Biogeographical distribution and ecological ranges of benthic cyanobacteria in East Antarctic lakes

For the first time, the cyanobacterial diversity from microbial mats in lakes ofEastern Antarctica was investigated using microscopic and molecular approaches.The present study assessed the biogeographical distribution of cyanobacteria inAntarctica. Five samples were taken from four lakes spanning a...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:FEMS Microbiology Ecology
Main Authors: Arnaud, T, Grubisic, S, Balthasart, P, Hodgson, DA, Laybourn-Parry, J, Wilmott, A
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: Springer New York LLC 2006
Subjects:
Biological Sciences
Microbiology
Microbial Ecology
Antarctic
Vestfold Hills
Vestfold
Larsemann Hills
Four Lakes
Rauer Islands
Antarc*
Antarctica
Online Access:http://interscience.wiley.com
https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1574-6941.2006.00110.x
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16867145
http://ecite.utas.edu.au/49042
Description
Summary:For the first time, the cyanobacterial diversity from microbial mats in lakes ofEastern Antarctica was investigated using microscopic and molecular approaches.The present study assessed the biogeographical distribution of cyanobacteria inAntarctica. Five samples were taken from four lakes spanning a range of differentecological environments in Larsemann Hills, Vestfold Hills and Rauer Islands toevaluate the influence of lake characteristics on the cyanobacterial diversity.Seventeen morphospecies and 28 16S rRNA gene-based operational taxonomicunits belonging to the Oscillatoriales, Nostocales and Chroococcales were identified.The internal transcribed spacer was evaluated to complement the 16S rRNAgene data and showed similar but more clear-cut tendencies. The molecularapproach suggested that potential Antarctic endemic species, including a previouslyundiscovered diversity, are more abundant than has been estimated bymorphological methods. Moreover, operational taxonomic units, also foundoutside Antarctica, were more widespread over the continent than potentialendemics. The cyanobacterial diversity of the most saline lakes was found to differfrom the others, and correlations between the sampling depth and the cyanobacterialcommunities can also be drawn. Comparison with database sequencesillustrated the ubiquity of several cyanobacterial operational taxonomic units andtheir remarkable range of tolerance to harsh environmental conditions.

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