An Improved Method for Extracting Viruses From Sediment: Detection of Far More Viruses in the Subseafloor Than Previously Reported.

ABSTRACT: Viruses are the most abundant biological entities on Earth and perform essential ecological functions in aquatic environments by mediating biogeochemical cycling and lateral gene transfer. Cellular life as well as viruses have been found in deep subseafloor sediment. However, the study of deep sediment viruses has been hampered by the complexities involved in efficiently extracting viruses from a sediment matrix. Here, we developed a new method for the extraction of viruses from sediment based on density separation using a Nycodenz density step gradient. The density separation method resulted in up to 2 orders of magnitude greater recovery of viruses from diverse subseafloor sediments compared to conventional methods. The density separation method also showed more consistent performance be

SUBMITTER: Pan D 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6501758 | biostudies-literature | 2019

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature