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Papale M, Lo Giudice A, Conte A, Rizzo C, Rappazzo AC, Maimone G, Caruso G, La Ferla R, Azzaro M, Gugliandolo C, Paranhos R, Cabral AS, Romano Spica V, Guglielmin M. Microbial Assemblages in Pressurized Antarctic Brine Pockets (Tarn Flat, Northern Victoria Land): A Hotspot of Biodiversity and Activity. Microorganisms 2019; 7:E333. [PMID: 31505750 PMCID: PMC6780602 DOI: 10.3390/microorganisms7090333] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/19/2019] [Revised: 09/04/2019] [Accepted: 09/05/2019] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
Two distinct pressurized hypersaline brine pockets (named TF4 and TF5), separated by a thin ice layer, were detected below an ice-sealed Antarctic lake. Prokaryotic (bacterial and archaeal) diversity, abundances (including virus-like particles) and metabolic profiles were investigated by an integrated approach, including traditional and new-generation methods. Although similar diversity indices were computed for both Bacteria and Archaea, distinct bacterial and archaeal assemblages were observed. Bacteroidetes and Gammaproteobacteria were more abundant in the shallowest brine pocket, TF4, and Deltaproteobacteria, mainly represented by versatile sulphate-reducing bacteria, dominated in the deepest, TF5. The detection of sulphate-reducing bacteria and methanogenic Archaea likely reflects the presence of a distinct synthrophic consortium in TF5. Surprisingly, members assigned to hyperthermophilic Crenarchaeota and Euryarchaeota were common to both brines, indicating that these cold habitats host the most thermally tolerant Archaea. The patterns of microbial communities were different, coherently with the observed microbiological diversity between TF4 and TF5 brines. Both the influence exerted by upward movement of saline brines from a sub-surface anoxic system and the possible occurrence of an ancient ice remnant from the Ross Ice Shelf were the likely main factors shaping the microbial communities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria Papale
- Institute of Polar Sciences, National Research Council (ISP-CNR), 98122 Messina, Italy.
| | - Angelina Lo Giudice
- Institute of Polar Sciences, National Research Council (ISP-CNR), 98122 Messina, Italy.
| | - Antonella Conte
- Department of Chemical, Biological, Pharmaceutical and Environmental Sciences, University of Messina, 98168 Messina, Italy.
| | - Carmen Rizzo
- Department of Chemical, Biological, Pharmaceutical and Environmental Sciences, University of Messina, 98168 Messina, Italy.
| | - Alessandro C Rappazzo
- Institute of Polar Sciences, National Research Council (ISP-CNR), 98122 Messina, Italy.
| | - Giovanna Maimone
- Institute of Polar Sciences, National Research Council (ISP-CNR), 98122 Messina, Italy.
| | - Gabriella Caruso
- Institute of Polar Sciences, National Research Council (ISP-CNR), 98122 Messina, Italy.
| | - Rosabruna La Ferla
- Institute of Polar Sciences, National Research Council (ISP-CNR), 98122 Messina, Italy.
| | - Maurizio Azzaro
- Institute of Polar Sciences, National Research Council (ISP-CNR), 98122 Messina, Italy.
| | - Concetta Gugliandolo
- Department of Chemical, Biological, Pharmaceutical and Environmental Sciences, University of Messina, 98168 Messina, Italy.
| | - Rodolfo Paranhos
- Institute of Biology, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro 21.941-590, Brazil.
| | - Anderson S Cabral
- Institute of Biology, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro 21.941-590, Brazil.
| | - Vincenzo Romano Spica
- Department of Movement, Human and Health Sciences, Public Health Unit, University of Rome "Foro Italico", P.zza Lauro De Bosis 6, 00135 Rome, Italy.
| | - Mauro Guglielmin
- Dipartimento di Scienze Teoriche e Applicate, University of Insubria, 21100 Varese, Italy.
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A thin ice layer segregates two distinct fungal communities in Antarctic brines from Tarn Flat (Northern Victoria Land). Sci Rep 2018; 8:6582. [PMID: 29700429 PMCID: PMC5919928 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-018-25079-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/22/2017] [Accepted: 04/11/2018] [Indexed: 02/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Brines are hypersaline solutions which have been found within the Antarctic permafrost from the Tarn Flat area (Northern Victoria Land). Here, an investigation on the possible presence and diversity of fungal life within those peculiar ecosystems has been carried out for the first time. Brines samples were collected at 4- and 5-meter depths (TF1 and TF2, respectively), from two brines separated by a thin ice layer. The samples were analyzed via Illumina MiSeq targeting the ITS region specific for both yeasts and filamentous fungi. An unexpected high alpha diversity was found. Beta diversity analysis revealed that the two brines were inhabited by two phylogenetically diverse fungal communities (Unifrac value: 0.56, p value < 0.01; Martin’s P-test p-value < 0.001) characterized by several specialist taxa. The most abundant fungal genera were Candida sp., Leucosporidium sp., Naganishia sp. and Sporobolomyces sp. in TF1, and Leucosporidium sp., Malassezia sp., Naganishia sp. and Sporobolomyces sp. in TF2. A few hypotheses on such differentiation have been done: i) the different chemical and physical composition of the brines; ii) the presence in situ of a thin layer of ice, acting as a physical barrier; and iii) the diverse geological origin of the brines.
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Pressurized brines in continental Antarctica as a possible analogue of Mars. Sci Rep 2016; 6:33158. [PMID: 27616183 PMCID: PMC5018818 DOI: 10.1038/srep33158] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/11/2016] [Accepted: 08/17/2016] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Abstract
Interest in brines in extreme and cold environments has recently increased after they have been found on Mars. Those brines can be potential new subsurface habitats for peculiar ecosystems. In the McMurdo Dry Valleys of the Antarctic, the best analogue for Mars conditions, only a few cases of brines have been identified in some perennially frozen lakes and in one case in an underground aquifer. Here, we present the occurrence of pressurized brines in a shallow perennially ice-covered lake south of 70°S in an ice-free area of Victoria Land, Antarctica. For the first time, we also imaged, by means of ground penetrating radar data, the existence of a pingo-like-feature (PLF) formed by the extrusion of brines, which has also been confirmed by borehole evidence. Those brines are fed by an underground talik external to the lake basin, enhancing the possibility of unexploited ecosystems that could find an analogue in Martian environments.
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Schlosser E, Anschütz H, Divine D, Martma T, Sinisalo A, Altnau S, Isaksson E. Recent climate tendencies on an East Antarctic ice shelf inferred from a shallow firn core network. JOURNAL OF GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH. ATMOSPHERES : JGR 2014; 119:6549-6562. [PMID: 25821663 PMCID: PMC4370759 DOI: 10.1002/2013jd020818] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/03/2013] [Accepted: 05/20/2014] [Indexed: 06/04/2023]
Abstract
UNLABELLED Nearly three decades of stable isotope ratios and surface mass balance (SMB) data from eight shallow firn cores retrieved at Fimbul Ice Shelf, East Antarctica, in the Austral summers 2009-2011 have been investigated. An additional longer core drilled in 2000/2001 extends the series back to the early eighteenth century. Isotope ratios and SMB from the stacked record of all cores were also related to instrumental temperature data from Neumayer Station on Ekström Ice Shelf. Since the second half of the twentieth century, the SMB shows a statistically significant negative trend, whereas the δ18O of the cores shows a significant positive trend. No trend is found in air temperature at the nearest suitable weather station, Neumayer (available since 1981). This does not correspond to the statistically significant positive trend in Southern Annular Mode (SAM) index, which is usually associated with a cooling of East Antarctica. SAM index and SMB are negatively correlated, which might be explained by a decrease in meridional exchange of energy and moisture leading to lower precipitation amounts. Future monitoring of climate change on the sensitive Antarctic ice shelves is necessary to assess its consequences for sea level change. KEY POINTS Mass balance and stable oxygen isotope ratios from shallow firn coresDecreasing trend in surface mass balance, no trend in stable isotopesNegative correlation between SAM and SMB.
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Affiliation(s)
- E Schlosser
- Institute of Meteorology and Geophysics, University of Innsbruck Innsbruck, Austria
| | | | - D Divine
- Norwegian Polar Institute, Fram Centre Tromsø, Norway
| | - T Martma
- Institute of Geology, Tallinn University of Technology Tallinn, Estonia
| | - A Sinisalo
- Department of Geosciences, University of Oslo Oslo, Norway
| | - S Altnau
- Institute of Meteorology and Geophysics, University of Innsbruck Innsbruck, Austria
| | - E Isaksson
- Norwegian Polar Institute, Fram Centre Tromsø, Norway
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Suzuki K, Yamanouchi T, Motoyama H. Moisture transport to Syowa and Dome Fuji stations in Antarctica. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2008. [DOI: 10.1029/2008jd009794] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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Monaghan AJ, Bromwich DH, Chapman W, Comiso JC. Recent variability and trends of Antarctic near-surface temperature. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2008. [DOI: 10.1029/2007jd009094] [Citation(s) in RCA: 85] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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Maksym T, Markus T. Antarctic sea ice thickness and snow-to-ice conversion from atmospheric reanalysis and passive microwave snow depth. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2008. [DOI: 10.1029/2006jc004085] [Citation(s) in RCA: 64] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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Bromwich DH, Fogt RL, Hodges KI, Walsh JE. A tropospheric assessment of the ERA-40, NCEP, and JRA-25 global reanalyses in the polar regions. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2007. [DOI: 10.1029/2006jd007859] [Citation(s) in RCA: 219] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- David H. Bromwich
- Polar Meteorology Group, Byrd Polar Research Center; Ohio State University; Columbus Ohio USA
- Atmospheric Sciences Program, Department of Geography; Ohio State University; Columbus Ohio USA
| | - Ryan L. Fogt
- Polar Meteorology Group, Byrd Polar Research Center; Ohio State University; Columbus Ohio USA
- Atmospheric Sciences Program, Department of Geography; Ohio State University; Columbus Ohio USA
| | - Kevin I. Hodges
- Environmental Systems Science Center; University of Reading; Reading UK
| | - John E. Walsh
- International Arctic Research Center; University of Alaska-Fairbanks; Fairbanks Alaska USA
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Monaghan AJ, Bromwich DH, Fogt RL, Wang SH, Mayewski PA, Dixon DA, Ekaykin A, Frezzotti M, Goodwin I, Isaksson E, Kaspari SD, Morgan VI, Oerter H, Van Ommen TD, Van der Veen CJ, Wen J. Insignificant Change in Antarctic Snowfall Since the International Geophysical Year. Science 2006; 313:827-31. [PMID: 16902135 DOI: 10.1126/science.1128243] [Citation(s) in RCA: 187] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
Abstract
Antarctic snowfall exhibits substantial variability over a range of time scales, with consequent impacts on global sea level and the mass balance of the ice sheets. To assess how snowfall has affected the thickness of the ice sheets in Antarctica and to provide an extended perspective, we derived a 50-year time series of snowfall accumulation over the continent by combining model simulations and observations primarily from ice cores. There has been no statistically significant change in snowfall since the 1950s, indicating that Antarctic precipitation is not mitigating global sea level rise as expected, despite recent winter warming of the overlying atmosphere.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrew J Monaghan
- Polar Meteorology Group, Byrd Polar Research Center, Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA
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Payne AJ, Hunt JCR, Wingham DJ. Evolution of the Antarctic ice sheet: new understanding and challenges. PHILOSOPHICAL TRANSACTIONS. SERIES A, MATHEMATICAL, PHYSICAL, AND ENGINEERING SCIENCES 2006; 364:1867-72. [PMID: 16782613 DOI: 10.1098/rsta.2006.1802] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/10/2023]
Abstract
This brief paper has two purposes. First, we gauge developments in the study of the Antarctic ice sheet over the last seven years by comparing the contents of this issue with the volume produced from an American Geophysical Union meeting, held in September 1998, on the West Antarctic ice sheet. We focus on the uptake of satellite-based observation; ice-ocean interactions; ice streams as foci of change within the ice sheet; and the time scales on which the ice sheet is thought to operate. Second, we attempt to anticipate the future challenges that the study of the Antarctic ice sheet will present. We highlight the role of the upcoming International Polar Year in facilitating a better coverage of in situ climatic observations over the continent; the pressing need to understand the causes and consequences of the contemporary changes observed in the Amundsen Sea sector of West Antarctica; and the need for improved physics in predictive models of the ice sheet.
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Affiliation(s)
- Antony J Payne
- University of Bristol, Centre for Polar Observation and Modelling, Bristol BS8 1SS, UK.
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Arthern RJ, Hindmarsh RCA. Determining the contribution of Antarctica to sea-level rise using data assimilation methods. PHILOSOPHICAL TRANSACTIONS. SERIES A, MATHEMATICAL, PHYSICAL, AND ENGINEERING SCIENCES 2006; 364:1841-65. [PMID: 16782612 DOI: 10.1098/rsta.2006.1801] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/10/2023]
Abstract
The problem of forecasting the future behaviour of the Antarctic ice sheet is considered. We describe a method for optimizing this forecast by combining a model of ice sheet flow with observations. Under certain assumptions, a linearized model of glacial flow can be combined with observations of the thickness change, snow accumulation, and ice-flow, to forecast the Antarctic contribution to sea-level rise. Numerical simulations show that this approach can potentially be used to test whether changes observed in Antarctica are consistent with the natural forcing of a stable ice sheet by snowfall fluctuations. To make predictions under less restrictive assumptions, improvements in models of ice flow are needed. Some of the challenges that this prediction problem poses are highlighted, and potentially useful approaches drawn from numerical weather prediction are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Robert J Arthern
- British Antarctic Survey, High Cross, Madingley Road, Cambridge CB3 0ET, UK.
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