scholarly journals Cross-Shore and Depth Zonations in Bacterial Diversity Are Linked to Age and Source of Dissolved Organic Matter across the Intertidal Area of a Sandy Beach

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (8) ◽  
pp. 1720
Author(s):  
Julius Degenhardt ◽  
Julian Merder ◽  
Benedikt Heyerhoff ◽  
Heike Simon ◽  
Bert Engelen ◽  
...  

Microbial communities and dissolved organic matter (DOM) are intrinsically linked within the global carbon cycle. Demonstrating this link on a molecular level is hampered by the complexity of both counterparts. We have now investigated this connection within intertidal beach sediments, characterized by a runnel-ridge system and subterranean groundwater discharge. Using datasets generated by Fourier-transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry (FT-ICR-MS) and Ilumina-sequencing of 16S rRNA genes, we predicted metabolic functions and determined links between bacterial communities and DOM composition. Four bacterial clusters were defined, reflecting differences within the community compositions. Those were attributed to distinct areas, depths, or metabolic niches. Cluster I was found throughout all surface sediments, probably involved in algal-polymer degradation. In ridge and low water line samples, cluster III became prominent. Associated porewaters indicated an influence of terrestrial DOM and the release of aromatic compounds from reactive iron oxides. Cluster IV showed the highest seasonality and was associated with species previously reported from a subsurface bloom. Interestingly, Cluster II harbored several members of the candidate phyla radiation (CPR) and was related to highly degraded DOM. This may be one of the first geochemical proofs for the role of candidate phyla in the degradation of highly refractory DOM.

Water ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 331 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christin Wilske ◽  
Peter Herzsprung ◽  
Oliver J. Lechtenfeld ◽  
Norbert Kamjunke ◽  
Wolf von Tümpling

Photochemical processing is an important way to transform terrestrial dissolved organic matter (DOM) but was rarely investigated by ultra-high resolution mass spectrometry. We performed an irradiation experiment with water from a shaded forest stream flowing into a lit reservoir. Bacterial activity explained only 1% of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) decline in a combined bacterial and photodegradation approach. Photodegradation decreased the DOC concentration by 30%, the specific ultraviolet (UV) absorption by 40%–50%, and fluorescence intensity by 80% during six days. The humification index (HIX) decreased whereas the fluorescence index (FI) did not change. Two humic-like components identified by parallel factor analysis (PARAFAC) of excitation–emission matrices followed the decrease of fluorescent DOM. Changes of relative peak intensities of Fourier transform-ion cyclotron resonance mass spectroscopy (FT-ICR MS) elemental formula components as a function of cumulated radiation were evaluated both by Spearman’s rank correlation and linear regression. The FT-ICR MS intensity changes indicate that high aromatic material was photochemically converted into smaller non-fluorescent molecules or degraded by the release of CO2. This study shows the molecular change of terrestrial DOM before the preparation of drinking water from reservoirs.


2012 ◽  
Vol 9 (6) ◽  
pp. 1935-1955 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Flerus ◽  
O. J. Lechtenfeld ◽  
B. P. Koch ◽  
S. L. McCallister ◽  
P. Schmitt-Kopplin ◽  
...  

Abstract. Dissolved organic matter (DOM) was extracted by solid-phase extraction (SPE) from 137 water samples from different climate zones and different depths along an eastern Atlantic Ocean transect. The extracts were analyzed with Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry (FT-ICR MS) with electrospray ionization (ESI). Δ14C analyses were performed on subsamples of the SPE-DOM. In addition, the amount of dissolved organic carbon was determined for all water and SPE-DOM samples as well as the yield of amino sugars for selected samples. Linear correlations were observed between the magnitudes of 43 % of the FT-ICR mass peaks and the extract Δ14C values. Decreasing SPE-DOM Δ14C values went along with a shift in the molecular composition to higher average masses (m/z) and lower hydrogen/carbon (H/C) ratios. The correlation was used to model the SPE-DOM Δ14C distribution for all 137 samples. Based on single mass peaks, a degradation index (IDEG) was developed to compare the degradation state of marine SPE-DOM samples analyzed with FT-ICR MS. A correlation between Δ14C, IDEG, DOC values and amino sugar yield supports that SPE-DOM analyzed with FT-ICR MS reflects trends of bulk DOM. DOM weighted normalized mass peak magnitudes were used to compare aged and recent SPE-DOM on a semi-quantitative molecular basis. The magnitude comparison showed a continuum of different degradation rates for the detected compounds. A high proportion of the compounds should persist, possibly modified by partial degradation, in the course of thermohaline circulation. Prokaryotic (bacterial) production, transformation and accumulation of this very stable DOM occur primarily in the upper ocean. This DOM is an important contribution to very old DOM, showing that production and degradation are dynamic processes.


2011 ◽  
Vol 8 (6) ◽  
pp. 11453-11488 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Flerus ◽  
B. P. Koch ◽  
O. J. Lechtenfeld ◽  
S. L. McCallister ◽  
P. Schmitt-Kopplin ◽  
...  

Abstract. Dissolved organic matter (DOM) was extracted with solid phase extraction (SPE) from 137 water samples from different climate zones and different depths along an Eastern Atlantic Ocean transect. The extracts were analyzed with Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry (FT-ICR MS) with electrospray ionization (ESI). Δ14C analyses were performed on subsamples of the SPE-DOM. In addition, the amount of dissolved organic carbon was determined for all water and SPE-DOM samples as well as the yield of amino sugars for selected samples. Linear correlations were observed between the magnitudes of 43 % of the FT-ICR mass peaks and the extract Δ14C values. Decreasing SPE-DOM Δ14C values went along with a shift in the molecular composition to higher average masses (m/z) and lower hydrogen/carbon (H/C) ratios. The correlation was used to model the SPE-DOM Δ14C distribution for all 137 samples. Based on single mass peaks a degradation index was developed to compare the degradation state of marine SPE-DOM samples analyzed with FT-ICR MS. A correlation between Δ14C, degradation index, DOC values and amino sugar yield supports that SPE-DOM analyzed with FT-ICR MS reflects trends of bulk DOM. A relative mass peak magnitude ratio was used to compare aged SPE-DOM and fresh SPE-DOM regarding single mass peaks. The magnitude ratios show a continuum of different reactivities for the single compounds. Only few of the compounds present in the FT-ICR mass spectra are expected to be highly degraded in the oldest water masses of the Pacific Ocean. All other compounds should persist partly thermohaline circulation. Prokaryotic (bacterial) production, transformation and accumulation of this very stable DOM occurs probably primarily in the upper ocean. This DOM is an important contribution to very old DOM, showing that production and degradation are dynamic processes.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria Paula da Silva ◽  
Thorsten Reemtsma ◽  
Katharina Blaurock ◽  
Burkhard Beudert ◽  
Oliver Lechtenfeld

<p>Inland water process large amounts of dissolved organic matter (DOM), representing an important component in the global carbon cycle. Locally, DOM has an important ecological and biogeochemical role that may vary according to its quality (e.g. composition). Land use, season and hydrologic regime are some factors that possibly will influence the changes in DOM composition. State-of-the art technique to study the molecular chemical composition of DOM is Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry (FT ICR MS). The analysis of changes in DOM quality by FT ICR MS allows conclusions to be drawn about the sources and mobilization processes of the organic material. In this study we investigate the changes in DOM quality over a period of 1.5 year in a small forested catchment composed of two different zones: wetland (zone A) and steep slope areas (zone B). The catchment is located in the National Park Bayerischer Wald in Southern Germany. This offers a natural environment unaffected by direct anthropogenic influence. Therefore, only indirect anthropogenic effects and natural vegetation disturbances and possible interactions between them can affect DOM dynamics. Monthly samples were taken along the rivers (1<sup>st</sup> and 2<sup>nd</sup> order) from September 2018-November 2018 and from April 2019-November 2019 with a total of 124 samples. The samples were analyzed by FT ICR MS, total organic carbon analyzer and UV/VIS spectrometer. Our results showed that the concentration of dissolved organic carbon between the sampling points is similar, but differs over the year at normal discharge conditions. FT ICR MS analysis indicated that the main molecular composition of DOM was CHO (38-47%), with the majority of the composition consisting of highly unsaturated compounds. Conversely, samples in zone A had more aliphatic compounds and nitrogen formulas than the ones sampled in zone B during the year. UV/VIS data also indicated that DOM is more aromatic in the zone B. The results suggest that DOM coming mainly from ground water is the dominant pool of organic matter in the wetland during the year, while in the steep zone a contribution from fresh-plant derived DOM is expected. We also found predominantly low averaged molecular weight DOM in summer in the catchment, suggesting that biological activity plays an important role during this season in DOM quality. We conclude that understanding the dynamic and mobilization mechanisms of DOM in catchments with low human impact are important for the conceptual understanding of natural DOM regulation mechanisms.</p>


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Brice K. Grunert ◽  
Maria Tzortziou ◽  
Patrick Neale ◽  
Alana Menendez ◽  
Peter Hernes

AbstractThe Arctic is experiencing rapid warming, resulting in fundamental shifts in hydrologic connectivity and carbon cycling. Dissolved organic matter (DOM) is a significant component of the Arctic and global carbon cycle, and significant perturbations to DOM cycling are expected with Arctic warming. The impact of photochemical and microbial degradation, and their interactive effects, on DOM composition and remineralization have been documented in Arctic soils and rivers. However, the role of microbes, sunlight and their interactions on Arctic DOM alteration and remineralization in the coastal ocean has not been considered, particularly during the spring freshet when DOM loads are high, photoexposure can be quite limited and residence time within river networks is low. Here, we collected DOM samples along a salinity gradient in the Yukon River delta, plume and coastal ocean during peak river discharge immediately after spring freshet and explored the role of UV exposure, microbial transformations and interactive effects on DOM quantity and composition. Our results show: (1) photochemical alteration of DOM significantly shifts processing pathways of terrestrial DOM, including increasing relative humification of DOM by microbes by > 10%; (2) microbes produce humic-like material that is not optically distinguishable from terrestrial humics; and (3) size-fractionation of the microbial community indicates a size-dependent role for DOM remineralization and humification of DOM observed through modeled PARAFAC components of fluorescent DOM, either through direct or community effects. Field observations indicate apparent conservative mixing along the salinity gradient; however, changing photochemical and microbial alteration of DOM with increasing salinity indicate changing DOM composition likely due to microbial activity. Finally, our findings show potential for rapid transformation of DOM in the coastal ocean from photochemical and microbial alteration, with microbes responsible for the majority of dissolved organic matter remineralization.


Animals ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 865
Author(s):  
Lantian Su ◽  
Xinxin Liu ◽  
Guangyao Jin ◽  
Yue Ma ◽  
Haoxin Tan ◽  
...  

In recent decades, wild sable (Carnivora Mustelidae Martes zibellina) habitats, which are often natural forests, have been squeezed by anthropogenic disturbances such as clear-cutting, tilling and grazing. Sables tend to live in sloped areas with relatively harsh conditions. Here, we determine effects of environmental factors on wild sable gut microbial communities between high and low altitude habitats using Illumina Miseq sequencing of bacterial 16S rRNA genes. Our results showed that despite wild sable gut microbial community diversity being resilient to many environmental factors, community composition was sensitive to altitude. Wild sable gut microbial communities were dominated by Firmicutes (relative abundance 38.23%), followed by Actinobacteria (30.29%), and Proteobacteria (28.15%). Altitude was negatively correlated with the abundance of Firmicutes, suggesting sable likely consume more vegetarian food in lower habitats where plant diversity, temperature and vegetation coverage were greater. In addition, our functional genes prediction and qPCR results demonstrated that energy/fat processing microorganisms and functional genes are enriched with increasing altitude, which likely enhanced metabolic functions and supported wild sables to survive in elevated habitats. Overall, our results improve the knowledge of the ecological impact of habitat change, providing insights into wild animal protection at the mountain area with hash climate conditions.


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