Abstract
Alpha and beta diversities of the bacterial communities growing on rock surfaces, proto-soils, riparian sediments, lichen thalli, and water springs biofilms in a glacier foreland were studied. We used three molecular based techniques to allow a deeper investigation at different taxonomic resolutions: denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis, length heterogeneity-PCR, and automated ribosomal intergenic spacer analysis. Bacterial communities were mainly composed of Acidobacteria, Proteobacteria, and Cyanobacteria with distinct variations among sites. Proteobacteria were more represented in sediments, biofilms, and lichens; Acidobacteria were mostly found in proto-soils; and Cyanobacteria on rocks. Firmicutes and Bacteroidetes were mainly found in biofilms. UniFrac P values confirmed a significant difference among different matrices. Significant differences (P < 0.001) in beta diversity were observed among the different matrices at the genus-species level, except for lichens and rocks which shared a more similar community structure, while at deep taxonomic resolution two distinct bacterial communities between lichens and rocks were found.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 472-479 |
| Number of pages | 8 |
| Journal | Current Microbiology |
| Volume | 67 |
| Issue number | 4 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Oct 2013 |
| Externally published | Yes |
Keywords
- Bacterial communities
- Biodiversity
- Fingerprinting methods
- Glacier foreland
- High mountain environments
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Microbiology
- Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology