Massive biofilms have been discovered in the cave of an iodine-rich former medicinal spring in southern Germany. The biofilms completely cover the walls and ceilings of the cave, giving rise to speculations about their metabolism. Here we report on first insights into the structure and function of the biofilm microbiota, combining geochemical, imaging and molecular analytics. Stable isotope analysis indicated that thermogenic methane emerging into the cave served as an important driver of biofilm formation. The undisturbed cavern atmosphere contained up to 3000 p.p.m. methane and was microoxic. A high abundance and diversity of aerobic methanotrophs primarily within the Methylococcales (Gammaproteobacteria) and methylotrophic Methylophilaceae (Betaproteobacteria) were found in the biofilms, along with a surprising diversity of associated heterotrophic bacteria. The highest methane oxidation potentials were measured for submerged biofilms on the cavern wall. Highly organized globular structures of the biofilm matrix were revealed by fluorescent lectin staining. We propose that the extracellular matrix served not only as an electron sink for nutrient-limited biofilm methylotrophs but potentially also as a diffusive barrier against volatilized iodine species. Possible links between carbon and iodine cycling in this peculiar habitat are discussed.
± ZusammenfassungEight pedotransfer functions (PTF) originally calibrated to soil data are used for evaluation of hydraulic properties of soils and deeper sediments. Only PTFs are considered which had shown good results in previous investigations. Two data sets were used for this purpose: a data set of measured pressure heads vs. water contents of 347 soil horizons (802 measured pairs) from Bavaria (Southern Germany) and a data set of 39 undisturbed samples of tertiary sediments from deeper ground (down to 100 m depth) in the molasse basin north of the Alps, containing 840 measured water contents vs. pressure head and unsaturated hydraulic conductivity. A statistical analysis of the PTFs shows that their performance is quite similar with respect to predicting soil water contents. Less satisfactory results were obtained when the PTFs were applied to prediction of water content of sediments from deeper ground. The predicted unsaturated hydraulic conductivities show about the same uncertainty as for soils in a previous study. Systematic deviations of predicted values indicate that an adaptation of the PTFs to the specific conditions of deeper ground should be possible in order to improve predictions. Bewertung von Pedotransferfunktionen zur Prognose der hydraulischen Kennwerte von Böden und tieferen SedimentenAcht Pedotransferfunktionen (PTF), die ursprünglich anhand von Bodendaten kalibriert wurden, werden für die Prognose der hydraulischen Kennwerte sowohl von Böden als auch tieferen Sedimenten eingesetzt. Es wurden nur PTFs untersucht, die in anderen Untersuchungen gute Ergebnisse geliefert hatten. Zwei Datensätze standen für die Bewertung der PTFs zur Verfügung: ein Datensatz mit gemessenen Saugspannungen vs. Wassergehalten von 347 über ganz Bayern verteilten Bodenhorizonten (802 Messpaare) und ein Datensatz von 39 ungestörten Sedimentproben der miozänen Oberen Süûwassermolasse (OSM) des voralpinen Molassebeckens aus Tiefen von bis zu 100 m mit insgesamt 840 gemessenen Wassergehalten vs. Saugspannungen und ungesättigten Wasserleitfähigkeiten. Die statistische Analyse der acht PTFs zeigt, dass die meisten untersuchten PTFs die gemessenen Wassergehalte der Böden ungefähr gleich gut abschätzen. Alle PTFs ergaben bei der Vorhersage der Wassergehalte der tieferen Sedimente deutlich weniger gute Ergebnisse. Dennoch konnten mit den PTFs die ungesättigten Wasserleitfähigkeiten mit etwa der gleichen Genauigkeit wie bei Böden in einer früheren Studie prognostiziert werden. Systematische Abweichungen der Prognosewerte zeigen, dass eine spezifische Anpassung der PTFs auf die Bedingungen des tieferen Untergrundes zur Verbesserung der Vorhersagegenauigkeit möglich sein müsste.
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