Potentially pathogenic bacteria isolated from diverse habitats in Spitsbergen, Svalbard

• Published in: Environmental Earth Sciences
• Main Authors: Mogrovejo-Arias, Diana C., Brill, Florian H. H., Wagner, Dirk
• Other Authors: Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation programme
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Springer Science and Business Media LLC 2020
• Subjects: Earth-Surface Processes; Geology; Pollution; Soil Science; Water Science and Technology; Environmental Chemistry; Global and Planetary Change; Arctic; Svalbard; Arctic Archipelago; Global warming; Spitsbergen
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s12665-020-8853-4; http://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/s12665-020-8853-4.pdf; http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12665-020-8853-4/fulltext.html

Abstract The Arctic ecosystem, a reservoir of genetic microbial diversity, represents a virtually unlimited source of microorganisms that could interact with human beings. Despite continuous exploration of Arctic habitats and description of their microbial communities, bacterial phenotypes commonly associated with pathogenicity, such as hemolytic activity, have rarely been reported. In this study, samples of snow, fresh and marine water, soil, and sediment from several habitats in the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard were collected during Summer, 2017. Bacterial isolates were obtained after incubation on oligotrophic media at different temperatures and their hemolytic potential was assessed on sheep blood agar plates. Partial ( α ) or true ( β ) hemolysis was observed in 32 out of 78 bacterial species. Genes expressing cytolytic compounds, such as hemolysins, likely increase the general fitness of the producing microorganisms and confer a competitive advantage over the availability of nutrients in natural habitats. In environmental species, the nutrient-acquisition function of these compounds presumably precedes their function as toxins for mammalian erythrocytes. However, in the light of global warming, the presence of hemolytic bacteria in Arctic environments highlights the possible risks associated with these microorganisms in the event of habitat melting/destruction, ecosystem transition, and re-colonization.