Physiological capabilities of cryoconite hole microorganisms
Cryoconite holes are miniature freshwater aquatic ecosystems that harbor a relatively diverse microbial community. This microbial community can withstand the extreme conditions of the supraglacial environment, including fluctuating temperatures, extreme and varying geochemical conditions and limited...
Published in: | Frontiers in Microbiology |
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2020
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Online Access: | https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/133925/ https://doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2020.01783 https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/133925/1/Bagshaw.pdf |
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ftunivcardiff:oai:https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk:133925 2023-08-27T04:04:54+02:00 Physiological capabilities of cryoconite hole microorganisms Poniecka, Ewa A. Bagshaw, Elizabeth A. Sass, Henrik Segar, Amelia Webster, Gordon Williamson, Christopher Anesio, Alexandre M. Tranter, Martyn 2020-07-31 application/pdf https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/133925/ https://doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2020.01783 https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/133925/1/Bagshaw.pdf en eng Frontiers Media https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/133925/1/Bagshaw.pdf Poniecka, Ewa A., Bagshaw, Elizabeth A. https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/view/cardiffauthors/A1991811U.html orcid:0000-0001-8392-1750 orcid:0000-0001-8392-1750, Sass, Henrik https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/view/cardiffauthors/A033372Z.html orcid:0000-0001-8740-4224 orcid:0000-0001-8740-4224, Segar, Amelia, Webster, Gordon https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/view/cardiffauthors/A0430264.html orcid:0000-0002-9530-7835 orcid:0000-0002-9530-7835, Williamson, Christopher, Anesio, Alexandre M. and Tranter, Martyn 2020. Physiological capabilities of cryoconite hole microorganisms. Frontiers in Microbiology 11 , 1783. 10.3389/fmicb.2020.01783 https://doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2020.01783 file https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/133925/1/Bagshaw.pdf doi:10.3389/fmicb.2020.01783 cc_by Article PeerReviewed 2020 ftunivcardiff https://doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2020.01783 2023-08-10T22:35:39Z Cryoconite holes are miniature freshwater aquatic ecosystems that harbor a relatively diverse microbial community. This microbial community can withstand the extreme conditions of the supraglacial environment, including fluctuating temperatures, extreme and varying geochemical conditions and limited nutrients. We analyzed the physiological capabilities of microbial isolates from cryoconite holes from Antarctica, Greenland, and Svalbard in selected environmental conditions: extreme pH, salinity, freeze-thaw and limited carbon sources, to identify their physiological limits. The results suggest that heterotrophic microorganisms in cryoconite holes are well adapted to fast-changing environmental conditions, by surviving multiple freeze-thaw cycles, a wide range of salinity and pH conditions and scavenging a variety of organic substrates. Under oxic and anoxic conditions, the communities grew well in temperatures up to 30°C, although in anoxic conditions the community was more successful at colder temperatures (0.2°C). The most abundant cultivable microorganisms were facultative anaerobic bacteria and yeasts. They grew in salinities up to 10% and in pH ranging from 4 to 10.5 (Antarctica), 2.5 to 10 (Svalbard), and 3 to 10 (Greenland). Their growth was sustained on at least 58 single carbon sources and there was no decrease in viability for some isolates after up to 100 consecutive freeze-thaw cycles. The elevated viability of the anaerobic community in the lowest temperatures indicates they might be key players in winter conditions or in early melt seasons, when the oxygen is potentially depleted due to limited flow of meltwater. Consequently, facultative anaerobic heterotrophs are likely important players in the reactivation of the community after the polar night. This detailed physiological investigation shows that despite inhabiting a freshwater environment, cryoconite microorganisms are able to withstand conditions not typically encountered in freshwater environments (namely high salinities or extreme pH), ... Article in Journal/Newspaper Antarc* Antarctica Greenland polar night Svalbard Cardiff University: ORCA (Online Research @ Cardiff) Greenland Svalbard Frontiers in Microbiology 11 |
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Open Polar |
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Cardiff University: ORCA (Online Research @ Cardiff) |
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ftunivcardiff |
language |
English |
description |
Cryoconite holes are miniature freshwater aquatic ecosystems that harbor a relatively diverse microbial community. This microbial community can withstand the extreme conditions of the supraglacial environment, including fluctuating temperatures, extreme and varying geochemical conditions and limited nutrients. We analyzed the physiological capabilities of microbial isolates from cryoconite holes from Antarctica, Greenland, and Svalbard in selected environmental conditions: extreme pH, salinity, freeze-thaw and limited carbon sources, to identify their physiological limits. The results suggest that heterotrophic microorganisms in cryoconite holes are well adapted to fast-changing environmental conditions, by surviving multiple freeze-thaw cycles, a wide range of salinity and pH conditions and scavenging a variety of organic substrates. Under oxic and anoxic conditions, the communities grew well in temperatures up to 30°C, although in anoxic conditions the community was more successful at colder temperatures (0.2°C). The most abundant cultivable microorganisms were facultative anaerobic bacteria and yeasts. They grew in salinities up to 10% and in pH ranging from 4 to 10.5 (Antarctica), 2.5 to 10 (Svalbard), and 3 to 10 (Greenland). Their growth was sustained on at least 58 single carbon sources and there was no decrease in viability for some isolates after up to 100 consecutive freeze-thaw cycles. The elevated viability of the anaerobic community in the lowest temperatures indicates they might be key players in winter conditions or in early melt seasons, when the oxygen is potentially depleted due to limited flow of meltwater. Consequently, facultative anaerobic heterotrophs are likely important players in the reactivation of the community after the polar night. This detailed physiological investigation shows that despite inhabiting a freshwater environment, cryoconite microorganisms are able to withstand conditions not typically encountered in freshwater environments (namely high salinities or extreme pH), ... |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Poniecka, Ewa A. Bagshaw, Elizabeth A. Sass, Henrik Segar, Amelia Webster, Gordon Williamson, Christopher Anesio, Alexandre M. Tranter, Martyn |
spellingShingle |
Poniecka, Ewa A. Bagshaw, Elizabeth A. Sass, Henrik Segar, Amelia Webster, Gordon Williamson, Christopher Anesio, Alexandre M. Tranter, Martyn Physiological capabilities of cryoconite hole microorganisms |
author_facet |
Poniecka, Ewa A. Bagshaw, Elizabeth A. Sass, Henrik Segar, Amelia Webster, Gordon Williamson, Christopher Anesio, Alexandre M. Tranter, Martyn |
author_sort |
Poniecka, Ewa A. |
title |
Physiological capabilities of cryoconite hole microorganisms |
title_short |
Physiological capabilities of cryoconite hole microorganisms |
title_full |
Physiological capabilities of cryoconite hole microorganisms |
title_fullStr |
Physiological capabilities of cryoconite hole microorganisms |
title_full_unstemmed |
Physiological capabilities of cryoconite hole microorganisms |
title_sort |
physiological capabilities of cryoconite hole microorganisms |
publisher |
Frontiers Media |
publishDate |
2020 |
url |
https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/133925/ https://doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2020.01783 https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/133925/1/Bagshaw.pdf |
geographic |
Greenland Svalbard |
geographic_facet |
Greenland Svalbard |
genre |
Antarc* Antarctica Greenland polar night Svalbard |
genre_facet |
Antarc* Antarctica Greenland polar night Svalbard |
op_relation |
https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/133925/1/Bagshaw.pdf Poniecka, Ewa A., Bagshaw, Elizabeth A. https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/view/cardiffauthors/A1991811U.html orcid:0000-0001-8392-1750 orcid:0000-0001-8392-1750, Sass, Henrik https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/view/cardiffauthors/A033372Z.html orcid:0000-0001-8740-4224 orcid:0000-0001-8740-4224, Segar, Amelia, Webster, Gordon https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/view/cardiffauthors/A0430264.html orcid:0000-0002-9530-7835 orcid:0000-0002-9530-7835, Williamson, Christopher, Anesio, Alexandre M. and Tranter, Martyn 2020. Physiological capabilities of cryoconite hole microorganisms. Frontiers in Microbiology 11 , 1783. 10.3389/fmicb.2020.01783 https://doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2020.01783 file https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/133925/1/Bagshaw.pdf doi:10.3389/fmicb.2020.01783 |
op_rights |
cc_by |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2020.01783 |
container_title |
Frontiers in Microbiology |
container_volume |
11 |
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1775354430984552448 |