Soil pH regulates the abundance and diversity of Group 1.1c Crenarchaeota

Abstract Archaeal communities in many acidic forest soil systems are dominated by a distinct crenarchaeal lineage Group 1.1c. In addition, they are found consistently in other acidic soils including grassland pasture, moorland and alpine soils. To determine whether soil pH is a major factor in deter...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:	FEMS microbiology ecology 2009-12, Vol.70 (3), p.367-376
Main Authors:	Lehtovirta, Laura E, Prosser, James I, Nicol, Graeme W
Format:	Article
Language:	eng
Subjects:	16S rRNA gene Abundance Acidic soils Animal, plant and microbial ecology Bacteria Bacteria - classification Bacteria - genetics Bacteria - isolation & purification Bacteriology Biological and medical sciences Communities Crenarchaeota Crenarchaeota - classification Crenarchaeota - genetics Crenarchaeota - isolation & purification diversity DNA, Archaeal - genetics DNA, Bacterial - genetics Ecosystem Electrophoresis Electrophoresis, Polyacrylamide Gel Forest soils Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology Gel electrophoresis Grasslands Hydrogen-Ion Concentration Microbial ecology Microbiology Miscellaneous Moorland Pasture pH pH effects Phylogeny Polymerase Chain Reaction quantitative PCR RNA, Ribosomal, 16S - genetics rRNA 16S Sequence Analysis, DNA soil Soil - analysis Soil chemistry Soil Microbiology Soil pH Soil types Soils
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Summary:	Abstract Archaeal communities in many acidic forest soil systems are dominated by a distinct crenarchaeal lineage Group 1.1c. In addition, they are found consistently in other acidic soils including grassland pasture, moorland and alpine soils. To determine whether soil pH is a major factor in determining their presence and abundance, Group 1.1c community size and composition were investigated across a pH gradient from 4.5 to 7.5 that has been maintained for > 40 years. The abundances of Group 1.1c Crenarchaeota, total Crenarchaeota and total bacteria were assessed by quantitative PCR (qPCR) targeting 16S rRNA genes and the diversity of Group 1.1c crenarchaeal community was investigated by denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) and phylogenetic analysis. The abundance of Group 1.1c Crenarchaeota declined as the pH increased, whereas total Crenarchaeota and Bacteria showed no clear trend. Community diversity of Group 1.1c Crenarchaeota was also influenced with different DGGE bands dominating at different pH. Group 1.1c Crenarchaeota were also quantified in 13 other soils representing a range of habitats, soil types and pH. These results exhibited the same trend as that shown across the pH gradient with Group 1.1c Crenarchaeota representing a greater proportion of total Crenarchaeota in the most acidic soils.
ISSN:	0168-6496 1574-6941