The bacterial diversity and community composition altered in the oxygen minimum zone of the Tropical Western Pacific Ocean

The oxygen minimum zones(OMZs)are globally expanding,yet the variation pattern of microbial communities related to dissolved oxygen levels remain unclear.Spatial variability of bacterial diversity and community composition(repre sented by 16 S rRNA)of six stations was investigated within the water column in the seamount area of Tropical Western Pacific Ocean(TWPO)in May 2019.The seawater has dissolved oxygen(DO)concentration of 3.01-6.68 mg/L and the core of the oxygen minimum zones was located between the depths of 650 m and 1750 m.The bacterial alpha-diversity showed unimodal pattern with the decreasing DO with depths and peaked in the upper oxycline(UO)of OMZs.The bacterial community structure of the mixed layer(ML)and the bottom layer clustered and separated from each other,while those of UO and the OMZ core(OM)clustered and overlapped.Overall,bacterial community composition transitioned from being Alphaproteobacteria and Gammaproteobacteria-dominant in ML to being Gammaproteobacteria and Nitrososphaeria/Deltaproteobacteria-dominant in UO and OM,and then changed to being Clostridia and unidentified Actinobacteria-dominant in the bottom layer.Moreover,both bacterial alpha-diversity and the abundant classes fitted varying sectioned functions with DO.The DO solely explained 40.37%of the variation of bacterial community composition among layers(P<0.001).The predicted function profiling showed that the water column was predominant by chemoheterotrophy,cyanobacteria,and photoautotrophy in ML,by chemoheterotrophy and nitrate/sulfide cycling in UO and OM,and by chemoheterotrophy and ferme ntation in the bottom layer.Our findings revealed the DO-associated variation in bacterial diversity and community composition,and help to clarify the potential responses of microbes and their involved biogeochemical processes to the expansion and intensification of OMZs.

Diversity of soil bacteria and fungi communities in artificial forests of the sandy-hilly region of Northwest China

Soil erosion is a serious issue in the sandy-hilly region of Shanxi Province,Northwest China.There has been gradual improvement due to vegetation restoration,but soil microbial community characteristics in different vegetation plantation types have not been widely investigated.To address this,we analyzed soil bacterial and fungal community structures,diversity,and microbial and soil environmental factors in Caragana korshinskii Kom.,Populus tomentosa Carr.,Populus simonii Carr.,Salix matsudana Koidz,and Pinus tabulaeformis Carr.forests.There were no significant differences in the dominant bacterial community compositions among the five forest types.The alpha diversity of the bacteria and fungi communities showed that ACE(abundance-based coverage estimator),Chao1,and Shannon indices in C.korshinskii forest were significantly higher than those in the other four forest types(P<0.05).Soil organic matter,total nitrogen,and urease had a greater impact on bacterial community composition,while total nitrogen,β-glucosidase,and urease had a greater impact on fungal community composition.The relative abundance of beneficial and pathogenic microorganisms was similar across all forest types.Based on microbial community composition,diversity,and soil fertility,we ranked the plantations from most to least suitable as follows:C.korshinskii,S.matsudana,P.tabulaeformis,P.tomentosa,and P.simonii.

Host plant traits play a crucial role in shaping the composition of epiphytic microbiota in the arid desert,Northwest China

Phyllosphere microorganisms are a crucial component of environmental microorganisms,highly influenced by host characteristics,and play a significant role in plant health and productivity.Nonetheless,the impact of host characteristics on shaping phyllosphere microbial communities of plants with different life forms remains ambiguous.Utilizing high-throughput sequencing technology,this study analyzed the diversity and community composition of phyllosphere epiphytic microorganisms(e.g.,bacteria and fungi)of various plant life forms in the hinterland of the Gurbantunggut Desert,Northwest China.Functional annotation of prokaryotic taxa(FAPROTAX)and fungi function guild(FUNGuild)were employed to assess the ecological functions of microorganisms and to investigate the role of stochastic and deterministic processes in shaping phyllosphere microbial communities.Result showed a diverse array of phyllosphere epiphytic microorganisms in the desert plants,with Proteobacteria,Cyanobacteria,and Actinobacteriota dominating bacterial community,while Ascomycota and Basidiomycota were prevalent in fungal community.Comparison across different plant life forms highlighted distinct microbial communities,indicating strong filtering effects by plant characteristics.FAPROTAX prediction identified intracellular parasites(accounting for 27.44%of bacterial community abundance),chemoheterotrophy(10.12%),and phototrophy(17.41%)as the main functions of epiphytic bacteria on leaves of different life form plants.FUNGuild prediction indicated that phyllosphere epiphytic fungi primarily served as Saprotrophs(81.77%),Pathotrophs(17.41%),and Symbiotrophs(0.82%).Co-occurrence network analysis demonstrated a predominance of positive correlations among different microbial taxa.Raup-Crick dissimilarity index analysis revealed that deterministic processes predominantly influenced phyllosphere bacterial and fungal community assembly.Variance partitioning analysis and random forest modeling suggested that plant leaf functional traits significantly impacted both bacterial and fungal community composition,with fungal community composition showing a closer association with leaf nutrients and physiology compared with bacterial community composition.The distinct responses of bacterial and fungal communities to plant traits were attributed to the differing properties of bacteria and fungi,such as bacteria having higher potential dispersal rates and broader ecological niches than fungi.Overall,the results indicate that phyllosphere bacterial and fungal communities undergo similar community assembly processes,with fungi being more influenced by plant characteristics than bacteria.These findings offer novel insights into the ecology of phyllosphere microbial communities of desert plants.

Effect of altitude and climatic parameters on shrub-meadow community composition and diversity in the dry valley region of the eastern Hengduan Mountains,China

Because of the“foehn effect”,deeply incised gorges of major rivers in the Hengduan Mountains(commonly called dry valleys)have semiarid or arid climate.Harsh environment and difficult access have so far obstructed the systematic inventory and documentation of the flora of these dry valleys.This is particularly problematic for efforts towards the conservation of endemic and valuable plant species.Therefore,102 shrub-meadow community survey plots were set up along four dry valleys in Ganzi prefecture,located in the eastern Hengduan Mountains,China.The compositions,richness,diversity of these communities were calculated and assessed using sample plot survey and phytosociological approach.Overall,244 plant species were recorded,consisting of subtropical(48.77%)and temperate(38.83%)species,47.13%of which were endemic to southwest China.Obvious differences in species composition and structure along the altitude gradient were observed.The variations of richness,diversity,and evenness followed a bimodal-hump shaped pattern with increasing altitude,with peak occurring at mid-level altitude(3501–4000 m)and valley occurring at 2501–3000 m altitude.The regions at 2501–3000 m altitudes were more sensitive to global climate change and biological interference,and were found to have the highest protection value.The impacts of altitude gradients and climatic parameters on the features of this shrubmeadow community were also evaluated using principal component and multiple linear stepwise regression analysis methods.Altitude and temperature-related variables were the most important drivers of both species richness and cover.Speciesα-diversity here only depended on the precipitation frequency.This founding could help to understand the impact of the very harsh environment and altitude gradient on plant-plant interactions in a variety of natural systems.

Dynamics and diversity of symbiotic bacteria in Apolygus lucorum at different developmental stages

Background Apolygus lucorum is a worldwide omnivorous pest damaging a range of crops and causing great economic losses.Symbiotic bacteria living in insects play a key role in the nutrition,physiology,and behavior of hosts.Here,we present an experiment using Illumina HiSeq sequencing targeting the V3–V4 regions of bacteria’s 16S rRNA throughout the entire life cycle of A.lucorum.Results The first and second instar nymphs have the largest alpha diversity compared with other life stages of the insect.Bacterial phyla Proteobacteria(72.29%),Firmicutes(15.24%),Actinobacteria(7.76%)exhibit the largest relative abundance in all developmental stages.Erwinia(23.97%)and Lactococcus(10.62%)are the two genera with the high-est relative abundance.The relative abundance of Erwinia in the nymph stage is significantly greater than the adult stage,and the relative abundance of Lactococcus in 6-day-old and 9-day-old adult females is higher compared with adult males.Conclusions These results reveal that microbial community composition and relative abundance shift dynamically at different life stages,implying that different bacterial phyla and genera may have specific roles in specific life stages such as metabolism,nutrition absorption,detoxification,and reproduction.This study reveals for the first time the community composition and ecological dynamics of symbiotic bacteria throughout the life stages of A.lucorum,and thus may provide insight to new strategies for pest control.

Species Composition and Diversity of Fagus longipetiolata in Leigong Mountain, Guizhou Province

[Objectives]To understand the species composition and diversity of Fagus longipetiolata community.[Methods]The F.longipetiolata community in Guizhou Province was investigated by typical plot method.[Results]There were 107 species of vascular plants belonging to 79 genera and 51 families in Leigong Mountain F.longipetiolata community,including 3 species of pteridophytes belonging to 3 genera and 3 families,104 species of spermatophytes belonging to 76 genera and 48 families,including 3 species of gymnosperms belonging to 3 genera and 3 families,and 101 species of angiosperms belonging to 73 genera and 45 families.The types of Leigong Mountain F.longipetiolata community were divided into 7 formations,and the top 10 important species of each formation were Fagaceae,followed by Lauraceae and Ericaceae.The change trend of tree layer richness index was formation I>formation IV>formation VI>formation III>formation VII>formation II>formation V;the dominance index was formation I>formation IV>formation V>formation VI>formation VII>formation III>formation II;H diversity index was formation V>formation II>formation I>formation III>formation VII>formation VI>formation IV;the evenness index is formation II>formation III>formation VI>formation VII>formation IV>formation I>formation V;the total diversity index of the community,formation I(3.67)was the highest,formation V(2.74)was the lowest,manifested as formation I>formation III>formation VI>formation II>formation IV>formation VII>formation V.[Conclusions]The community stability is closely related to its species composition,and the background species is the basis for the survival of the community;the existence of rare species can further enhance the community diversity index and enhance the community stability.

Analysis of cultivable aerobic bacterial community composition and screening for facultative sulfate-reducing bacteria in marine corrosive steel

Anaerobic, aerobic, and facultative bacteria are all present in corrosive environments. However, as previous studies to address corrosion in the marine environment have largely focused on anaerobic bacteria, limited attention has been paid to the composition and function of aerobic and facultative bacteria in this process. For analysis in this study, ten samples were collected from rust layers on steel plates that had been immersed in seawater for diff erent periods (i.e., six months and eight years) at Sanya and Xiamen, China. The cultivable aerobic bacterial community structure as well as the number of sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB) were analyzed in both cases, while the proportion of facultative SRB among the isolated aerobic bacteria in each sample was also evaluated using a novel approach. Bacterial abundance results show that the proportions are related to sea location and immersion time;abundances of culturable aerobic bacteria (CAB) and SRB from Sanya were greater in most corrosion samples than those from Xiamen, and abundances of both bacterial groups were greater in samples immersed for six months than for eight years. A total of 213 isolates were obtained from all samples in terms of CAB community composition, and a phylogenetic analysis revealed that the taxa comprised four phyla and 31 genera. Bacterial species composition is related to marine location;the results show that Firmicutes and Proteobacteria were the dominant phyla, accounting for 98.13% of the total, while Bacillus and Vibrio were the dominant genera, accounting for 53.06% of the total. An additional sixfacultative SRB strains were also screened from the isolates obtained and were found to encompass the genus Vibrio (four strains), Staphylococcus (one strain), and Photobacterium (one strain). It is noteworthy that mentions of Photobacterium species have so far been absent from the literature, both in terms of its membership of the SRB group and its relationship to corrosion.

Immediate and legacy effects of snow exclusion on soil fungal diversity and community composition

Background:Soil fungi play crucial roles in ecosystem functions.However,how snow cover change associated with winter warming affects soil fungal communities remains unclear in the Tibetan forest.Methods:We conducted a snow manipulation experiment to explore immediate and legacy effects of snow exclusion on soil fungal community diversity and composition in a spruce forest on the eastern Tibetan Plateau.Soil fungal communities were performed by the high throughput sequencing of gene-fragments.Results:Ascomycota and Basidiomycota were the two dominant fungal phyla and Archaeorhizomyces,Aspergillus and Amanita were the three most common genera across seasons and snow manipulations.Snow exclusion did not affect the diversity and structure of soil fungal community in both snow-covered and snow-free seasons.However,the relative abundance of some fungal communities was different among seasons.Soil fungal groups were correlated with environmental factors(i.e.,temperature and moisture)and soil biochemical variables(i.e.,ammonium and enzyme).Conclusions:These results suggest that the season-driven variations had stronger impacts on soil fungal community than short-term snow cover change.Such findings may have important implications for soil microbial processes in Tibetan forests experiencing significant decreases in snowfall.

Abundance,Diversity and Functional Potentials of Planktonic Bacteria and Microeukaryotes in the Coral-Reef System of Xisha Islands,China

Corals influence microorganisms within the surrounding seawater,yet the diversities and functions of seawater bacteria and microeukaryotes in coral-reef systems have not been well addressed.We collected 40 seawater samples in outer coral reef flats and semi-closed inner lagoons from the surface,middle and bottom layers in the pristine coral-reef system of Xisha Islands,South China Sea.We detected the abundance,composition and distribution of bacteria and microeukaryotes using flow cytometry,qPCR and high throughput sequencing techniques,and profiled the potential ecological roles based on the information of 16S and 18S rDNA sequencing.In terms of flow cytometry,Prochlorococcus dominated the autotrophs with cell abundance ranging from 5.8×10^(2)to 5.44×10^(3)cells mL−1 seawater.Based on qPCR,the 16S rDNA copies were much higher in coral reef flats than in lagoons(P=0.003).The bacterial communities held significantly lower diversity in bottom waters compared with surface and middle waters(P<0.05),which were dominated by SAR11,Flavobacteriales,and Synechococcus.Alveolata represented most of the microeukaryotic communities with Dinophyceae and Syndiniales well represented in all samples.Neither bacterial nor microeukaryotic community exhibited distinct layer or niche pattern,however,Haptophyta and Picozoa decreased with depth and SAR 86,MAST-3 and Picozoa were enriched in lagoons(P<0.05).To adapt the nutrient-poor and organic matter-rich environment,bacterial nitrogen fixation and assimilatory/dissimilatory nitrate reduction were active in the system,and mixotrophy was the most important trophic strategy among microeukaryotes.The study highlighted the ecological adaptability of seawater microbes to the unique coral-reef environments.

Anthropogenic effects on floristic composition, diversity and regeneration potential of the Debrelibanos Monastery forest patch, central Ethiopia

This study assesses the effects of human disturbance on:(1)floristic composition,diversity,and plant community types;and,(2)the regeneration potential of woody species in the Debrelibanos Monastery forest patch in the North Showa zone of Oromia National Regional State,Ethiopia.Fifty sample quadrats were placed on parallel transect lines along altitudes in the forest using a systematic sampling design.Quadrats of 1 m^2,100 m^2 and 400 m^2 were used for recording herbaceous/seedling,sapling and tree species,respectively,with symptoms of different human disturbance effects.One hundred and thirteen species belonging to 52 families were recorded in the forest patch.The results show 459.5 stems ha^-1 of tree/shrub species present.Four community types,namely Juniperus procera–Acacia lahai,Carissa spinarum–Acacia abyssinica,Olea europaea subsp.cuspidata–Euphorbia abyssinica and Ficus sur–Allophylus abyssinicus were identified.The overall Shannon–Wiener diversity index was 3.3.The regeneration patterns of some species were poor.Slope,altitude and human activities had significant effects on vegetation patterns and imply that current management practices are not satisfactory to sustain the forest.Unless improved management interventions are made,the sustainability of forest services will be at stake.

Bacterial Community Structure and Diversity of Closely Located Coastal Areas

Bacterial community structure and diversity of two closely located stations are usually considered similar which can be verified by more intensive investigations using relatively large amount of datasets from the next generation sequencer. This study was conducted to assess the bacterial community structure and diversity between two closely located coastal stations, the port side and the sea side of the Oarai, Ibaraki, Japan from March 2013 to July 2014 using 454 GS Junior sequencer. Two stations underwent similar changes in physicochemical properties but the community structure and diversity was different. The Proteobacteria (the class Alphaproteobacteria, followed by the Gammaproteobacteria) and the Bacteroidetes (the class Flavobacteriia) were two abundant phyla in both the stations. But, the Flavobacteriia was more abundant in the port side, contributed about 26% to 48%, compared to the sea side (about 12% to 39%). Conversely, the relative abundance of the Gammaproteobacteria was higher on the sea side, about 10% to 17%, compared to the port side (about 4% to 12%). Among others, the phyla Cyanobacteria, Deferribacteres, Verrucomicrobia and the class Betaproteobacteria were also relatively abundant at the sea side. Because of their dominancy, the class Flavobacteriia and Alphaproteobacteria were further analysed at a lower phylogenetic level and marked differences were observed between the stations. Bacterial biodiversity in terms of the species richness (Chao index) and evenness (inverse Simpson) indicated higher patterns of diversity in the sea side area compared to the port side. Non-metric Multidimensional Scaling fitting with the environmental features (metaMDS), redundancy analysis (RDA) and Bray-Curtis clustering analysis also showed marked differences in bacterial community structure and diversity between the stations. However, some OTUs were commonly found in both the stations in all the sampling periods. So, the bacterial community structure and diversity of the coastal areas are distinguishable even between two closely located sampling points.

Plant property regulates soil bacterial community structure under altered precipitation regimes in a semi-arid desert grassland, China

Variations of precipitation have great impacts on soil carbon cycle and decomposition of soil organic matter.Soil bacteria are crucial participants in regulating these ecological processes and vulnerable to altered precipitation.Studying the impacts of altered precipitation on soil bacterial community structure can provide a novel insight into the potential impacts of altered precipitation on soil carbon cycle and carbon storage of grassland.Therefore,soil bacterial community structure under a precipitation manipulation experiment was researched in a semi-arid desert grassland in Chinese Loess Plateau.Five precipitation levels,i.e.,control,reduced and increased precipitation by 40%and 20%,respectively(referred here as CK,DP40,DP20,IP40,and IP20)were set.The results showed that soil bacterial alpha diversity and rare bacteria significantly changed with altered precipitation,but the dominant bacteria and soil bacterial beta diversity did not change,which may be ascribed to the ecological strategy of soil bacteria.The linear discriminate analysis(LDA)effect size(LEfSe)method found that major response patterns of soil bacteria to altered precipitation were resource-limited and drought-tolerant populations.In addition,increasing precipitation greatly promoted inter-species competition,while decreasing precipitation highly facilitated inter-species cooperation.These changes in species interaction can promote different distribution ratios of bacterial populations under different precipitation conditions.In structural equation model(SEM)analysis,with changes in precipitation,plant growth characteristics were found to be drivers of soil bacterial community composition,while soil properties were not.In conclusion,our results indicated that in desert grassland ecosystem,the sensitive of soil rare bacteria to altered precipitation was stronger than that of dominant taxa,which may be related to the ecological strategy of bacteria,species interaction,and precipitation-induced variations of plant growth characteristics.

Soil fungistasis and its relations to soil microbial composition and diversity:A case study of a series of soils with different fungistasis

Fungistasis is one of the important approaches to control soil-borne plant pathogens.Some hypotheses about the mechanisms for soil fungistasis had been established,which mainly focused on the soil bacterial community composition,structure,diversity as well as function.In this study,the bacterial community composition and diversity of a series of soils treated by autoclaving,which coming from the same original soil sample and showing gradient fungistasis to the target soil-borne pathogen fungi Fusarium grami...

Leaf nitrogen resorption is more important than litter nitrogen mineralization in mediating the diversity–productivity relationship along a nitrogen-limited temperate forest succession chronosequence

The resorption of nutrients by plants before litter fall and the mineralization of nutrients from plant litter by soil processes are both important pathways supporting primary productivity. While the positive relationship between plant biodiversity and primary productivity is widely accepted for natural ecosystems, the roles of nutrient resorption and mineralization in mediating that relationship remains largely unknown. Here, we quantified the relative importance of nitrogen(N) resorption and N mineralization in driving plant community N investment and the correlation between species diversity and community productivity along an N-limited successional chronosequence of the mixed broadleaved–Korean pine(Pinus koraiensis) forest in northeastern China. Leaf N resorption efficiency(NRE) at the community level increased significantly along the successional chronosequence,whereas litter N mineralization rate decreased significantly. Leaf NRE was more important than litter N mineralization rate in driving the diversity–productivity relationship. However, higher leaf NRE led to less N mineralization as succession progressed along the chronosequence. Our results highlight the importance of the N resorption pathway rather than the N mineralization pathway for forest N acquisition with community succession,and they provide mechanistic insights into the positive effects of biodiversity on ecosystem functioning. In future forest management practices, we recommend appropriate application of N fertilizer to mitigate the adverse effects of N-poor soil on seedling regeneration during late succession and thus maintain the sustainable development of temperate forest ecosystems.

Dynamics of microbial diversity during the composting of agricultural straw

The dynamic changes in microbial diversity during the aerobic composting of agricultural crop straw with additives were evaluated using high-throughput sequencing at four phases of composting(mesophilic,thermophilic,cooling and maturation phases).In addition,the physicochemical parameters of the composting system were determined in this study.The fermentation time of the thermophilic period was prolonged with the addition of urea or urea combined with a microbial agent.The ratio of C/N and germination index variation indicated that the additives were favorable for composting,because the additives directly changed the physicochemical properties of the compost and had effects on the diversity and abundance of bacteria and fungi.The abundance of operational taxonomic units(OTUs),diversity index(Shannon)and richness index(Chao1)of fungi and bacteria were found to significantly increase when urea+microbial agents were added to straw in the thermophilic phase.The relative abundance of the predominant bacteria and fungi at the phylum and genus levels differed during different composting phases.The abundance of the phyla Firmicutes and Proteobacteria declined in the order of treatments SNW>SN>S(S is straw only compost;SN is straw+5 kg t^(–1) urea compost;and SNW is straw+5 kg t^(–1) urea+1 kg t^(–1) microbial agent compost)in the thermophilic phase.The abundance of the genera Staphylococcus,Bacillus and Thermobifida followed the same order in the mesophilic phase.Ascomycota accounted for more than 92%of the total fungal sequences.With the progression of the composting process,the abundance of Ascomycota decreased gradually.The abundance of Ascomycota followed the order of S>SN>SNW during the thermophilic phase.The abundance of Aspergillus accounted for 4–59%of the total abundance of fungi and increased during the first two sampling periods.Aspergillus abundance followed the order of SNW>SN>S.Additionally,principal component analysis(PCA)revealed that the community compositions in the straw and straw+urea treatments were similar,and that the bacterial communities in treatments S,SN and SNW in the mesophilic phase(at day 1)were different from those observed in three other phases(at days 5,11,and19,respectively),while the fungal communities showed only slight variations in their structure in response to changes in the composting process.Canonical correlation analysis(CCA)and redundancy analysis(RDA)showed that total carbon(TC),NO_(3)^(–)-N(NN),electrical conductivity(EC)and p H were highly correlated with community composition.Therefore,this study highlights that the additives are beneficial to straw composting and result in good quality compost.

Leguminosae plants play a key role in affecting soil physical-chemical and biological properties during grassland succession after farmland abandonment in the Loess Plateau,China

Leguminosae are an important part of terrestrial ecosystems and play a key role in promoting soil nutrient cycling and improving soil properties.However,plant composition and species diversity change rapidly during the process of succession,the effect of leguminosae on soil physical-chemical and biological properties is still unclear.This study investigated the changes in the composition of plant community,vegetation characteristics,soil physical-chemical properties,and soil biological properties on five former farmlands in China,which had been abandoned for 0,5,10,18,and 30 a.Results showed that,with successional time,plant community developed from annual plants to perennial plants,the importance of Leguminosae and Asteraceae significantly increased and decreased,respectively,and the importance of grass increased and then decreased,having a maximum value after 5 a of abandonment.Plant diversity indices increased with successional time,and vegetation coverage and above-and below-ground biomass increased significantly with successional time after 5 a of abandonment.Compared with farmland,30 a of abandonment significantly increased soil nutrient content,but total and available phosphorus decreased with successional time.Changes in plant community composition and vegetation characteristics not only change soil properties and improve soil physical-chemical properties,but also regulate soil biological activity,thus affecting soil nutrient cycling.Among these,Leguminosae have the greatest influence on soil properties,and their importance values and community composition are significantly correlated with soil properties.Therefore,this research provides more scientific guidance for selecting plant species to stabilize soil ecosystem of farmland to grassland in the Loess Plateau,China.

Environmental drivers of soil microbial activity and diversity along an elevational gradient

Microbial functional and structural patterns and drivers along elevational gradients have recently received increasing attention.In this study,we examined soil bacterial and fungal community diversity,compositions,and microbial activities(i.e.,soil basal respiration and extracellular enzyme activities)across an elevational gradient from 1148 m to 2080 m(consists of six elevations)in the Yuanmou dry-hot valley located in Southwest China.Environmental factors,including soil temperature,moisture content,pH,soil organic carbon(SOC),total nitrogen(TN),the C/N ratio,total phosphorus(TP),and aboveground plant biomass were also determined.The results showed that soil bacterial alpha diversity(Shannon index)was unaffected by elevation,whereas fungal alpha diversity firstly increased significantly from 1148 m to 1539 m but did not increase further at higher elevations.Bacterial Shannon index was significantly correlated with SOC,whereas fungal Shannon index was remarkably associated with soil temperature.Microbial activity,beta diversities and community composition varied with elevation,but none of them showed a consistent trend.Monte Carlo test revealed that soil moisture followed by temperature,and pH,were the primary drivers of bacterial community composition.Soil fungal community composition significantly depended on soil moisture.Overall,our study suggested bacterial diversity and composition were determined by climatic(moisture and temperature)and edaphic properties(SOC and pH),while fungal diversity and composition were structured mainly by climatic factors.These findings may contribute to a better understanding of microbial responses along elevational gradients in this semi-arid region.

Plant Diversity Performance After Natural Restoration in Reclaimed Deyeuxia angustifolia Wetland

Deyeuxia angustifolia wetlands were widely distributed in the Sanjiang Plain in Northeast China. Due to strong demand for food production, large-area wetlands were reclaimed to farmlands, which threatened regional ecological security greatly. Since the 21 th century, returning farmlands to wetlands was widely adopted for natural restoration in the Sangjiang Plain. As the first reflection of wetland restoration, vegetation succession of restored D. angustifolia wetlands should be fully assessed. In this study, vegetation investigation was carried out in three restored D. angustifolia wetlands with 5, 8 and 12 yr restoration, respectively. Meanwhile, a natural D. angustifolia wetland was selected as reference wetland. Results showed that community composition changed greatly and there was visible community succession. Community dominant species changed from composite to gramineae as restoration time increasing.At first, weeds community appeared in the restored wetlands, especially the xerophytes developed to the pioneer species rapidly. And then, mesophytes and wetland species became the dominant species in the restored wetlands. Finally, wetland species, especially D. angustifolia, occupied the dominant position of restored community. Shannon-wiener index(H) and Simpson index(D) both decreased to close to natural D. angustifolia wetlands. Compared with natural D. angustifolia wetland, species composition and diversity in restored wetlands were more complex and higher. As restoration time increasing, there were not significant differences between community characteristics of restored wetlands and natural wetland. All these suggested that vegetation in reclaimed D. angustifolia wetland could be restored naturally, but its restored period is 10 yr at least. From another angle, it is important to protect current natural wetlands.

Effects of Cd(Ⅱ) and Cu(Ⅱ) on microbial characteristics in 2-chlorophenol-degradation anaerobic bioreactors

The effects of Cd^2＋ and Cu^2＋ at 300 mg/L on anaerobic microbial communities that degrade 2-cholorophenol （2-CP） were examined. Based on the polymerase chain reaction （PCR） of 16S rDNA, bacterial community diversity and archaeal community structure were analyzed with denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis （DGGE） and cloning, respectively. Degradation capabilities of the anaerobic microbial community were drastically abated and the degradation efficiency of 2-CP was reduced to 60% after shock by Cu^2＋ and Cd^2＋, respectively. The bacterial community structure was disturbed and the biodiversity was reduced after shock by Cu^2＋ and Cd^2＋ for 3 d. Some new metal-resistant microbes which could cope with the new condition appeared. The sequence analysis showed that there existed common Archaea species in control sludge and systems when treated with Cu^2＋ and Cd^2＋, such as Methanothrix soehngenii, Methanosaeta concilii, uncultured euryarchaeote, and so on. Both the abundance and diversity of archaeal species were altered with addition of Cd^2＋ and Cu^2＋ at high concentration. Although the abundance of the predominant archaeal species decreased with Cd^2＋ and Cu^2＋ addition for 3 d, they recovered to some extent after 10 d. The diversity of archaeal species was remarkably reduced after recovery for 10 d and the shift in archaeal composition seemed to be irreversible. The 2-CP-degradation anaerobic system was more sensitive to Cu^2＋ than Cd^2＋.

Molecular Diversity of Marine Phytoplankton Communities Based on Key Functional Genes

The phylogeny and diversity of two key functional genes were investigated as the basis for improved understanding of the community structure of natural phytoplankton assemblages in marine environments. New partial NR(encoding eukaryotic assimilatory nitrate reductase) and rbcL(encoding the large subunit of the ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase) sequences from ten cultured phytoplankton strains are reported.Phytoplankton community com-