Uncovering the processes of microbial community assembly in the near-surface sediments of a climate-sensitive glacier-fed lake

Meiqing Lu; Xin Luo; Jiu Jimmy Jiao; Hailong Li; Xingxing Kuang; Xuejing Wang; Yuqing Feng; Chunmiao Zheng

doi:10.1016/j.jenvman.2023.118714

Uncovering the processes of microbial community assembly in the near-surface sediments of a climate-sensitive glacier-fed lake

J Environ Manage. 2023 Nov 1:345:118714. doi: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2023.118714. Epub 2023 Aug 3.

Authors

Meiqing Lu¹, Xin Luo², Jiu Jimmy Jiao³, Hailong Li⁴, Xingxing Kuang⁴, Xuejing Wang⁴, Yuqing Feng⁴, Chunmiao Zheng⁴

Affiliations

¹ Department of Earth Sciences, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China; School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, 518055, China.
² Department of Earth Sciences, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China.
³ Department of Earth Sciences, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China. Electronic address: jjiao@hku.hk.
⁴ School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, 518055, China; Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Soil and Groundwater Pollution Control, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, 518055, China.

PMID: 37542806
DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2023.118714

Abstract

Glacier-fed lakes are characterized by cold temperatures, high altitudes, and nutrient-poor conditions. Despite these challenging conditions, near-surface sediments of glacier-fed lakes harbor rich microbial communities that are critical for ecosystem functioning and serve as a bridge between aquatic ecology and the deep subsurface biosphere. However, there is limited knowledge regarding the microbial communities and their assembly processes in these sediments, which are highly vulnerable to climate change. To fill this knowledge gap, this study systematically analyzed environmental variables, microbial communities, diversity, co-occurrence relationships, and community assembly processes in the near-surface sediments of a glacier-fed lake in the Tibetan Plateau. The results revealed distinct vertical gradients in microbial diversity and subcommunities, highlighting the significant influence of selection processes and adaptive abilities on microbial communities. Specifically, specialists played a crucial role within the overall microbial communities. Microbial assembly was primarily driven by homogeneous selection, but its influence declined with increasing depth. In contrast, homogenizing dispersal showed an opposite pattern, and the bottom layer exhibited heterogeneous selection and undominated processes. These patterns of microbial assembly were primarily driven by environmental gradients, with significant contributions from processes associated to ammonium and organic matter deposition, as well as chemical precipitation in response to a warming climate. This study enhances our understanding of the microbial communities and assembly processes in the near-surface sediments of glacier-fed lakes and sheds light on geo-microbiological processes in climate-sensitive lacustrine sediments.

Keywords: Climate change; Glacier-fed lake; Microbial community assembly; Specialists; Tibetan plateau.

MeSH terms

Climate Change
Ice Cover / microbiology
Lakes* / microbiology
Microbiota*