Dynamic prokaryotic communities in the dark western Mediterranean Sea.

ABSTRACT: Dark ocean microbial dynamics are fundamental to understand ecosystem metabolism and ocean biogeochemical processes. Yet, the ecological response of deep ocean communities to environmental perturbations remains largely unknown. Temporal and spatial dynamics of the meso- and bathypelagic prokaryotic communities were assessed throughout a 2-year seasonal sampling across the western Mediterranean Sea. A common pattern of prokaryotic communities' depth stratification was observed across the different regions and throughout the seasons. However, sporadic and drastic alterations of the community composition and diversity occurred either at specific water masses or throughout the aphotic zone and at a basin scale. Environmental changes resulted in a major increase in the abundance of rare or low

SUBMITTER: Mena C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8429679 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature