Exploring the diversity of bacterial communities in sediments of urban mangrove forests

Municipal sewage, urban runoff and accidental oil spills are common sources of pollutants in urban mangrove forests and may have drastic effects on the microbial communities inhabiting the sediment. However, studies on microbial communities in the sediment of urban mangroves are largely lacking. In this study, we explored the diversity of bacterial communities in the sediment of three urban mangroves located in Guanabara Bay (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil). Analysis of sediment samples by means of denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) of 16S rRNA gene fragments suggested that the overall bacterial diversity was not significantly affected by the different levels of hydrocarbon pollution at each sampling site. However, DGGE and sequence analyses provided evidences that each mangrove sediment displayed a specific structure bacterial community. Although primer sets for Pseudomonas, alphaproteobacterial and actinobacterial groups also amplified ribotypes belonging to taxa not intended to be enriched, sequence analyses of dominant DGGE bands revealed ribotypes related to Alteromonadales, Burkholderiales, Pseudomonadales, Rhodobacterales and Rhodocyclales. Members of these groups were often shown to be involved in aerobic or anaerobic degradation of hydrocarbon pollutants. Many of these sequences were only detected in the sampling sites with high levels of anthropogenic inputs of hydrocarbons. Many dominant DGGE ribotypes showed low levels of sequence identity to known sequences, indicating a large untapped bacterial diversity in mangrove ecosystems.     

Microbial communities in iron-silica-rich microbial mats at deep-sea hydrothermal fields of the Southern Mariana Trough

The abundance, diversity and composition of bacterial and archaeal communities in the microbial mats at deep-sea hydrothermal fields were investigated, using culture-independent 16S rRNA and functional gene analyses combined with mineralogical analysis. Microbial mats were collected at two hydrothermal areas on the ridge of the back-arc spreading centre in the Southern Mariana Trough. Scanning electron microscope and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopic (SEM-EDS) analyses revealed that the mats were mainly composed of amorphous silica and contained numerous filamentous structures of iron hydroxides. Direct cell counting with SYBR Green I staining showed that the prokaryotic cell densities were more than 10⁸ cells g⁻¹. Quantitative polymerase chain reaction (Q-PCR) analysis revealed that Bacteria are more abundant than Archaea in the microbial communities. Furthermore, zetaproteobacterial cells accounted for 6% and 22% of the prokaryotic cells in each mat estimated by Q-PCR with newly designed primers and TaqMan probe. Phylotypes related to iron-oxidizers, methanotrophs/methylotrophs, ammonia-oxidizers and sulfate-reducers were found in the 16S rRNA gene clone libraries constructed from each mat sample. A variety of unique archaeal 16S rRNA gene phylotypes, several pmoA , dsrAB and archaeal amoA gene phylotypes were also recovered from the microbial mats. Our results provide insights into the diversity and abundance of microbial communities within microbial mats in deep-sea hydrothermal fields.     

Quantifying Microbial Diversity: Morphotypes, 16S rRNA Genes, and Carotenoids of Oxygenic Phototrophs in Microbial Mats

We quantified the diversity of oxygenic phototrophic microorganisms present in eight hypersaline microbial mats on the basis of three cultivation-independent approaches. Morphological diversity was studied by microscopy. The diversity of carotenoids was examined by extraction from mat samples and high-pressure liquid chromatography analysis. The diversity of 16S rRNA genes from oxygenic phototrophic microorganisms was investigated by extraction of total DNA from mat samples, amplification of 16S rRNA gene segments from cyanobacteria and plastids of eukaryotic algae by phylum-specific PCR, and sequence-dependent separation of amplification products by denaturing-gradient gel electrophoresis. A numerical approach was introduced to correct for crowding the results of chromatographic and electrophoretic analyses. Diversity estimates typically varied up to twofold among mats. The congruence of richness estimates and Shannon-Weaver indices based on numbers and proportional abundances of unique morphotypes, 16S rRNA genes, and carotenoids unveiled the underlying diversity of oxygenic phototrophic microorganisms in the eight mat communities studied.     

Diversity of phototrophic bacteria in microbial mats from Arctic hot springs (Greenland)

We investigated the genotypic diversity of oxygenic and anoxygenic phototrophic microorganisms in microbial mat samples collected from three hot spring localities on the east coast of Greenland. These hot springs harbour unique Arctic microbial ecosystems that have never been studied in detail before. Specific oligonucleotide primers for cyanobacteria, purple sulfur bacteria, green sulfur bacteria and Choroflexus/Roseiflexus-like green non-sulfur bacteria were used for the selective amplification of 16S rRNA gene fragments. Amplification products were separated by denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) and sequenced. In addition, several cyanobacteria were isolated from the mat samples, and classified morphologically and by 16S rRNA-based methods. The cyanobacterial 16S rRNA sequences obtained from DGGE represented a diverse, polyphyletic collection of cyanobacteria. The microbial mat communities were dominated by heterocystous and non-heterocystous filamentous cyanobacteria. Our results indicate that the cyanobacterial community composition in the samples were different for each sampling site. Different layers of the same heterogeneous mat often contained distinct and different communities of cyanobacteria. We observed a relationship between the cyanobacterial community composition and the in situ temperatures of different mat parts. The Greenland mats exhibited a low diversity of anoxygenic phototrophs as compared with other hot spring mats which is possibly related to the photochemical conditions within the mats resulting from the Arctic light regime.     

胜利油藏不同时间细菌群落结构的比较

利用聚合酶链式反应-变性梯度凝胶电泳(PCR-DGGE)和构建16S rRNA基因克隆文库2种方法,对孤岛油田两口井(注水井G和采油井L)在相距9个月的2个时间点(A和B)所采集样品的细菌群落结构进行了比较。DGGE图谱聚类分析表明注水井在2个时间点的微生物群落结构相似性为48.1%,而采油井的相似性只有28.7%。16S rRNA基因克隆文库结果表明,A时间点样品G中的优势菌群为Betaproteobacteria、Gammaproteobacteria,还有Deferribacteres、Firmicutes、Bacteroidetes等;而样品L中,Gammaproteobacteria中的Moraxellaceae含量达到97%。B时间点G中除了优势菌Betaproteobacteria之外,Deferribacteres的数量显著增加,成为优势菌;而L在B时间点优势菌除Gammaproteobacteria外,还有Betaproteobacteria和Firmicutes。采油井中的微生物群落结构随时间发生了显著改变,而注水井变化不显著。这一结果部分揭示了微生物采油过程中地层微生物群落的变化规律,有助于进一步阐明微生物驱油的机理。     

Phylogenetic diversity, composition and distribution of bacterioplankton community in the Dongjiang River, China

Bacterioplankton community compositions in the Dongjiang River were characterized using denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) and 16S rRNA gene clone library construction. Water samples in nine different sites were taken along the mainstem and three tributaries. In total, 24 bands from DGGE gels and 406 clones from the libraries were selected and sequenced, subsequently analyzed for the bacterial diversity and composition of those microbial communities. Bacterial 16S rRNA gene sequences from freshwater bacteria exhibited board phylogenetic diversity, including sequences representing the Alphaproteobacteria, Betaproteobacteria, Gammaproteobacteria, Actinobacteria, Bacteriodetes, Verrucomicrobia, and candidate division TM7. Members of Betaproteobacteria group were the most dominant in all sampling sites, followed by Gammaproteobacteria, Alphaproteobacteria, and Actinobacteria. DGGE profiles and the ∫-LIBSHUFF analysis revealed similar patterns of bacterial diversity among most sampling sites, while spatial distribution variances existed in all sites along the river basin. Statistical analysis showed that bacterial species distribution strongly correlated with environmental variables, such as nitrate and ammonia, suggesting that nitrogen nutrients may shape the microbial community structure and composition in the Dongjiang River. This study had important implications for the comparison with other rivers elsewhere and contributed to the growing data set on the factors that structure bacterial communities in freshwater ecosystems.     

Bacterial Diversity and Functional Activity of Microbial Communities in Hot Springs of the Baikal Rift Zone

In this study the bacterial diversity of thermophilic microbial mats (40 to 65°C) in three alkaline hot springs of the Baikal Rift Zone (BRZ) was determined through pyrosequencing of 16S rRNA gene libraries. Significant diversity of bacterial species was found in the biomats of the hot springs with total number of detected phylotypes of 607. The highest share of the microbial community was represented by the phyla Chloroflexi (Seya Spring, 76.4%), Deinococcus-Thermus (Alla Spring, 45.1%), Nitrospira (Alla Spring, 36.1%), Cyanobacteria (Tsenkher Spring, 33.1%), and Proteobacteria (Tsenkher Spring, 22.6%), but their ratio varied significantly in different springs. A comparison of the biodiversity and composition of microbial communities between hot springs showed a decrease in biodiversity with increasing temperature. A large number of sequences showed a low degree of similarity with cultivated representatives in public databases. Microbial communities showed intensive rates of production and destruction of organic compounds, as revealed by the quantitative assessment of their functional activity.     

Le phytoplancton des étangs de Berre et Vaïne (Méditerranée Nord-occidentale)

Phytoplankton of the Etang de Berre and Etang de Vaïne (N.W. Mediterranean) The phytoplankton in the brackish Etang de Berre and Etang de Vaïne was studied regularly at 12 stations for two years. The recent diversion of the Durance River into the Etang de Berre has effected a fundamental change in this formerly marine environment, which has had a great impact on its plankton populations. A total of 182 taxa were identified, including 111 Bacillariophyceae, 44 Chlorophyceae, and 15 Cyanophyceae. The most abundant species are small freshwater algae, mainly Chlorophyceae, since the salinity is generally less than 3 0/00. However, during summer and fall, as well as in waters near the bottom, the salinity can reach 15 0/00 and marine diatoms are predominant. Because the nutrients in the environment are constantly replenished, phytoplankters are always numerous, ranging in abundance between several million to several hundred million per liter. There is a somewhat irregular seasonal cycle. The average density is about 10⁸ cells/1 in the Etang de Berre, and about double that amount in the Etang de Vaïne. Differences in phytoplankton abundance and composition at the various stations or at various depths are slight.     

Robust hydrocarbon degradation and dynamics of bacterial communities during nutrient-enhanced oil spill bioremediation

Degradation of oil on beaches is, in general, limited by the supply of inorganic nutrients. In order to obtain a more systematic understanding of the effects of nutrient addition on oil spill bioremediation, beach sediment microcosms contaminated with oil were treated with different levels of inorganic nutrients. Oil biodegradation was assessed respirometrically and on the basis of changes in oil composition. Bacterial communities were compared by numerical analysis of denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) profiles of PCR-amplified 16S rRNA genes and cloning and sequencing of PCR-amplified 16S rRNA genes. Nutrient amendment over a wide range of concentrations significantly improved oil degradation, confirming that N and P limited degradation over the concentration range tested. However, the extent and rate of oil degradation were similar for all microcosms, indicating that, in this experiment, it was the addition of inorganic nutrients rather than the precise amount that was most important operationally. Very different microbial communities were selected in all of the microcosms. Similarities between DGGE profiles of replicate samples from a single microcosm were high (95% +/- 5%), but similarities between DGGE profiles from replicate microcosms receiving the same level of inorganic nutrients (68% +/- 5%) were not significantly higher than those between microcosms subjected to different nutrient amendments (63% +/- 7%). Therefore, it is apparent that the different communities selected cannot be attributed to the level of inorganic nutrients present in different microcosms. Bioremediation treatments dramatically reduced the diversity of the bacterial community. The decrease in diversity could be accounted for by a strong selection for bacteria belonging to the alkane-degrading Alcanivorax/Fundibacter group. On the basis of Shannon-Weaver indices, rapid recovery of the bacterial community diversity to preoiling levels of diversity occurred. However, although the overall diversity was similar, there were considerable qualitative differences in the community structure before and after the bioremediation treatments.     

Characteristics and diversity of microbial communities in lead–zinc tailings under heavy metal stress in north-west China

High-throughput 16S rRNA and 18S rRNA sequencing were performed to study the changes of soil microbial diversity and community structure under different heavy metal pollution levels in Chengxian lead–zinc mining area, Gansu Province. In this study, we characterized the main physicochemical properties, multiple heavy metal pollution, and microbial community structure of the soil in the tailings. The results show that the soil near the tailings pond was alkaline, barren and the heavy metals were seriously polluted. The microbial diversity and richness of S1 and S2 sites were significantly lower than that of CK2 site (P < 0·05), indicating that the heavy metal pollution could change the physicochemical properties and microbial community structure in soil. Among 97 identified core operating taxa of fungal communities, Ascomycota, Teguta and Basidiomycota were dominant at the phylum level, while among 1523 identified core operating taxa of bacterial communities, Actinomycota was dominant at the phylum level. In addition, the redundancy analysis and Spearman correlation analysis showed that the physicochemical properties and the heavy metal concentration had significant effects on the composition and distribution of soil microbial community. The basic characteristics of soil physicochemical properties, multiple heavy metal pollution and microbial community structure in the tailings were revealed, hoping to provide a basis for ecological rehabilitation of tailings by revealing the variance rule of microbial community diversity in the future.     

Robust Hydrocarbon Degradation and Dynamics of Bacterial Communities during Nutrient-Enhanced Oil Spill Bioremediation

Degradation of oil on beaches is, in general, limited by the supply of inorganic nutrients. In order to obtain a more systematic understanding of the effects of nutrient addition on oil spill bioremediation, beach sediment microcosms contaminated with oil were treated with different levels of inorganic nutrients. Oil biodegradation was assessed respirometrically and on the basis of changes in oil composition. Bacterial communities were compared by numerical analysis of denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) profiles of PCR-amplified 16S rRNA genes and cloning and sequencing of PCR-amplified 16S rRNA genes. Nutrient amendment over a wide range of concentrations significantly improved oil degradation, confirming that N and P limited degradation over the concentration range tested. However, the extent and rate of oil degradation were similar for all microcosms, indicating that, in this experiment, it was the addition of inorganic nutrients rather than the precise amount that was most important operationally. Very different microbial communities were selected in all of the microcosms. Similarities between DGGE profiles of replicate samples from a single microcosm were high (95% ± 5%), but similarities between DGGE profiles from replicate microcosms receiving the same level of inorganic nutrients (68% ± 5%) were not significantly higher than those between microcosms subjected to different nutrient amendments (63% ± 7%). Therefore, it is apparent that the different communities selected cannot be attributed to the level of inorganic nutrients present in different microcosms. Bioremediation treatments dramatically reduced the diversity of the bacterial community. The decrease in diversity could be accounted for by a strong selection for bacteria belonging to the alkane-degrading Alcanivorax/Fundibacter group. On the basis of Shannon-Weaver indices, rapid recovery of the bacterial community diversity to preoiling levels of diversity occurred. However, although the overall diversity was similar, there were considerable qualitative differences in the community structure before and after the bioremediation treatments.     

Do Patterns of Bacterial Diversity along Salinity Gradients Differ from Those Observed for Macroorganisms?

It is widely accepted that biodiversity is lower in more extreme environments. In this study, we sought to determine whether this trend, well documented for macroorganisms, also holds at the microbial level for bacteria. We used denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) with phylum-specific primers to quantify the taxon richness (i.e., the DGGE band numbers) of the bacterioplankton communities of 32 pristine Tibetan lakes that represent a broad salinity range (freshwater to hypersaline). For the lakes investigated, salinity was found to be the environmental variable with the strongest influence on the bacterial community composition. We found that the bacterial taxon richness in freshwater habitats increased with increasing salinity up to a value of 1‰. In saline systems (systems with >1‰ salinity), the expected decrease of taxon richness along a gradient of further increasing salinity was not observed. These patterns were consistently observed for two sets of samples taken in two different years. A comparison of 16S rRNA gene clone libraries revealed that the bacterial community of the lake with the highest salinity was characterized by a higher recent accelerated diversification than the community of a freshwater lake, whereas the phylogenetic diversity in the hypersaline lake was lower than that in the freshwater lake. These results suggest that different evolutionary forces may act on bacterial populations in freshwater and hypersaline lakes on the Tibetan Plateau, potentially resulting in different community structures and diversity patterns.     

Analysis of diurnal and vertical microbial diversity of a hypersaline microbial mat

Microbial mats are prokaryotic communities that provide model systems to analyze microbial diversity and ecophysiological interactions. Community diversity of microbial mat samples was assessed at 8:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m. in a combined analysis consisting of 16S rRNA-denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) and phospholipid fatty acid (PLFA) profiles. The divergence index determined from PLFA and DGGE data showed that depth-related differences have a greater influence on diversity than temporal variations. Shannon and Simpson indices yielded similar values in all samples, which suggested the stable maintenance of a structurally diverse microbial community. The increased diversity observed at 3:00 p.m. between 2.5 and 4 mm can be explained mainly by diversification of anaerobic microorganisms, especially sulfate-reducing bacteria. In the afternoon sampling, the diversity index reflected a higher diversity between 4 and 5.5 mm depth, which suggested an increase in the diversity of strict anaerobes and fermenters. The results are consistent with the conclusion that hypersaline microbial mats are characterized by high degree of diversity that shifts in response to the photobiological adaptations and metabolic status of the microbial community. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users. Dedicated to the memory of David C. White.     

Comparative microbial diversity analyses of modern marine thrombolitic mats by barcoded pyrosequencing

Thrombolites are unlaminated carbonate structures that form as a result of the metabolic interactions of complex microbial mat communities. Thrombolites have a long geological history; however, little is known regarding the microbes associated with modern structures. In this study, we use a barcoded 16S rRNA gene-pyrosequencing approach coupled with morphological analysis to assess the bacterial, cyanobacterial and archaeal diversity associated with actively forming thrombolites found in Highborne Cay, Bahamas. Analyses revealed four distinct microbial mat communities referred to as black, beige, pink and button mats on the surfaces of the thrombolites. At a coarse phylogenetic resolution, the domain bacterial sequence libraries from the four mats were similar, with Proteobacteria and Cyanobacteria being the most abundant. At the finer resolution of the rRNA gene sequences, significant differences in community structure were observed, with dramatically different cyanobacterial communities. Of the four mat types, the button mats contained the highest diversity of Cyanobacteria, and were dominated by two sequence clusters with high similarity to the genus Dichothrix, an organism associated with the deposition of carbonate. Archaeal diversity was low, but varied in all mat types, and the archaeal community was predominately composed of members of the Thaumarchaeota and Euryarchaeota. The morphological and genetic data support the hypothesis that the four mat types are distinctive thrombolitic mat communities.     

Diversity analyses of microbial communities in petroleum samples from Brazilian oil fields

Recent studies of oil fields have shown that the microbial diversity is represented by bacteria and archaea of wide distribution, and that many of these organisms have potential to metabolize organic and inorganic compounds. Biodegradation processes in oil industry are of great relevance, since it may be related with the loss of petroleum quality and can bring problems during production. The aim of this study was to compare the microbial communities present in biodegraded (GMR75) and non-biodegraded (PTS1) terrestrial oils from the Potiguar Basin (RN, Brazil) by using cultivation (microbial enrichments and isolation) and molecular approaches (16S rRNA gene libraries). The cultivated microorganisms recovered were affiliated with the phyla Actinobacteria, Firmicutes and Proteobacteria. Both bacterial 16S rRNA gene libraries revealed a great diversity, encompassing representatives from 8 different phyla (Actinobacteria, Bacteroidetes, Deferribacteres, Spirochaetes, Firmicutes, Proteobacteria, Thermotogae and Synergistetes) for the GMR75 sample, and from 5 different phyla (Actinobacteria, Chloroflexi, Firmicutes, Proteobacteria and Thermotoga) for the PTS1 sample. The archaeal 16S rRNA gene library was obtained only for GMR75 oil and all phylotypes were affiliated with the family Methanomicrobiaceae. Diversity results suggest that methanogenesis is the dominant terminal process for hydrocarbon degradation in GMR oil field, driven by anaerobic biodegradation.     

La transparence et la charge sestonique de l'Étang de Berre (côte méditerranéenne française)

Water transparency and seston weight were measured in the brackish Etang de Berre and Etang de Vaïne (between the Rhone river and Marseilles), in nearby seawater and in four main tributaries of the Etang de Berre. The large quantities of seston conveyed by rivers, particularly the Durance diversion, strongly reduce the transparency in the brackish waters. The transparency progressively increases from freshwater to open seawater, as mineral particles sink to the bottom (about 1.7 kg m^-2 a^-1 on the average in brackish lakes). Comparatively, the role played by phytoplankton in light attenuation amounts to only 5% in seawater and 10–17% in Etang de Berre. In spite of turbidity, the euphotic layer generally extends to the bottom, in both the shallow brackish waters and in the deeper seawater.     

Comparative microbial diversity in the gastrointestinal tracts of food animal species

Molecular tools based on small subunit (SSU) rDNA gene sequencesoffer a powerful and rapid tool for the analysis of complexmicrobial communities found in the gastrointestinal tracts (GIT)of food animal species. Extensive comparative sequence analysisof SSU rRNA molecules representing a wide diversity of organismsshows that different regions of the molecule vary in sequenceconservation. Oligonucleotides complementing regions of universallyconversed SSU rRNA sequences are used as universal probes, whilethose complementing more variable regions of sequence are usefulas selective probes targeting species, genus, or phylogeneticgroups. Different approaches derive different information andthis is highly dependent on the type of target nucleic acidemployed and the conceptual and technical basis used for nucleicacid probe design. Generally these approaches can be dividedinto DNA-based methods employing empirically characterized probesand rRNA-based methods based on comparative sequence analysisfor design and interpretation of "rational" probes. Polymerasechain reaction (PCR) based techniques can also be applied tothe analysis of microbial communities in the GIT. Direct cloningof SSU rDNA genes amplified from these complex communities canbe used to determine the extent of diversity in these GIT communities.Denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) is another powerfultool for profiling microbial diversity of microbial communitiesin GI tracts. Sequence analysis of the excised DGGE ampliconscan then be used to presumptively identify predominant bacterialspecies. Examples of how these molecular approaches are beingused to study the microbial diversity of communities from steersfed different diets, swine fed probiotics, and Atlantic salmonfed aquaculture diets are presented.     

Microbial diversity of benthic mats along a tidal desiccation gradient

We investigated the influence of desiccation frequency, indicated by tidal position, on microbial community structure, diversity and richness of microbial mats. We independently characterized cyanobacterial, bacterial and archaeal communities, and their spatial variability for two distinct microbial mat systems: subtidal hypersaline mats and intertidal sand flat mats. Community fingerprints based on 16S rDNA were obtained via denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis using polymerase chain reaction primers specific for each group. Fingerprints for all three groups were consistently similar [> or =85% according to Weighted Pair Group with Arithmetic Mean (WPGMA) analysis] along a 1-km-long transect in subtidal mats. Here, pair-wise comparison analysis yielded minimal variation in diversity and richness for all groups. Fingerprints of three sites along an intertidal transect were heterogenous (> or =32% similarity according to WPGMA analysis) with clear shifts in community structure in all three microbial groups. Here, all groups exhibited statistically significant decreases in richness and diversity with tidal height (as desiccation frequency increases). Regression analysis yielded a strong correlation between diversity or richness estimates and position along the tidal gradient, for both Archaea and Bacteria, with Cyanobacteria exhibiting a weaker correlation. These results suggest that desiccation frequency can shape the structure of microbial mat communities, with Archea being least tolerant and Cyanobacteria most tolerant.     

Archaeal diversity in naturally occurring and impacted environments from a tropical region

AIMS: To evaluate archaeal diversity in natural and impacted habitats from Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil, a tropical region of South America. METHODS AND RESULTS: 16S rRNA gene was amplified directly by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) from genomic DNA, extracted from Guanabara Bay (GB) water, halomarine sediment (HS), municipal landfill leachate, agricultural soil and wastewater treatment (WT) system. Five archaeal 16S rDNA clone libraries were constructed. A total of 123 clones, within the five libraries analysed, were clustered into 29 operational taxonomic units, related to cultivated (24%) and uncultivated (76%) organisms. Rarefaction analysis showed that the libraries contained different levels of diversity. PCR-denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) of 16S-23S intergenic spacer regions confirmed the presence of a dominant phylotype, revealed by the WT system clone library. CONCLUSIONS: Archaeal communities of impacted environments seem to be confined to specific ecosystems with similar physicochemical properties, while communities from natural environments appear to be widely distributed. The presence of a high number of phylotypes related to uncultivated organisms suggests new archaeal lineages. SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY: This study reports, for the first time, the analysis of archaeal diversity in tropical environments from Brazil, and adds sequences from this region to the developing database of 16S rRNA clone libraries from environmental samples.     

Changes in Bacterial Communities of the Marine Sponge Mycale laxissima on Transfer into Aquaculture

The changes in bacterial communities associated with the marine sponge Mycale laxissima on transfer to aquaculture were studied using culture-based and molecular techniques. M. laxissima was maintained alive in flowthrough and closed recirculating aquaculture systems for 2 years and 1 year, respectively. The bacterial communities associated with wild and aquacultured sponges, as well as the surrounding water, were assessed using 16S rRNA gene clone library analysis and denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE). Bacterial richness and diversity were measured using DOTUR computer software, and clone libraries were compared using S-LIBSHUFF. DGGE analysis revealed that the diversity of the bacterial community of M. laxissima increased when sponges were maintained in aquaculture and that bacterial communities associated with wild and aquacultured M. laxissima were markedly different than those of the corresponding surrounding water. Clone libraries of bacterial 16S rRNA from sponges confirmed that the bacterial communities changed during aquaculture. These communities were significantly different than those of seawater and aquarium water. The diversity of bacterial communities associated with M. laxissima increased significantly in aquaculture. Our work shows that it is important to monitor changes in bacterial communities when examining the feasibility of growing sponges in aquaculture systems because these communities may change. This could have implications for the health of sponges or for the production of bioactive compounds by sponges in cases where these compounds are produced by symbiotic bacteria rather than by the sponges themselves.