyextreme ecosystems, i.e., with (hyper)arid and (hyper)oligotrophic conditions and high surface UV irradiation and evapotranspiration. These polyextreme conditions severely limit the presence of macrofauna and -flora and, particularly, the growth and productivity of plant species. Therefore, it is generally recognized that much of the primary production (including N-input processes) and nutrient biogeochemical cycling (particularly N cycling) in these ecosystems are microbially mediated. Consequently, we present a comprehensive survey of the current state of knowledge of biotic and abiotic N-cycling processes of edaphic (i.e., open soil, biological soil crust, or plant-associated rhizosphere and rhizosheath) and hypo/endolithic refuge niches from drylands in general, including hot, cold, and polar desert ecosystems. We particularly focused on the microbially mediated biological nitrogen fixation, N mineralization, assimilatory and dissimilatory nitrate reduction, and nitrification N-input processes and the denitrification and anaerobic ammonium oxidation (anammox) N-loss processes. We note that the application of modern meta-omics and related methods has generated comprehensive data sets on the abundance, diversity, and ecology of the different N-cycling microbial guilds. However, it is worth mentioning that microbial N-cycling data from important deserts (e.g., Sahara) and quantitative rate data on N transformation processes from various desert niches are lacking or sparse. Filling this knowledge gap is particularly important, as climate change models often lack data on microbial activity and environmental microbial N-cycling communities can be key actors of climate change by producing or consuming nitrous oxide (N2O), a potent greenhouse gas.
Collapse
|
9
|
Naidoo Y, Valverde A, Pierneef RE, Cowan DA. Differences in Precipitation Regime Shape Microbial Community Composition and Functional Potential in Namib Desert Soils. MICROBIAL ECOLOGY 2022; 83:689-701. [PMID: 34105010 DOI: 10.1007/s00248-021-01785-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/26/2021] [Accepted: 05/27/2021] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Precipitation is one of the major constraints influencing the diversity, structure, and activity of soil microbial communities in desert ecosystems. However, the effect of changes in precipitation on soil microbial communities in arid soil microbiomes remains unresolved. In this study, using 16S rRNA gene high-throughput sequencing and shotgun metagenome sequencing, we explored changes in taxonomic composition and functional potential across two zones in the Namib Desert with contrasting precipitation regime. We found that precipitation regime had no effect on taxonomic and functional alpha-diversity, but that microbial community composition and functional potential (beta-diversity) changed with increased precipitation. For instance, Acidobacteriota and 'resistance to antibiotics and toxic compounds' related genes were relatively more abundant in the high-rainfall zone. These changes were largely due to a small set of microbial taxa, some of which were present in low abundance (i.e. members of the rare biosphere). Overall, these results indicate that key climatic factors (i.e. precipitation) shape the taxonomic and functional attributes of the arid soil microbiome. This research provides insight into how changes in precipitation patterns associated with global climate change may impact microbial community structure and function in desert soils.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Yashini Naidoo
- Centre for Microbial Ecology and Genomics, Department of Biochemistry, Genetics and Microbiology, University of Pretoria, Lynnwood Road, Pretoria, 0002, South Africa.
| | - Angel Valverde
- IRNASA-CSIC, C/Cordel de Merinas 40-52, 37008, Salamanca, Spain
| | - Rian E Pierneef
- Biotechnology Platform, Agricultural Research Council, Soutpan Road, Onderstepoort Campus, Pretoria, 0110, South Africa
| | - Don A Cowan
- Centre for Microbial Ecology and Genomics, Department of Biochemistry, Genetics and Microbiology, University of Pretoria, Lynnwood Road, Pretoria, 0002, South Africa
| |
Collapse
|
10
|
Soil Bacterial and Fungal Community Responses to Throughfall Reduction in a Eucalyptus Plantation in Southern China. FORESTS 2021. [DOI: 10.3390/f13010037] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
In subtropical plantations in southern China, how soil microbial communities respond to climate change-induced drought is poorly understood. A field experiment was conducted in a subtropical Eucalyptus plantation to determine the impacts of 50% of throughfall reduction (TR) on soil microbial community composition, function, and soil physicochemical properties. Results showed that TR reduced soil water content (SWC) and soil available phosphorus (AP) content. TR significantly altered 196 bacterial operational taxonomic units (OTUs), most of them belonging to Acidobacteria, Actinobacteria, and Proteobacteria, while there were fewer changes in fungal OTUs. At the phylum level, TR increased the relative abundance of Acidobacteria at 0–20 cm soil depth by 37.18%, but failed to influence the relative abundance of the fungal phylum. Notably, TR did not alter the alpha diversity of the bacterial and fungal communities. The redundancy analysis showed that the bacterial communities were significantly correlated with SWC, and fungal communities were significantly correlated with AP content. According to predictions of bacterial and fungal community functions using PICRUSt2 and FUNGuild platforms, TR had different effects on both bacterial and fungal communities. Overall, SWC and AP decreased during TR, resulting in greater changes in soil bacterial community structure, but did not dramatically change soil fungal community structure.
Collapse
|
11
|
Gao Y, Xu X, Ding J, Bao F, De Costa YG, Zhuang W, Wu B. The Responses to Long-Term Water Addition of Soil Bacterial, Archaeal, and Fungal Communities in A Desert Ecosystem. Microorganisms 2021; 9:microorganisms9050981. [PMID: 33946616 PMCID: PMC8147197 DOI: 10.3390/microorganisms9050981] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/06/2021] [Revised: 04/22/2021] [Accepted: 04/28/2021] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The response of microbial communities to continual and prolonged water exposure provides useful insight when facing global climate changes that cause increased and uneven precipitation and extreme rainfall events. In this study, we investigated an in situ manipulative experiment with four levels of water exposure (ambient precipitation +0%, +25%, +50%, and +100% of local annual mean precipitation) in a desert ecosystem of China. After 9 years of water addition, Illumina sequencing was used to analyze taxonomic compositions of the soil bacterial, archaeal, and fungal communities. The results showed significant increases in microbial biomass carbon (MBC) at higher amended precipitation levels, with the highest values reported at 100% precipitation. Furthermore, an increase in the bacterial species richness was observed along the water addition gradient. In addition, the relative abundance of several bacterial phyla, such as Proteobacteria, significantly increased, whereas that of some drought-tolerant taxa, including Actinobacteria, Firmicutes, and Bacteroidetes, decreased. In addition, the phyla Planctomycetes and Nitrospirae, associated with nitrification, positively responded to increased precipitation. Archaeal diversity significantly reduced under 100% treatment, with changes in the relative abundance of Thaumarchaeota and Euryarchaeota being the main contributors to shifts in the archaeal community. The fungal community composition was stable in response to water addition. Results from the Mantel test and structural equation models suggested that bacterial and archaeal communities reacted contrastingly to water addition. Bacterial community composition was directly affected by changing soil moisture and temperature, while archaeal community composition was indirectly affected by changing nitrogen availability. These findings highlight the importance of soil moisture and nitrogen in driving microbial responses to long-term precipitation changes in the desert ecosystem.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Ying Gao
- Institute of Desertification Studies, Chinese Academy of Forestry, Beijing 100091, China; (X.X.); (F.B.)
- Correspondence: (Y.G.); (B.W.); Tel.: +86-010-62824029 (Y.G.); +86-010-62824078 (B.W.)
| | - Xiaotian Xu
- Institute of Desertification Studies, Chinese Academy of Forestry, Beijing 100091, China; (X.X.); (F.B.)
- Beijing Academy of Forestry and Pomology Sciences, Beijing 100093, China
| | - Junjun Ding
- Key Laboratory of Dryland Agriculture, Ministry of Agriculture, Institute of Environment and Sustainable Development in Agriculture, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, China;
| | - Fang Bao
- Institute of Desertification Studies, Chinese Academy of Forestry, Beijing 100091, China; (X.X.); (F.B.)
| | - Yashika G. De Costa
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, The University of Auckland, Auckland 1023, New Zealand; (Y.G.D.C.); (W.Z.)
| | - Weiqin Zhuang
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, The University of Auckland, Auckland 1023, New Zealand; (Y.G.D.C.); (W.Z.)
| | - Bo Wu
- Institute of Desertification Studies, Chinese Academy of Forestry, Beijing 100091, China; (X.X.); (F.B.)
- Correspondence: (Y.G.); (B.W.); Tel.: +86-010-62824029 (Y.G.); +86-010-62824078 (B.W.)
| |
Collapse
|
12
|
Gwizdala M, Lebre PH, Maggs-Kölling G, Marais E, Cowan DA, Krüger TPJ. Sub-lithic photosynthesis in hot desert habitats. Environ Microbiol 2021; 23:3867-3880. [PMID: 33817951 DOI: 10.1111/1462-2920.15505] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/19/2020] [Accepted: 04/03/2021] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
In hyper-arid soil environments, photosynthetic microorganisms are largely restricted to hypolithic (sub-lithic) habitats: i.e., on the ventral surfaces of translucent pebbles in desert pavements. Here, we combined fluorometric, spectroscopic, biochemical and metagenomic approaches to investigate in situ the light transmission properties of quartz stones in the Namib Desert, and assess the photosynthetic activity of the underlying hypolithic cyanobacterial biofilms. Quartz pebbles greatly reduced the total photon flux to the ventral surface biofilms and filtered out primarily the short wavelength portion of the solar spectrum. Chlorophylls d and f were not detected in biofilm pigment extracts; however, hypolithic cyanobacterial communities showed some evidence of adaptation to sub-lithic conditions, including the prevalence of genes encoding Helical Carotenoid Proteins, which are associated with desiccation stress. Under water-saturated conditions, hypolithic communities showed no evidence of light stress, even when the quartz stones were exposed to full midday sunlight. This initial study creates a foundation for future in-situ and laboratory exploration of various adaptation mechanisms employed by photosynthetic organisms forming hypolithic microbial communities.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Michal Gwizdala
- Department of Physics, University of Pretoria, Lynnwood Road, Pretoria, 0002, South Africa.,Forestry and Agricultural Biotechnology Institute (FABI), University of Pretoria, Lynnwood Road, Pretoria, 0002, South Africa
| | - Pedro H Lebre
- Centre for Microbial Ecology and Genomics, Department of Biochemistry, Genetics and Microbiology, University of Pretoria, Lynnwood Road, Pretoria, 0002, South Africa
| | | | - Eugene Marais
- Gobabeb-Namib Research Institute, Walvis Bay, Namibia
| | - Don A Cowan
- Centre for Microbial Ecology and Genomics, Department of Biochemistry, Genetics and Microbiology, University of Pretoria, Lynnwood Road, Pretoria, 0002, South Africa
| | - Tjaart P J Krüger
- Department of Physics, University of Pretoria, Lynnwood Road, Pretoria, 0002, South Africa.,Forestry and Agricultural Biotechnology Institute (FABI), University of Pretoria, Lynnwood Road, Pretoria, 0002, South Africa
| |
Collapse
|
13
|
Logan JR, Jacobson KM, Jacobson PJ, Evans SE. Fungal Communities on Standing Litter Are Structured by Moisture Type and Constrain Decomposition in a Hyper-Arid Grassland. Front Microbiol 2021; 12:596517. [PMID: 33716999 PMCID: PMC7943874 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2021.596517] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/19/2020] [Accepted: 02/03/2021] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Non-rainfall moisture (fog, dew, and water vapor; NRM) is an important driver of plant litter decomposition in grasslands, where it can contribute significantly to terrestrial carbon cycling. However, we still do not know whether microbial decomposers respond differently to NRM and rain, nor whether this response affects litter decomposition rates. To determine how local moisture regimes influence decomposer communities and their function, we examined fungal communities on standing grass litter at an NRM-dominated site and a rain-dominated site 75 km apart in the hyper-arid Namib Desert using a reciprocal transplant design. Dominant taxa at both sites consisted of both extremophilic and cosmopolitan species. Fungal communities differed between the two moisture regimes with environment having a considerably stronger effect on community composition than did stage of decomposition. Community composition was influenced by the availability of air-derived spores at each site and by specialization of fungi to their home environment; specifically, fungi from the cooler, moister NRM Site performed worse (measured as fungal biomass and litter mass loss) when moved to the warmer, drier rain-dominated site while Rain Site fungi performed equally well in both environments. Our results contribute to growing literature demonstrating that as climate change alters the frequency, magnitude and type of moisture events in arid ecosystems, litter decomposition rates may be altered and constrained by the composition of existing decomposer communities.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- J Robert Logan
- W.K. Kellogg Biological Station, Hickory Corners, MI, United States.,Department of Integrative Biology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, United States.,Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior Program, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, United States
| | | | - Peter J Jacobson
- Department of Biology, Grinnell College, Grinnell, IA, United States
| | - Sarah E Evans
- W.K. Kellogg Biological Station, Hickory Corners, MI, United States.,Department of Integrative Biology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, United States.,Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior Program, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, United States
| |
Collapse
|
14
|
Koch MA, Stock C, Kleinpeter D, del Río C, Osses P, Merklinger FF, Quandt D, Siegmund A. Vegetation growth and landscape genetics of Tillandsia lomas at their dry limits in the Atacama Desert show fine-scale response to environmental parameters. Ecol Evol 2020; 10:13260-13274. [PMID: 33304535 PMCID: PMC7713976 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.6924] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/01/2020] [Revised: 09/18/2020] [Accepted: 09/21/2020] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
Ecosystem dry limits have been studied in the context of species biology, fitness, and interactions with biotic and abiotic parameters, but the interactive effects of these parameters remain underexplored. Therefore, information on the putative effects of global climate change on these ecosystems is often lacking.We analyzed the interplay between fine-scale landscape genetics and biotic and abiotic factors of terrestrial Tillandsia lomas in the hyperarid Atacama Desert, characterized by a fog-dependent vegetation type almost entirely dominated by one single vascular plant species.We showed that metapopulations of Tillandsia landbeckii are genetically connected over many hundreds of square kilometers, and despite having a large potential for clonal propagation, genetic diversity is regionally and locally structured. At the landscape level, genetic diversity correlates well with fitness parameters such as growth, flowering, and vegetation density. We also observed fine-scale correlation with a 3-D landscape model indicating a positive feedback with seasonal fog occurrence and availability. The various interactions of biotic and abiotic factors resulted in regular linear banding patterns of vegetation arranged orthogonally toward the landscape slope. Ex situ growth experiments indicated that T. landbeckii grows at optimal rates in this extreme hyperarid environment, and we can extrapolate mean biomass production for this ecosystem. Synthesis. Our results suggest that the unique ecosystem of terrestrial Tillandsia lomas in the hyperarid Atacama Desert is an evolutionarily balanced and fine-scaled system. The vegetation itself is composed of long-lived and persistent modules. We developed a descriptive model of the various interacting factors, thereby also highlighting the severe threat caused by global climate change potentially associated with fog disturbance patterns along the Chilean Pacific coast.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Marcus A. Koch
- Centre for Organismal StudiesHeidelberg UniversityHeidelbergGermany
- Heidelberg Center for the Environment (HCE)Heidelberg UniversityHeidelbergGermany
| | - Clara Stock
- Centre for Organismal StudiesHeidelberg UniversityHeidelbergGermany
| | | | - Camilo del Río
- Instituto de GeografíaPontificia Universidad Católica de ChileSantiago de ChileChile
- Centro UC Desierto de AtacamaPontificia Universidad Católica de ChileSantiagoChile
| | - Pablo Osses
- Instituto de GeografíaPontificia Universidad Católica de ChileSantiago de ChileChile
- Centro UC Desierto de AtacamaPontificia Universidad Católica de ChileSantiagoChile
| | - Felix F. Merklinger
- Nees‐Institute for Biodiversity of Plants (NEES)University of BonnBonnGermany
| | - Dietmar Quandt
- Nees‐Institute for Biodiversity of Plants (NEES)University of BonnBonnGermany
| | - Alexander Siegmund
- Heidelberg Center for the Environment (HCE)Heidelberg UniversityHeidelbergGermany
- Department of Geography – Research Group for Earth Observation (geo)Heidelberg University of EducationHeidelbergGermany
| |
Collapse
|
15
|
Lumibao CY, Kimbrough ER, Day RH, Conner WH, Krauss KW, Van Bael SA. Divergent biotic and abiotic filtering of root endosphere and rhizosphere soil fungal communities along ecological gradients. FEMS Microbiol Ecol 2020; 96:5860278. [PMID: 32562419 DOI: 10.1093/femsec/fiaa124] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/13/2020] [Accepted: 06/19/2020] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Plant roots assemble in two distinct microbial compartments: the rhizosphere (microbes in soil surrounding roots) and the endosphere (microbes within roots). Our knowledge of fungal community assembly in these compartments is limited, especially in wetlands. We tested the hypothesis that biotic factors would have direct effects on rhizosphere and endosphere assembly, while abiotic factors would have direct and indirect effects. Using a field study, we examined the influences of salinity, water level and biotic factors on baldcypress (Taxodium distichum) fungal communities. We found that endosphere fungi, unlike rhizosphere fungi, were correlated with host density and canopy cover, suggesting that hosts can impose selective filters on fungi colonizing their roots. Meanwhile, local abiotic conditions strongly influenced both rhizosphere and endosphere diversity in opposite patterns, e.g. highest endosphere diversity (hump-shaped) and lowest rhizosphere diversity (U-shaped) at intermediate salinity levels. These results indicate that the assembly and structure of the root endosphere and rhizosphere within a host can be shaped by different processes. Our results also highlight the importance of assessing how environmental changes affect plant and plant-associated fungal communities in wetland ecosystems where saltwater intrusion and sea level rise are major threats to both plant and fungal communities.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Candice Y Lumibao
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Tulane University, New Orleans, LA, 70118, USA
| | - Elizabeth R Kimbrough
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Tulane University, New Orleans, LA, 70118, USA
| | - Richard H Day
- U.S. Geological Survey, Wetland and Aquatic Research Center, 700 Cajundome Blvd., Lafayette, LA, 70506, USA
| | - William H Conner
- Baruch Institute of Coastal Ecology and Forest Science, Clemson University, P.O. Box 596, Georgetown, SC, 29442, USA
| | - Ken W Krauss
- U.S. Geological Survey, Wetland and Aquatic Research Center, 700 Cajundome Blvd., Lafayette, LA, 70506, USA
| | - Sunshine A Van Bael
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Tulane University, New Orleans, LA, 70118, USA
| |
Collapse
|
16
|
Jordaan K, Lappan R, Dong X, Aitkenhead IJ, Bay SK, Chiri E, Wieler N, Meredith LK, Cowan DA, Chown SL, Greening C. Hydrogen-Oxidizing Bacteria Are Abundant in Desert Soils and Strongly Stimulated by Hydration. mSystems 2020; 5:e01131-20. [PMID: 33203691 PMCID: PMC7677003 DOI: 10.1128/msystems.01131-20] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/29/2020] [Accepted: 10/29/2020] [Indexed: 01/19/2023] Open
Abstract
How the diverse bacterial communities inhabiting desert soils maintain energy and carbon needs is much debated. Traditionally, most bacteria are thought to persist by using organic carbon synthesized by photoautotrophs following transient hydration events. Recent studies focused on Antarctic desert soils have revealed, however, that some bacteria use atmospheric trace gases, such as hydrogen (H2), to conserve energy and fix carbon independently of photosynthesis. In this study, we investigated whether atmospheric H2 oxidation occurs in four nonpolar desert soils and compared this process to photosynthesis. To do so, we first profiled the distribution, expression, and activities of hydrogenases and photosystems in surface soils collected from the South Australian desert over a simulated hydration-desiccation cycle. Hydrogenase-encoding sequences were abundant in the metagenomes and metatranscriptomes and were detected in actinobacterial, acidobacterial, and cyanobacterial metagenome-assembled genomes. Native dry soil samples mediated H2 oxidation, but rates increased 950-fold following wetting. Oxygenic and anoxygenic phototrophs were also detected in the community but at lower abundances. Hydration significantly stimulated rates of photosynthetic carbon fixation and, to a lesser extent, dark carbon assimilation. Hydrogenase genes were also widespread in samples from three other climatically distinct deserts, the Namib, Gobi, and Mojave, and atmospheric H2 oxidation was also greatly stimulated by hydration at these sites. Together, these findings highlight that H2 is an important, hitherto-overlooked energy source supporting bacterial communities in desert soils. Contrary to our previous hypotheses, however, H2 oxidation occurs simultaneously rather than alternately with photosynthesis in such ecosystems and may even be mediated by some photoautotrophs.IMPORTANCE Desert ecosystems, spanning a third of the earth's surface, harbor remarkably diverse microbial life despite having a low potential for photosynthesis. In this work, we reveal that atmospheric hydrogen serves as a major previously overlooked energy source for a large proportion of desert bacteria. We show that both chemoheterotrophic and photoautotrophic bacteria have the potential to oxidize hydrogen across deserts sampled across four continents. Whereas hydrogen oxidation was slow in native dry deserts, it increased by three orders of magnitude together with photosynthesis following hydration. This study revealed that continual harvesting of atmospheric energy sources may be a major way that desert communities adapt to long periods of water and energy deprivation, with significant ecological and biogeochemical ramifications.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Karen Jordaan
- School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, VIC, Australia
- Centre for Microbial Ecology and Genomics, Department of Biochemistry, Genetics and Microbiology, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa
| | - Rachael Lappan
- School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, VIC, Australia
- Department of Microbiology, Biomedicine Discovery Institute, Monash University, Clayton, VIC, Australia
| | - Xiyang Dong
- School of Marine Sciences, Sun Yat-Sen University, Zhuhai, China
| | - Ian J Aitkenhead
- School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, VIC, Australia
| | - Sean K Bay
- School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, VIC, Australia
- Department of Microbiology, Biomedicine Discovery Institute, Monash University, Clayton, VIC, Australia
| | - Eleonora Chiri
- School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, VIC, Australia
- Department of Microbiology, Biomedicine Discovery Institute, Monash University, Clayton, VIC, Australia
| | | | - Laura K Meredith
- School of Natural Resources and the Environment, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona, USA
| | - Don A Cowan
- Centre for Microbial Ecology and Genomics, Department of Biochemistry, Genetics and Microbiology, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa
| | - Steven L Chown
- School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, VIC, Australia
| | - Chris Greening
- School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, VIC, Australia
- Department of Microbiology, Biomedicine Discovery Institute, Monash University, Clayton, VIC, Australia
| |
Collapse
|
17
|
Uritskiy G, Munn A, Dailey M, Gelsinger DR, Getsin S, Davila A, McCullough PR, Taylor J, DiRuggiero J. Environmental Factors Driving Spatial Heterogeneity in Desert Halophile Microbial Communities. Front Microbiol 2020; 11:578669. [PMID: 33193201 PMCID: PMC7606970 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2020.578669] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2020] [Accepted: 09/24/2020] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Spatial heterogeneity in microbial communities is observed in all natural ecosystems and can stem from both adaptations to local environmental conditions as well as stochastic processes. Extremophile microbial communities inhabiting evaporitic halite nodules (salt rocks) in the Atacama Desert, Chile, are a good model ecosystem for investigating factors leading to microbiome heterogeneity, due to their diverse taxonomic composition and the spatial segregation of individual nodules. We investigated the abiotic factors governing microbiome composition across different spatial scales, allowing for insight into the factors that govern halite colonization from regional desert-wide scales to micro-scales within individual nodules. We found that water availability and community drift account for microbiome assembly differently at different distance scales, with higher rates of cell dispersion at the smaller scales resulting in a more homogenous composition. This trend likely applies to other endoliths, and to non-desert communities, where dispersion between communities is limited. At the intra-nodule scales, a light availability gradient was most important in determining the distribution of microbial taxa despite intermixing by water displacement via capillary action.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Gherman Uritskiy
- Department of Biology, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - Adam Munn
- Department of Biology, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - Micah Dailey
- Department of Biology, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - Diego R. Gelsinger
- Department of Biology, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - Samantha Getsin
- Department of Biology, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - Alfonso Davila
- NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA, United States
| | - P. R. McCullough
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, Johns Hopkins University, and Space Telescope Science Institute, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - James Taylor
- Department of Biology, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, United States
- Department of Computer Science, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, United States
| | - Jocelyne DiRuggiero
- Department of Biology, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, United States
- Department of Earth & Planetary Sciences, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, United States
| |
Collapse
|
18
|
Saad MM, Eida AA, Hirt H. Tailoring plant-associated microbial inoculants in agriculture: a roadmap for successful application. JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL BOTANY 2020; 71:3878-3901. [PMID: 32157287 PMCID: PMC7450670 DOI: 10.1093/jxb/eraa111] [Citation(s) in RCA: 69] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/12/2019] [Accepted: 03/09/2020] [Indexed: 05/05/2023]
Abstract
Plants are now recognized as metaorganisms which are composed of a host plant associated with a multitude of microbes that provide the host plant with a variety of essential functions to adapt to the local environment. Recent research showed the remarkable importance and range of microbial partners for enhancing the growth and health of plants. However, plant-microbe holobionts are influenced by many different factors, generating complex interactive systems. In this review, we summarize insights from this emerging field, highlighting the factors that contribute to the recruitment, selection, enrichment, and dynamic interactions of plant-associated microbiota. We then propose a roadmap for synthetic community application with the aim of establishing sustainable agricultural systems that use microbial communities to enhance the productivity and health of plants independently of chemical fertilizers and pesticides. Considering global warming and climate change, we suggest that desert plants can serve as a suitable pool of potentially beneficial microbes to maintain plant growth under abiotic stress conditions. Finally, we propose a framework for advancing the application of microbial inoculants in agriculture.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Maged M Saad
- DARWIN21, Biological and Environmental Sciences and Engineering Division, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Thuwal, Saudi Arabia
| | - Abdul Aziz Eida
- DARWIN21, Biological and Environmental Sciences and Engineering Division, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Thuwal, Saudi Arabia
| | - Heribert Hirt
- DARWIN21, Biological and Environmental Sciences and Engineering Division, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Thuwal, Saudi Arabia
- Institute of Plant Sciences Paris-Saclay (IPS2), Gif-sur-Yvette Cedex, France
- Max F. Perutz Laboratories, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| |
Collapse
|
19
|
Distinct responses from bacterial, archaeal and fungal streambed communities to severe hydrological disturbances. Sci Rep 2019; 9:13506. [PMID: 31534180 PMCID: PMC6751160 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-49832-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/05/2019] [Accepted: 08/24/2019] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Abstract
Stream microbes that occur in the Mediterranean Basin have been shown to possess heightened sensitivity to intensified water stress attributed to climate change. Here, we investigate the effects of long-term drought (150 days), storms and rewetting (7 days) on the diversity and composition of archaea, bacteria and fungi inhabiting intermittent streambed sediment (surface and hyporheic) and buried leaves. Hydrological alterations modified the archaeal community composition more than the bacterial community composition, whereas fungi were the least affected. Throughout the experiment, archaeal communities colonizing sediments showed greater phylogenetic distances compared to those of bacteria and fungi, suggesting considerable adaptation to severe hydrological disturbances. The increase in the class abundances, such as those of Thermoplasmata within archaea and of Actinobacteria and Bacilli within bacteria, revealed signs of transitioning to a drought-favoured and soil-like community composition. Strikingly, we found that in comparison to the drying phase, water return (as sporadic storms and rewetting) led to larger shifts in the surface microbial community composition and diversity. In addition, microhabitat characteristics, such as the greater capacity of the hyporheic zone to maintain/conserve moisture, tended to modulate the ability of certain microbes (e.g., bacteria) to cope with severe hydrological disturbances.
Collapse
|
20
|
Estimated Burden of Fungal Infections in Namibia. J Fungi (Basel) 2019; 5:jof5030075. [PMID: 31426392 PMCID: PMC6787647 DOI: 10.3390/jof5030075] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2019] [Revised: 08/06/2019] [Accepted: 08/13/2019] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Namibia is a sub-Saharan country with one of the highest HIV infection rates in the world. Although care and support services are available that cater for opportunistic infections related to HIV, the main focus is narrow and predominantly aimed at tuberculosis. We aimed to estimate the burden of serious fungal infections in Namibia, currently unknown, based on the size of the population at risk and available epidemiological data. Data were obtained from the World Health Organization (WHO), Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), and published reports. When no data existed, risk populations were used to estimate the frequencies of fungal infections, using the previously described methodology. The population of Namibia in 2011 was estimated at 2,459,000 and 37% were children. Among approximately 516,390 adult women, recurrent vulvovaginal candidiasis (≥4 episodes /year) is estimated to occur in 37,390 (3003/100,000 females). Using a low international average rate of 5/100,000, we estimated 125 cases of candidemia, and 19 patients with intra-abdominal candidiasis. Among survivors of pulmonary tuberculosis (TB) in Namibia 2017, 112 new cases of chronic pulmonary aspergillosis (CPA) are likely, a prevalence of 354 post-TB and a total prevalence estimate of 453 CPA patients in all. Asthma affects 11.2% of adults, 178,483 people, and so allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis (ABPA) and severe asthma with fungal sensitization (SAFS) were estimated in approximately 179/100,000 and 237/100,000 people, respectively. Invasive aspergillosis (IA) is estimated to affect 15 patients following leukaemia therapy, and an estimated 0.13% patients admitted to hospital with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) (259) and 4% of HIV-related deaths (108) — a total of 383 people. The total HIV-infected population is estimated at 200,000, with 32,371 not on antiretroviral therapy (ART). Among HIV-infected patients, 543 cases of cryptococcal meningitis and 836 cases of Pneumocystis pneumonia are estimated each year. Tinea capitis infections were estimated at 53,784 cases, and mucormycosis at five cases. Data were missing for fungal keratitis and skin neglected fungal tropical diseases such as mycetoma. The present study indicates that approximately 5% of the Namibian population is affected by fungal infections. This study is not an epidemiological study—it illustrates estimates based on assumptions derived from similar studies. The estimates are incomplete and need further epidemiological and diagnostic studies to corroborate, amend them, and improve the diagnosis and management of these diseases.
Collapse
|
21
|
Abstract
The Namib Desert is one of the world's only truly coastal desert ecosystem. Until the end of the 1st decade of the twenty-first century, very little was known of the microbiology of this southwestern African desert, with the few reported studies being based solely on culture-dependent approaches. However, from 2010, an intense research program was undertaken by researchers from the University of the Western Cape Institute for Microbial Biotechnology and Metagenomics, and subsequently the University of Pretoria Centre for Microbial Ecology and Genomics, and their collaborators, led to a more detailed understanding of the ecology of the indigenous microbial communities in many Namib Desert biotopes. Namib Desert soils and the associated specialized niche communities are inhabited by a wide array of prokaryotic, lower eukaryotic and virus/phage taxa. These communities are highly heterogeneous on both small and large spatial scales, with community composition impacted by a range of macro- and micro-environmental factors, from water regime to soil particle size. Community functionality is also surprisingly non-homogeneous, with some taxa retaining functionality even under hyper-arid soil conditions, and with subtle changes in gene expression and phylotype abundances even on diel timescales. Despite the growing understanding of the structure and function of Namib Desert microbiomes, there remain enormous gaps in our knowledge. We have yet to quantify many of the processes in these soil communities, from regional nutrient cycling to community growth rates. Despite the progress that has been made, we still have little knowledge of either the role of phages in microbial community dynamics or inter-species interactions. Furthermore, the intense research efforts of the past decade have highlighted the immense scope for future microbiological research in this dynamic, enigmatic and charismatic region of Africa.
Collapse
|
22
|
León-Sobrino C, Ramond JB, Maggs-Kölling G, Cowan DA. Nutrient Acquisition, Rather Than Stress Response Over Diel Cycles, Drives Microbial Transcription in a Hyper-Arid Namib Desert Soil. Front Microbiol 2019; 10:1054. [PMID: 31139170 PMCID: PMC6527771 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2019.01054] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/02/2018] [Accepted: 04/26/2019] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Hot desert surface soils are characterized by extremely low water activities for large parts of any annual cycle. It is widely assumed that microbial processes in such soils are very limited. Here we present the first metatranscriptomic survey of microbial community function in a low water activity hyperarid desert soil. Sequencing of total mRNA revealed a diverse and active community, dominated by Actinobacteria. Metatranscriptomic analysis of samples taken at different times over 3 days indicated that functional diel variations were limited at the whole community level, and mostly affected the eukaryotic subpopulation which was induced during the cooler night hours. High levels of transcription of chemoautotrophic carbon fixation genes contrasted with limited expression of photosynthetic genes, indicating that chemoautotrophy is an important alternative to photosynthesis for carbon cycling in desiccated desert soils. Analysis of the transcriptional levels of key N-cycling genes provided strong evidence that soil nitrate was the dominant nitrogen input source. Transcriptional network analyses and taxon-resolved functional profiling suggested that nutrient acquisition processes, and not diurnal environmental variation, were the main drivers of community activity in hyperarid Namib Desert soil. While we also observed significant levels of expression of common stress response genes, these genes were not dominant hubs in the co-occurrence network.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Carlos León-Sobrino
- Centre for Microbial Ecology and Genomics, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa
| | - Jean-Baptiste Ramond
- Centre for Microbial Ecology and Genomics, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa
| | | | - Don A. Cowan
- Centre for Microbial Ecology and Genomics, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa
| |
Collapse
|
23
|
Röhl O, Graupner N, Peršoh D, Kemler M, Mittelbach M, Boenigk J, Begerow D. Flooding Duration Affects the Structure of Terrestrial and Aquatic Microbial Eukaryotic Communities. MICROBIAL ECOLOGY 2018; 75:875-887. [PMID: 29026984 DOI: 10.1007/s00248-017-1085-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/14/2017] [Accepted: 09/29/2017] [Indexed: 05/22/2023]
Abstract
The increasing number and duration of inundations is reported to be a consequence of climate change and may severely compromise non-adapted macroorganisms. The effect of flooding events on terrestrial and aquatic microbial communities is, however, less well understood. They may respond to the changed abiotic properties of their native habitat, and the native community may change due to the introduction of alien species. We designed an experiment to investigate the effect of five different flooding durations on the terrestrial and aquatic communities of eukaryotic microorganism, using the AquaFlow mesocosms. With amplicon sequencing of the small subunit (SSU) and internal transcribed spacer (ITS) rRNA gene regions, we analyzed community compositions directly before and after flooding. Subsequently, they were monitored for another 28 days, to determine the sustainability of community changes. Our results revealed a temporary increase in similarity between terrestrial and aquatic communities according to OTU composition (operational taxonomic unit, serves as a proxy for species). Increased similarity was mainly caused by the transmission of OTUs from water to soil. A minority of these were able to persist in soil until the end of the experiment. By contrast, the vast majority of soil OTUs was not transmitted to water. Flooding duration affected the community structure (abundance) more than composition (occurrence). Terrestrial communities responded immediately to flooding and the flooding duration influenced the community changes. Independent from flooding duration, all terrestrial communities recovered largely after flooding, indicating a remarkable resilience to the applied disturbances. Aquatic communities responded immediately to the applied inundations too. At the end of the experiment, they grouped according to the applied flooding duration and the amount of ammonium and chloride that leached from the soil. This indicates a sustained long-term response of the aquatic communities to flooding events.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Oliver Röhl
- AG Geobotany, Faculty of Biology and Biotechnology, Ruhr Universität Bochum, Universitätsstr. 150, 44801, Bochum, Germany.
| | - Nadine Graupner
- Department of Biodiversity, Faculty of Biology, University of Duisburg-Essen, Universitätsstr. 5, 45141, Essen, Germany
| | - Derek Peršoh
- AG Geobotany, Faculty of Biology and Biotechnology, Ruhr Universität Bochum, Universitätsstr. 150, 44801, Bochum, Germany
| | - Martin Kemler
- AG Geobotany, Faculty of Biology and Biotechnology, Ruhr Universität Bochum, Universitätsstr. 150, 44801, Bochum, Germany
| | - Moritz Mittelbach
- AG Ökologie der Pflanzen; Institute of Biology, Freie Universität Berlin, Altensteinstr. 6, 14195, Berlin, Germany
| | - Jens Boenigk
- Department of Biodiversity, Faculty of Biology, University of Duisburg-Essen, Universitätsstr. 5, 45141, Essen, Germany
| | - Dominik Begerow
- AG Geobotany, Faculty of Biology and Biotechnology, Ruhr Universität Bochum, Universitätsstr. 150, 44801, Bochum, Germany
| |
Collapse
|
24
|
Scola V, Ramond JB, Frossard A, Zablocki O, Adriaenssens EM, Johnson RM, Seely M, Cowan DA. Namib Desert Soil Microbial Community Diversity, Assembly, and Function Along a Natural Xeric Gradient. MICROBIAL ECOLOGY 2018; 75:193-203. [PMID: 28647755 DOI: 10.1007/s00248-017-1009-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/09/2017] [Accepted: 06/05/2017] [Indexed: 05/25/2023]
Abstract
The hyperarid Namib desert is a coastal desert in southwestern Africa and one of the oldest and driest deserts on the planet. It is characterized by a west/east increasing precipitation gradient and by regular coastal fog events (extending up to 75 km inland) that can also provide soil moisture. In this study, we evaluated the role of this natural aridity and xeric gradient on edaphic microbial community structure and function in the Namib desert. A total of 80 individual soil samples were collected at 10-km intervals along a 190-km transect from the fog-dominated western coastal region to the eastern desert boundary. Seventeen physicochemical parameters were measured for each soil sample. Soil parameters reflected the three a priori defined climatic/xeric zones along the transect ("fog," "low rain," and "high rain"). Microbial community structures were characterized by terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism fingerprinting and shotgun metaviromics, and their functional capacities were determined by extracellular enzyme activity assays. Both microbial community structures and activities differed significantly between the three xeric zones. The deep sequencing of surface soil metavirome libraries also showed shifts in viral composition along the xeric transect. While bacterial community assembly was influenced by soil chemistry and stochasticity along the transect, variations in community "function" were apparently tuned by xeric stress.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Vincent Scola
- Centre for Microbial Ecology and Genomics (CMEG), Department of Microbiology, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa
| | - Jean-Baptiste Ramond
- Centre for Microbial Ecology and Genomics (CMEG), Department of Genetics, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa
| | - Aline Frossard
- Centre for Microbial Ecology and Genomics (CMEG), Department of Genetics, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa
- Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research (WSL), Zürcherstrasse 111, 8903, Birmensdorf, Switzerland
| | - Olivier Zablocki
- Centre for Microbial Ecology and Genomics (CMEG), Department of Microbiology, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa
- Institute for Microbial Biotechnology and Metagenomics, University of the Western Cape, Cape Town, South Africa
| | - Evelien M Adriaenssens
- Centre for Microbial Ecology and Genomics (CMEG), Department of Genetics, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa
- Institute of Integrative Biology, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, UK
| | - Riegardt M Johnson
- Centre for Microbial Ecology and Genomics (CMEG), Department of Genetics, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa
| | - Mary Seely
- Gobabeb Research and Training Centre, Walvis Bay, Namibia
- Desert Research Foundation of Namibia (DRFN), Windhoek, Namibia
| | - Don A Cowan
- Centre for Microbial Ecology and Genomics (CMEG), Department of Genetics, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa.
| |
Collapse
|
25
|
Bononi L, Taketani RG, Souza DT, Moitinho MA, Kavamura VN, Melo IS. Higher phylogenetic diversity prevents loss of functional diversity caused by successive drying and rewetting cycles. Antonie van Leeuwenhoek 2017; 111:1033-1045. [DOI: 10.1007/s10482-017-1003-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/13/2017] [Accepted: 12/14/2017] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
|
26
|
Št'ovíček A, Azatyan A, Soares MIM, Gillor O. The Impact of Hydration and Temperature on Bacterial Diversity in Arid Soil Mesocosms. Front Microbiol 2017; 8:1078. [PMID: 28659896 PMCID: PMC5469873 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2017.01078] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/04/2017] [Accepted: 05/29/2017] [Indexed: 01/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Hot desert ecosystems experience rare and unpredictable rainfall events that resuscitate the arid flora and fauna. However, the effect of this sudden abundance of water on soil microbial communities is still under debate. We modeled varying rainfall amounts and temperatures in desert soil mesocosms and monitored the microbial community response over a period of 21 days. We studied two different wetting events, simulating heavy (50 mm) and light (10 mm) rain, as well as three different temperature regimes: constant 25° or 36°C, or a temperature diurnal cycle alternating between 36 and 10 °C. Amplicon sequencing of the bacterial ribosomal RNA revealed that rain intensity affects the soil bacterial community, but the effects are mitigated by temperature. The combination of water-pulse intensity with lower temperature had the greatest effect on the bacterial community. These experiments demonstrated that the soil microbial response to rain events is dependent not only on the intensity of the water pulse but also on the ambient temperature, thus emphasizing the complexity of bacterial responses to highly unpredictable environments.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Adam Št'ovíček
- Zuckerberg Institute for Water Research, Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research, Ben-Gurion University of the NegevMidreshet Ben Gurion, Beersheba, Israel
| | - Ani Azatyan
- Zuckerberg Institute for Water Research, Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research, Ben-Gurion University of the NegevMidreshet Ben Gurion, Beersheba, Israel
| | - M Ines M Soares
- Zuckerberg Institute for Water Research, Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research, Ben-Gurion University of the NegevMidreshet Ben Gurion, Beersheba, Israel
| | - Osnat Gillor
- Zuckerberg Institute for Water Research, Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research, Ben-Gurion University of the NegevMidreshet Ben Gurion, Beersheba, Israel
| |
Collapse
|
27
|
Diel-scale temporal dynamics recorded for bacterial groups in Namib Desert soil. Sci Rep 2017; 7:40189. [PMID: 28071697 PMCID: PMC5223211 DOI: 10.1038/srep40189] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/26/2016] [Accepted: 12/01/2016] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Microbes in hot desert soil partake in core ecosystem processes e.g., biogeochemical cycling of carbon. Nevertheless, there is still a fundamental lack of insights regarding short-term (i.e., over a 24-hour [diel] cycle) microbial responses to highly fluctuating microenvironmental parameters like temperature and humidity. To address this, we employed T-RFLP fingerprinting and 454 pyrosequencing of 16S rRNA-derived cDNA to characterize potentially active bacteria in Namib Desert soil over multiple diel cycles. Strikingly, we found that significant shifts in active bacterial groups could occur over a single 24-hour period. For instance, members of the predominant Actinobacteria phyla exhibited a significant reduction in relative activity from morning to night, whereas many Proteobacterial groups displayed an opposite trend. Contrary to our leading hypothesis, environmental parameters could only account for 10.5% of the recorded total variation. Potential biotic associations shown through co-occurrence networks indicated that non-random inter- and intra-phyla associations were ‘time-of-day-dependent’ which may constitute a key feature of this system. Notably, many cyanobacterial groups were positioned outside and/or between highly interconnected bacterial associations (modules); possibly acting as inter-module ‘hubs’ orchestrating interactions between important functional consortia. Overall, these results provide empirical evidence that bacterial communities in hot desert soils exhibit complex and diel-dependent inter-community associations.
Collapse
|
28
|
Johnson RM, Ramond JB, Gunnigle E, Seely M, Cowan DA. Namib Desert edaphic bacterial, fungal and archaeal communities assemble through deterministic processes but are influenced by different abiotic parameters. Extremophiles 2017; 21:381-392. [PMID: 28058513 DOI: 10.1007/s00792-016-0911-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/27/2016] [Accepted: 12/19/2016] [Indexed: 01/31/2023]
Abstract
The central Namib Desert is hyperarid, where limited plant growth ensures that biogeochemical processes are largely driven by microbial populations. Recent research has shown that niche partitioning is critically involved in the assembly of Namib Desert edaphic communities. However, these studies have mainly focussed on the Domain Bacteria. Using microbial community fingerprinting, we compared the assembly of the bacterial, fungal and archaeal populations of microbial communities across nine soil niches from four Namib Desert soil habitats (riverbed, dune, gravel plain and salt pan). Permutational multivariate analysis of variance indicated that the nine soil niches presented significantly different physicochemistries (R 2 = 0.8306, P ≤ 0.0001) and that bacterial, fungal and archaeal populations were soil niche specific (R 2 ≥ 0.64, P ≤ 0.001). However, the abiotic drivers of community structure were Domain-specific (P < 0.05), with P, clay and sand fraction, and NH4 influencing bacterial, fungal and archaeal communities, respectively. Soil physicochemistry and soil niche explained over 50% of the variation in community structure, and communities displayed strong non-random patterns of co-occurrence. Taken together, these results demonstrate that in central Namib Desert soil microbial communities, assembly is principally driven by deterministic processes.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Riegardt M Johnson
- Centre for Microbial Ecology and Genomics, Genomics Research Institute, Natural Sciences 2, University of Pretoria, Room 3-20, Private Bag X20, Hatfield, Pretoria, 0028, South Africa
| | - Jean-Baptiste Ramond
- Centre for Microbial Ecology and Genomics, Genomics Research Institute, Natural Sciences 2, University of Pretoria, Room 3-20, Private Bag X20, Hatfield, Pretoria, 0028, South Africa.
| | - Eoin Gunnigle
- Centre for Microbial Ecology and Genomics, Genomics Research Institute, Natural Sciences 2, University of Pretoria, Room 3-20, Private Bag X20, Hatfield, Pretoria, 0028, South Africa
| | - Mary Seely
- Gobabeb Research and Training Centre, Walvis Bay, Namibia
- School of Animal, Plant and Environmental Sciences (AP&ES), University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Don A Cowan
- Centre for Microbial Ecology and Genomics, Genomics Research Institute, Natural Sciences 2, University of Pretoria, Room 3-20, Private Bag X20, Hatfield, Pretoria, 0028, South Africa
| |
Collapse
|
29
|
Armstrong A, Valverde A, Ramond JB, Makhalanyane TP, Jansson JK, Hopkins DW, Aspray TJ, Seely M, Trindade MI, Cowan DA. Temporal dynamics of hot desert microbial communities reveal structural and functional responses to water input. Sci Rep 2016; 6:34434. [PMID: 27680878 PMCID: PMC5041089 DOI: 10.1038/srep34434] [Citation(s) in RCA: 45] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/21/2016] [Accepted: 09/14/2016] [Indexed: 02/01/2023] Open
Abstract
The temporal dynamics of desert soil microbial communities are poorly understood. Given the implications for ecosystem functioning under a global change scenario, a better understanding of desert microbial community stability is crucial. Here, we sampled soils in the central Namib Desert on sixteen different occasions over a one-year period. Using Illumina-based amplicon sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene, we found that α-diversity (richness) was more variable at a given sampling date (spatial variability) than over the course of one year (temporal variability). Community composition remained essentially unchanged across the first 10 months, indicating that spatial sampling might be more important than temporal sampling when assessing β-diversity patterns in desert soils. However, a major shift in microbial community composition was found following a single precipitation event. This shift in composition was associated with a rapid increase in CO2 respiration and productivity, supporting the view that desert soil microbial communities respond rapidly to re-wetting and that this response may be the result of both taxon-specific selection and changes in the availability or accessibility of organic substrates. Recovery to quasi pre-disturbance community composition was achieved within one month after rainfall.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Alacia Armstrong
- Centre for Microbial Ecology and Genomics (CMEG), Genomics Research Institute, Department of Genetics, University of Pretoria, Pretoria 0002, South Africa
| | - Angel Valverde
- Centre for Microbial Ecology and Genomics (CMEG), Genomics Research Institute, Department of Genetics, University of Pretoria, Pretoria 0002, South Africa
| | - Jean-Baptiste Ramond
- Centre for Microbial Ecology and Genomics (CMEG), Genomics Research Institute, Department of Genetics, University of Pretoria, Pretoria 0002, South Africa
| | - Thulani P Makhalanyane
- Centre for Microbial Ecology and Genomics (CMEG), Genomics Research Institute, Department of Genetics, University of Pretoria, Pretoria 0002, South Africa
| | - Janet K Jansson
- Earth and Biological Sciences Directorate, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, WA 99352, USA
| | - David W Hopkins
- The Royal Agricultural University, Cirencester, Gloucestershire GL7 6JS, UK
| | - Thomas J Aspray
- School of Life Sciences, Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh, EH14 4AS, UK
| | - Mary Seely
- Gobabeb Training and Research Centre (GTRC), Walvis Bay, Namibia.,Animal, Plant and Environmental Sciences, University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
| | - Marla I Trindade
- Institute for Microbial Biotechnology and Metagenomics (IMBM). University of the Western Cape, Bellville 7535, South Africa
| | - Don A Cowan
- Centre for Microbial Ecology and Genomics (CMEG), Genomics Research Institute, Department of Genetics, University of Pretoria, Pretoria 0002, South Africa
| |
Collapse
|
30
|
Pointing SB. Hypolithic Communities. BIOLOGICAL SOIL CRUSTS: AN ORGANIZING PRINCIPLE IN DRYLANDS 2016. [DOI: 10.1007/978-3-319-30214-0_11] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/03/2022]
|