Investigating the structure of cold microbiomes: The Chesapeake Bay in winter and arctic North Slope in summer

• Published in: The FASEB journal 2021-05, Vol.35 (S1), p.n/a, Article fasebj.2021.35.S1.02352
• Main Authors: Sweet, Charles, Koo, Caitlyn, Treaster, Logan, Cofer, Haven, Long, Katherine, Barker, Amanda, Douglas, Thomas, Gallaher, Shawn, Colston, Sophie, Smith, Joseph
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• ISSN: 0892-6638; 1530-6860
• DOI: 10.1096/fasebj.2021.35.S1.02352

The bacterial community (microbiome) of Arctic rivers, and of temperate rivers during winter, is of interest to ecologists and microbiologists as a unique collection of organisms adapted to psychrophilic (cold‐growth) conditions. We characterized these microbiomes by both culture‐based and targeted unbiased metagenomic water sampling, identification, and taxonomic analysis of the bacteria from the Chesapeake Bay and Severn River (MD) in winter of 2020 and the Kuparuk River and Sagavanirktok River (AK) in summer 2019. These analyses provide both breadth and depth to understanding of the microbial community in these watersheds, including comparisons between locations/conditions and geographic differences in bacterial taxa, and suggest that the headwater‐origin hypothesis for river populations shown in other studies only partially explains development and structure of these microbiomes. Preliminary analysis shows significant differences in taxonomic distribution by location independent of headwater origin, and potential links to the hydrology and/or geochemistry of the watersheds. We are working to establish sampling and analysis programs for vertical year‐over‐year characterization of these microbiomes as well as further horizontal comparison between these watersheds.