Microbial diversity in restored wetlands of San Francisco Bay

Conference · Mon Dec 09 04:00:00 EST 2013

OSTI ID:1241185

Theroux, Susanna ^[1]; Hartman, Wyatt ^[1]; He, Shaomei ^[2]; Tringe, Susannah ^[1]

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1. Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Walnut Creek, CA (United States). Dept. of Energy Joint Genome Inst.
2. Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Walnut Creek, CA (United States). Dept. of Energy Joint Genome Inst.; Univ. of Wisconsin, Madison, WI (United States)

Wetland ecosystems may serve as either a source or a sink for atmospheric carbon and greenhouse gases. This delicate carbon balance is influenced by the activity of belowground microbial communities that return carbon dioxide and methane to the atmosphere. Wetland restoration efforts in the San Francisco Bay-Delta region may help to reverse land subsidence and possibly increase carbon storage in soils. However, the effects of wetland restoration on microbial communities, which mediate soil metabolic activity and carbon cycling, are poorly studied. In an effort to better understand the underlying factors which shape the balance of carbon flux in wetland soils, we targeted the microbial communities in a suite of restored and historic wetlands in the San Francisco Bay-Delta region. Using DNA and RNA sequencing, coupled with greenhouse gas monitoring, we profiled the diversity and metabolic potential of the wetland soil microbial communities along biogeochemical and wetland age gradients. Our results show relationships among geochemical gradients, availability of electron acceptors, and microbial community composition. Our study provides the first genomic glimpse into microbial populations in natural and restored wetlands of the San Francisco Bay-Delta region and provides a valuable benchmark for future studies.

• Research Organization: Ernest Orlando Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE Office of Science (SC)
• DOE Contract Number: AC02-05CH11231
• OSTI ID: 1241185
• Report Number(s): LBNL--7071E
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

99 GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS
DNA RNA Sequencing
Microbial
greenhouse gases
wetland ecosystems