Depth-Dependent Environmental Drivers of Microbial Plankton Community Structure in the Northern Gulf of Mexico.

ABSTRACT: The Gulf of Mexico (GoM) is a dynamic marine ecosystem influenced by multiple natural and anthropogenic processes and inputs, such as the intrusion of warm oligotrophic water via the Loop Current, freshwater and nutrient input by the Mississippi River, and hydrocarbon inputs via natural seeps and industrial spills. Microbial plankton communities are important to pelagic food webs including in the GoM but understanding the drivers of the natural dynamics of these passively distributed microorganisms can be challenging in such a large and heterogeneous system. As part of the DEEPEND consortium, we applied high throughput 16S rRNA sequencing to investigate the spatial and temporal dynamics of pelagic microbial plankton related to several environmental conditions during two offshore cruises in

SUBMITTER: Easson CG 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6328475 | biostudies-literature | 2018

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature