Nutrient Exposure Alters Microbial Composition, Structure, and Mercury Methylating Activity in Periphyton in a Contaminated Watershed
Abstract
The conversion of mercury (Hg) to monomethylmercury (MMHg) is a critical area of concern in global Hg cycling. Periphyton biofilms may harbor significant amounts of MMHg but little is known about the Hg-methylating potential of the periphyton microbiome. Therefore, we used high-throughput amplicon sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene, ITS2 region, and Hg methylation gene pair (hgcAB) to characterize the archaea/bacteria, fungi, and Hg-methylating microorganisms in periphyton communities grown in a contaminated watershed in East Tennessee (United States). Furthermore, we examined how nutrient amendments (nitrate and/or phosphate) altered periphyton community structure and function. We found that bacterial/archaeal richness in experimental conditions decreased in summer and increased in autumn relative to control treatments, while fungal diversity generally increased in summer and decreased in autumn relative to control treatments. Interestingly, the Hg-methylating communities were dominated by Proteobacteria followed by Candidatus Atribacteria across both seasons. Surprisingly, Hg methylation potential correlated with numerous bacterial families that do not contain hgcAB, suggesting that the overall microbiome structure of periphyton communities influences rates of Hg transformation within these microbial mats. To further explore these complex community interactions, we performed a microbial network analysis and found that the nitrate-amended treatment resulted in the highest number of hubmore »
- Authors:
-
- Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)
- Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Wofford College, Spartanburg, SC (United States)
- Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Smithsonian Environmental Research Center, Edgewater, MD (United States)
- Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)
- Publication Date:
- Research Org.:
- Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)
- Sponsoring Org.:
- USDOE Office of Science (SC), Biological and Environmental Research (BER)
- OSTI Identifier:
- 1777727
- Alternate Identifier(s):
- OSTI ID: 1787306
- Report Number(s):
- PNNL-SA-158901
Journal ID: ISSN 1664-302X
- Grant/Contract Number:
- AC05-00OR22725; AC05-76RL01830
- Resource Type:
- Accepted Manuscript
- Journal Name:
- Frontiers in Microbiology
- Additional Journal Information:
- Journal Volume: 12; Journal Issue: 12; Journal ID: ISSN 1664-302X
- Publisher:
- Frontiers Research Foundation
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
- Subject:
- 59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES; periphyton; mercury; microbiome; methylmercury; nutrient addition
Citation Formats
Carrell, Alyssa A., Schwartz, Grace E., Cregger, Melissa, Gionfriddo, Caitlin, Elias, Dwayne A., Wilpiszeski, Regina, Klingeman, Dawn Marie, Wymore, Ann, Muller, Katherine A., and Brooks, Scott C. Nutrient Exposure Alters Microbial Composition, Structure, and Mercury Methylating Activity in Periphyton in a Contaminated Watershed. United States: N. p., 2021.
Web. doi:10.3389/fmicb.2021.647861.
Carrell, Alyssa A., Schwartz, Grace E., Cregger, Melissa, Gionfriddo, Caitlin, Elias, Dwayne A., Wilpiszeski, Regina, Klingeman, Dawn Marie, Wymore, Ann, Muller, Katherine A., & Brooks, Scott C. Nutrient Exposure Alters Microbial Composition, Structure, and Mercury Methylating Activity in Periphyton in a Contaminated Watershed. United States. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2021.647861
Carrell, Alyssa A., Schwartz, Grace E., Cregger, Melissa, Gionfriddo, Caitlin, Elias, Dwayne A., Wilpiszeski, Regina, Klingeman, Dawn Marie, Wymore, Ann, Muller, Katherine A., and Brooks, Scott C. Fri .
"Nutrient Exposure Alters Microbial Composition, Structure, and Mercury Methylating Activity in Periphyton in a Contaminated Watershed". United States. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2021.647861. https://www.osti.gov/servlets/purl/1777727.
@article{osti_1777727,
title = {Nutrient Exposure Alters Microbial Composition, Structure, and Mercury Methylating Activity in Periphyton in a Contaminated Watershed},
author = {Carrell, Alyssa A. and Schwartz, Grace E. and Cregger, Melissa and Gionfriddo, Caitlin and Elias, Dwayne A. and Wilpiszeski, Regina and Klingeman, Dawn Marie and Wymore, Ann and Muller, Katherine A. and Brooks, Scott C.},
abstractNote = {The conversion of mercury (Hg) to monomethylmercury (MMHg) is a critical area of concern in global Hg cycling. Periphyton biofilms may harbor significant amounts of MMHg but little is known about the Hg-methylating potential of the periphyton microbiome. Therefore, we used high-throughput amplicon sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene, ITS2 region, and Hg methylation gene pair (hgcAB) to characterize the archaea/bacteria, fungi, and Hg-methylating microorganisms in periphyton communities grown in a contaminated watershed in East Tennessee (United States). Furthermore, we examined how nutrient amendments (nitrate and/or phosphate) altered periphyton community structure and function. We found that bacterial/archaeal richness in experimental conditions decreased in summer and increased in autumn relative to control treatments, while fungal diversity generally increased in summer and decreased in autumn relative to control treatments. Interestingly, the Hg-methylating communities were dominated by Proteobacteria followed by Candidatus Atribacteria across both seasons. Surprisingly, Hg methylation potential correlated with numerous bacterial families that do not contain hgcAB, suggesting that the overall microbiome structure of periphyton communities influences rates of Hg transformation within these microbial mats. To further explore these complex community interactions, we performed a microbial network analysis and found that the nitrate-amended treatment resulted in the highest number of hub taxa that also corresponded with enhanced Hg methylation potential. This work provides insight into community interactions within the periphyton microbiome that may contribute to Hg cycling and will inform future research that will focus on establishing mixed microbial consortia to uncover mechanisms driving shifts in Hg cycling within periphyton habitats.},
doi = {10.3389/fmicb.2021.647861},
journal = {Frontiers in Microbiology},
number = 12,
volume = 12,
place = {United States},
year = {Fri Mar 19 00:00:00 EDT 2021},
month = {Fri Mar 19 00:00:00 EDT 2021}
}
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