Viral Ecogenomics of Arctic Cryopeg Brine and Sea Ice.

ABSTRACT: Arctic regions, which are changing rapidly as they warm 2 to 3 times faster than the global average, still retain microbial habitats that serve as natural laboratories for understanding mechanisms of microbial adaptation to extreme conditions. Seawater-derived brines within both sea ice (sea-ice brine) and ancient layers of permafrost (cryopeg brine) support diverse microbes adapted to subzero temperatures and high salinities, yet little is known about viruses in these extreme environments, which, if analogous to other systems, could play important evolutionary and ecosystem roles. Here, we characterized viral communities and their functions in samples of cryopeg brine, sea-ice brine, and melted sea ice. Viral abundance was high in cryopeg brine (1.2 × 10⁸ ml^-1) and m

SUBMITTER: Zhong ZP 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7300359 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature