The Compositionally Distinct Cyanobacterial Biocrusts From Brazilian Savanna and Their Environmental Drivers of Community Diversity

The last decade was marked by efforts to define and identify the main cyanobacterial players in biological crusts around the world. However, not much is known about biocrusts in Brazil's tropical savanna ( ), despite the existence of environments favorable to their development and ecological re...

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Published inFrontiers in microbiology Vol. 10; p. 2798
Main Authors Machado-de-Lima, Náthali Maria, Fernandes, Vanessa Moreira Câmara, Roush, Daniel, Velasco Ayuso, Sergio, Rigonato, Janaina, Garcia-Pichel, Ferran, Branco, Luis Henrique Zanini
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Switzerland Frontiers Media S.A 17.12.2019
Subjects
aridity
biocrust
cerrado savanna
cyanobacteria
Leptolyngbya
Microbiology
Porphyrosiphon
aridity
Porphyrosiphon
cerrado savanna
biocrust
Leptolyngbya
cyanobacteria
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Summary:The last decade was marked by efforts to define and identify the main cyanobacterial players in biological crusts around the world. However, not much is known about biocrusts in Brazil's tropical savanna ( ), despite the existence of environments favorable to their development and ecological relevance. We examined the community composition of cyanobacteria in biocrusts from six sites distributed in the Southeast of the country using high throughput sequencing of 16S rRNA and phylogenetic placement in the wider context of biocrusts from deserts. Sequences ascribable to 22 genera of cyanobacteria were identified. Although a significant proportion of sequences did not match those of known cyanobacteria, several clades of and were found to be the most abundant. We identified significant differences in dominance and overall composition among the sites, much larger than within-site variability. The composition of cyanobacterial communities was distinct from those known in biocrusts from North American deserts. Among several environmental drivers considered, the opposing trend of annual precipitation and mean annual temperature best explained the variability in community composition within Brazilian biocrusts. Their compositional uniqueness speaks of the need for dedicated efforts to study the ecophysiology of tropical savanna biocrust and their roles in ecosystem function for management and preservation.
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Edited by: Steven D. Warren, United States Forest Service, United States
This article was submitted to Microbiological Chemistry and Geomicrobiology, a section of the journal Frontiers in Microbiology
Reviewed by: Lara Vimercati, University of Colorado Boulder, United States; Chris Yeager, Los Alamos National Laboratory (DOE), United States
These authors have contributed equally to this work
ISSN:1664-302X
1664-302X
DOI:10.3389/fmicb.2019.02798