Trophic Selective Pressures Organize the Composition of Endolithic Microbial Communities From Global Deserts.

ABSTRACT: Studies of microbial biogeography are often convoluted by extremely high diversity and differences in microenvironmental factors such as pH and nutrient availability. Desert endolithic (inside rock) communities are relatively simple ecosystems that can serve as a tractable model for investigating long-range biogeographic effects on microbial communities. We conducted a comprehensive survey of endolithic sandstones using high-throughput marker gene sequencing to characterize global patterns of diversity in endolithic microbial communities. We also tested a range of abiotic variables in order to investigate the factors that drive community assembly at various trophic levels. Macroclimate was found to be the primary driver of endolithic community composition, with the most striking difference

SUBMITTER: Qu EB 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6960110 | biostudies-literature | 2019

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature