Atmospheric cloud water contains a diverse bacterial community

Journal Article · Wed Jun 15 04:00:00 EDT 2011 · Atmospheric Environment, 45(30):5399-5405

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.atmosenv.2011.06.041· OSTI ID:1126381

Kourtev, P. S.; Hill, Kimberly A.; Shepson, Paul B.; Konopka, Allan

Atmospheric cloud water contains an active microbial community which can impact climate, human health and ecosystem processes in terrestrial and aquatic systems. Most studies on the composition of microbial communities in clouds have been performed with orographic clouds that are typically in direct contact with the ground. We collected water samples from cumulus clouds above the upper U.S. Midwest. The cloud water was analyzed for the diversity of bacterial phylotypes by denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) and sequencing of 16S rRNA gene amplicons. DGGE analyses of bacterial communities detected 17e21 bands per sample. Sequencing confirmed the presence of a diverse bacterial community; sequences from seven bacterial phyla were retrieved. Cloud water bacterial communities appeared to be dominated by members of the cyanobacteria, proteobacteria, actinobacteria and firmicutes.

• Research Organization: Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), Richland, WA (US)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE
• DOE Contract Number: AC05-76RL01830
• OSTI ID: 1126381
• Report Number(s): PNNL-SA-83686
• Journal Information: Atmospheric Environment, 45(30):5399-5405, Journal Name: Atmospheric Environment, 45(30):5399-5405
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

16S rDNA
PCR-DGGE
bacteria
cloud water