Abstract
Seasonally, snow environments cover up to 50% of the land's surface, yet the microbial diversity and ecosystem functioning within snow, particularly from alpine regions are not well described. This study explores the bacterial diversity in snow using next-generation sequencing technology. Our data expand the global inventory of snow microbiomes by focusing on two understudied regions, the Swiss Alps and the Australian Alps. A total biomass similar to cell numbers in polar snow was detected, with 5.2 to 10.5 × 103 cells mL-1 of snow. We found that microbial community structure of surface snow varied by country and site and along the altitudinal range (alpine and sub-alpine). The bacterial communities present were diverse, spanning 25 distinct phyla, but the six phyla Proteobacteria (Alpha- and Betaproteobacteria), Acidobacteria, Actinobacteria, Bacteroidetes, Cyanobacteria and Firmicutes, accounted for 72%-98% of the total relative abundance. Taxa such as Acidobacteriaceae and Methylocystaceae, associated with cold soils, may be part of the atmospherically sourced snow community, while families like Sphingomonadaceae were detected in every snow sample and are likely part of the common snow biome.
| Language | English |
|---|---|
| Article number | fiw132 |
| Pages | 1-12 |
| Number of pages | 12 |
| Journal | FEMS Microbiology Ecology |
| Volume | 92 |
| Issue number | 9 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 1 Sep 2016 |
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Keywords
- 16S rRNA gene
- Alpine
- Altitude
- Bacterial diversity
- Community structure
- Snow
Cite this
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Global and local-scale variation in bacterial community structure of snow from the Swiss and Australian Alps. / Wunderlin, Tina; Ferrari, Belinda; Power, Michelle.
In: FEMS Microbiology Ecology, Vol. 92, No. 9, fiw132, 01.09.2016, p. 1-12.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › Research › peer-review
TY - JOUR
T1 - Global and local-scale variation in bacterial community structure of snow from the Swiss and Australian Alps
AU - Wunderlin, Tina
AU - Ferrari, Belinda
AU - Power, Michelle
PY - 2016/9/1
Y1 - 2016/9/1
N2 - Seasonally, snow environments cover up to 50% of the land's surface, yet the microbial diversity and ecosystem functioning within snow, particularly from alpine regions are not well described. This study explores the bacterial diversity in snow using next-generation sequencing technology. Our data expand the global inventory of snow microbiomes by focusing on two understudied regions, the Swiss Alps and the Australian Alps. A total biomass similar to cell numbers in polar snow was detected, with 5.2 to 10.5 × 103 cells mL-1 of snow. We found that microbial community structure of surface snow varied by country and site and along the altitudinal range (alpine and sub-alpine). The bacterial communities present were diverse, spanning 25 distinct phyla, but the six phyla Proteobacteria (Alpha- and Betaproteobacteria), Acidobacteria, Actinobacteria, Bacteroidetes, Cyanobacteria and Firmicutes, accounted for 72%-98% of the total relative abundance. Taxa such as Acidobacteriaceae and Methylocystaceae, associated with cold soils, may be part of the atmospherically sourced snow community, while families like Sphingomonadaceae were detected in every snow sample and are likely part of the common snow biome.
AB - Seasonally, snow environments cover up to 50% of the land's surface, yet the microbial diversity and ecosystem functioning within snow, particularly from alpine regions are not well described. This study explores the bacterial diversity in snow using next-generation sequencing technology. Our data expand the global inventory of snow microbiomes by focusing on two understudied regions, the Swiss Alps and the Australian Alps. A total biomass similar to cell numbers in polar snow was detected, with 5.2 to 10.5 × 103 cells mL-1 of snow. We found that microbial community structure of surface snow varied by country and site and along the altitudinal range (alpine and sub-alpine). The bacterial communities present were diverse, spanning 25 distinct phyla, but the six phyla Proteobacteria (Alpha- and Betaproteobacteria), Acidobacteria, Actinobacteria, Bacteroidetes, Cyanobacteria and Firmicutes, accounted for 72%-98% of the total relative abundance. Taxa such as Acidobacteriaceae and Methylocystaceae, associated with cold soils, may be part of the atmospherically sourced snow community, while families like Sphingomonadaceae were detected in every snow sample and are likely part of the common snow biome.
KW - 16S rRNA gene
KW - Alpine
KW - Altitude
KW - Bacterial diversity
KW - Community structure
KW - Snow
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84985000553&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1093/femsec/fiw132
DO - 10.1093/femsec/fiw132
M3 - Article
VL - 92
SP - 1
EP - 12
JO - FEMS Microbiology Ecology
T2 - FEMS Microbiology Ecology
JF - FEMS Microbiology Ecology
SN - 0168-6496
IS - 9
M1 - fiw132
ER -