Prevalence of trace gas-oxidizing soil bacteria increases with radial distance from Polloquere hot spring within a high-elevation Andean cold desert

作者：Zachary K. Garvin, Sebastián Abades, Nicole Trefault, Fernando D. Alfaro, Katie Sipes, Karen G. Lloyd, T. C. Onstott · 发表于：The ISME Journal · 年份：2024 · DOI：10.1093/ismejo/wrae062 · 被引用次数：7 · 研究领域：Microbial Community Ecology and Physiology、Atmospheric and Environmental Gas Dynamics、Polar Research and Ecology

High-elevation arid regions harbor microbial communities reliant on metabolic niches and flexibility to survive under biologically stressful conditions, including nutrient limitation that necessitates the utilization of atmospheric trace gases as electron donors. Geothermal springs present "oases" of microbial activity, diversity, and abundance by delivering water and substrates, including reduced gases. However, it is unknown whether these springs exhibit a gradient of effects, increasing their impact on trace gas-oxidizers in the surrounding soils. We assessed whether proximity to Polloquere, a high-altitude geothermal spring in an Andean salt flat, alters the diversity and metabolic structure of nearby soil bacterial populations compared to the surrounding cold desert. Recovered DNA and metagenomic analyses indicate that the spring represents an oasis for microbes in this challenging environment, supporting greater biomass with more diverse metabolic functions in proximal soils that declines sharply with radial distance from the spring. Despite the sharp decrease in biomass, potential rates of atmospheric hydrogen (H2) and carbon monoxide (CO) uptake increase away from the spring. Kinetic estimates suggest this activity is due to high-affinity trace gas consumption, likely as a survival strategy for energy/carbon acquisition. These results demonstrate that Polloquere regulates a gradient of diverse microbial communities and metabolisms, culminating in increased activity of...