Genetic diversity of picocyanobacteria in tibetan lakes: assessing the endemic and universal distributions.

ABSTRACT: The phylogenetic diversity of picocyanobacteria in seven alkaline lakes on the Tibetan Plateau was analyzed using the molecular marker 16S-23S rRNA internal transcribed spacer sequence. A total of 1,077 environmental sequences retrieved from the seven lakes were grouped into seven picocyanobacterial clusters, with two clusters newly described here. Each of the lakes was dominated by only one or two clusters, while different lakes could have disparate communities, suggesting low alpha diversity but high beta diversity of picocyanobacteria in these high-altitude freshwater and saline lakes. Several globally distributed clusters were found in these Tibetan lakes, such as subalpine cluster I and the Cyanobium gracile cluster. Although other clusters likely exhibit geographic restriction to the

SUBMITTER: Huang S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4249238 | biostudies-literature | 2014 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature