Microbial diversity and impact on carbonate geochemistry across a changing geochemical gradient in a karst aquifer.

ABSTRACT: Although microbes are known to influence karst (carbonate) aquifer ecosystem-level processes, comparatively little information is available regarding the diversity of microbial activities that could influence water quality and geological modification. To assess microbial diversity in the context of aquifer geochemistry, we coupled 16S rRNA Sanger sequencing and 454 tag pyrosequencing to in situ microcosm experiments from wells that cross the transition from fresh to saline and sulfidic water in the Edwards Aquifer of central Texas, one of the largest karst aquifers in the United States. The distribution of microbial groups across the transition zone correlated with dissolved oxygen and sulfide concentration, and significant variations in community composition were explained by local carbon

SUBMITTER: Gray CJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3555096 | biostudies-literature | 2013 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature