The Microbial Diversity of Caves

Hershey, Olivia S.; Barton, Hazel A.

doi:10.1007/978-3-319-98852-8_5

Cited by 35 publications

(44 citation statements)

References 116 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Analysis of the identified taxa revealed a broad phylum-level diversity within both the WCL and STR samples, with 14 and 11 represented phyla, respectively (Figure 3 ). The dominant phyla in WCL are similar to that observed in other cave biomes (Figure 3 ), with dominance by the Proteobacteria (averaged across three samples; 31%) , Firmicutes (14%), Chloroflexi (12%) and Actinobacteria (9%), along with significant contributions by members of the Plantomycetes (3.5%; Hershey and Barton, 2018 ). The WCL samples also contained a greater contribution by members of the Fusobacter (6%), Omnitrophica (7%), Nitrospirae (2%), and unclassified bacterial sequences (5%) compared to other cave samples (Figure 3 ).…”

Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 73%

High Microbial Diversity Despite Extremely Low Biomass in a Deep Karst Aquifer

et al. 2018

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Despite the importance of karst aquifers as a source of drinking water, little is known about the role of microorganisms in maintaining the quality of this water. One of the limitations in exploring the microbiology of these environments is access, which is usually limited to wells and surface springs. In this study, we compared the microbiology of the Madison karst aquifer sampled via the potentiometric lakes of Wind Cave with surface sampling wells and a spring. Our data indicated that only the Streeter Well (STR), which is drilled into the same hydrogeologic domain as the Wind Cave Lakes (WCL), allowed access to water with the same low biomass (1.56–9.25 × 103 cells mL-1). Filtration of ∼300 L of water from both of these sites through a 0.2 μm filter allowed the collection of sufficient cells for DNA extraction, PCR amplification of 16S rRNA gene sequences, and identification through pyrosequencing. The results indicated that bacteria (with limited archaea and no detectable eukaryotic organisms) dominated both water samples; however, there were significant taxonomic differences in the bacterial populations of the samples. The STR sample was dominated by a single phylotype within the Gammaproteobacteria (Order Acidithiobacillales), which dramatically reduced the overall diversity and species richness of the population. In WCL, despite less organic carbon, the bacterial population was significantly more diverse, including significant contributions from the Gammaproteobacteria, Firmicutes, Chloroflexi, Actinobacteria, Planctomycetes, Fusobacter, and Omnitrophica phyla. Comparisons with similar oligotrophic environments suggest that karst aquifers have a greater species richness than comparable surface environs. These data also demonstrate that Wind Cave provides a unique opportunity to sample a deep, subterranean aquifer directly, and that the microbiology of such aquifers may be more complex than previously anticipated.

show abstract

Section: Resultssupporting

confidence: 73%

High Microbial Diversity Despite Extremely Low Biomass in a Deep Karst Aquifer

et al. 2018

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…In this context, our study provides, for the first time, an overview Table 3 Pearson correlation matrices between microbial phyla and geochemical characteristics of the studied vermiculations Table 3 (continued) on the microbial life associated with vermiculations from nonsulfidic karst systems. The NGS approach revealed a biodiversity comparable to those observed in several matrices from different caves [10,19,20,[33][34][35]. Proteobacteria (41.3-54.8%), represented (in decreasing order) by Gamma-, Beta-, Alpha-, and Deltaproteobacteria classes, was the dominant phylum, likely in relation to the wide ranges in metabolism and phenotype, offering the capability to degrade a broad spectrum of organic substrates and to adapt to and thrive in the hostile cave environment [2].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 52%

Microbial Community Characterizing Vermiculations from Karst Caves and Its Role in Their Formation

et al. 2020

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The microbiota associated with vermiculations from karst caves is largely unknown. Vermiculations are enigmatic deposits forming worm-like patterns on cave walls all over the world. They represent a precious focus for geomicrobiological studies aimed at exploring both the microbial life of these ecosystems and the vermiculation genesis. This study comprises the first approach on the microbial communities thriving in Pertosa-Auletta Cave (southern Italy) vermiculations by next-generation sequencing. The most abundant phylum in vermiculations was Proteobacteria, followed by Acidobacteria > Actinobacteria > Nitrospirae > Firmicutes > Planctomycetes > Chloroflexi > Gemmatimonadetes > Bacteroidetes > Latescibacteria. Numerous less-represented taxonomic groups (< 1%), as well as unclassified ones, were also detected. From an ecological point of view, all the groups co-participate in the biogeochemical cycles in these underground environments, mediating oxidation-reduction reactions, promoting host rock dissolution and secondary mineral precipitation, and enriching the matrix in organic matter. Confocal laser scanning microscopy and field emission scanning electron microscopy brought evidence of a strong interaction between the biotic community and the abiotic matrix, supporting the role of microbial communities in the formation process of vermiculations.

show abstract

“…Subterranean microbiological research is a relatively new discipline with most research having been conducted since the middle of the last century (Griebler & Lueders, 2009). A modern ecosystem approach to subterranean biota requires consideration across all trophic levels and scales (Hershey & Barton, 2019), especially since the 1980s when the first cave ecosystems fully sustained by in situ chemosynthetic primary production were discovered (Sarbu, Kane, & Kinkle, 1996; Kumaresan et al ., 2014).…”

Section: Microbiology and Applied Topicsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Fundamental research questions in subterranean biology

et al. 2020

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Five decades ago, a landmark paper in Science titled The Cave Environment heralded caves as ideal natural experimental laboratories in which to develop and address general questions in geology, ecology, biogeography, and evolutionary biology. Although the ‘caves as laboratory’ paradigm has since been advocated by subterranean biologists, there are few examples of studies that successfully translated their results into general principles. The contemporary era of big data, modelling tools, and revolutionary advances in genetics and (meta)genomics provides an opportunity to revisit unresolved questions and challenges, as well as examine promising new avenues of research in subterranean biology. Accordingly, we have developed a roadmap to guide future research endeavours in subterranean biology by adapting a well‐established methodology of ‘horizon scanning’ to identify the highest priority research questions across six subject areas. Based on the expert opinion of 30 scientists from around the globe with complementary expertise and of different academic ages, we assembled an initial list of 258 fundamental questions concentrating on macroecology and microbial ecology, adaptation, evolution, and conservation. Subsequently, through online surveys, 130 subterranean biologists with various backgrounds assisted us in reducing our list to 50 top‐priority questions. These research questions are broad in scope and ready to be addressed in the next decade. We believe this exercise will stimulate research towards a deeper understanding of subterranean biology and foster hypothesis‐driven studies likely to resonate broadly from the traditional boundaries of this field.

show abstract

The Microbial Diversity of Caves

Cited by 35 publications

References 116 publications

High Microbial Diversity Despite Extremely Low Biomass in a Deep Karst Aquifer

High Microbial Diversity Despite Extremely Low Biomass in a Deep Karst Aquifer

Microbial Community Characterizing Vermiculations from Karst Caves and Its Role in Their Formation

Fundamental research questions in subterranean biology

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About