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Applied and Environmental Microbiology, May 2005, p. 2695-2704, Vol. 71, No. 5
0099-2240/05/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/AEM.71.5.2695-2704.2005
Copyright © 2005, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Distribution and Stability of Sulfate-Reducing Prokaryotic and Hydrogenotrophic Methanogenic Assemblages in Nutrient-Impacted Regions of the Florida Everglades{dagger}

Hector Castro,1 Susan Newman,1,2 K. R. Reddy,1 and Andrew Ogram1,3*

Soil and Water Science Department,1 Microbiology and Cell Science Department, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida,3 South Florida Water Management District, Everglades Division, West Palm Beach, Florida2

Received 11 July 2004/ Accepted 2 December 2004

Although the influence of phosphorus loading on the Everglades ecosystem has received a great deal of attention, most research has targeted macro indicators, such as those based on vegetation or fauna, or chemical and physical parameters involved in biogeochemical cycles. Fewer studies have addressed the role of microorganisms, and these have mainly targeted gross informative parameters such as microbial biomass, enzymatic activities, and microbial enumerations. The objectives of this study were to characterize the dynamics of sulfate-reducing and methanogenic assemblages using terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism (T-RFLP) targeting the dissimilatory sulfite reductase (dsrA) and methyl coenzyme M reductase (mcrA) genes, respectively, and assess the impact of nutrient enrichment on microbial assemblages in the northern Everglades. T-RFLP combined with principal component analysis was a powerful technique to discriminate between soils from sites with eutrophic, transitional, and oligotrophic nutrient concentrations. dsrA T-RFLP provided a higher level of discrimination between the three sites. mcrA was a relatively weaker system to distinguish between sites, since it could not categorically discriminate between eutrophic and transition soil samples, but may be useful as an early indicator of phosphorus loading which is altering hydrogenotrophic methanogenic community in the transition zones, making them more similar to eutrophic zones. Clearly, targeting a combination of different microbial communities provides greater insight into the functioning of this ecosystem and provides useful information for understanding the relationship between eutrophication effects and microbial assemblages.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: University of Florida, P.O. Box 110290, Gainesville, FL 32611-0290. Phone: (352) 392-1951. Fax: (352) 392-3902. E-mail: avo{at}mail.ifas.ufl.edu.

{dagger} Florida Agricultural Experimental Station Journal Series no. R-10548.

Applied and Environmental Microbiology, May 2005, p. 2695-2704, Vol. 71, No. 5
0099-2240/05/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/AEM.71.5.2695-2704.2005
Copyright © 2005, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.



This article has been cited by other articles:

  • Smith, J. M., Castro, H., Ogram, A. (2007). Structure and Function of Methanogens along a Short-Term Restoration Chronosequence in the Florida Everglades. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 73: 4135-4141 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Chauhan, A., Ogram, A. (2006). Phylogeny of Acetate-Utilizing Microorganisms in Soils along a Nutrient Gradient in the Florida Everglades.. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 72: 6837-6840 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Chauhan, A., Ogram, A. (2006). Fatty Acid-Oxidizing Consortia along a Nutrient Gradient in the Florida Everglades. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 72: 2400-2406 [Abstract] [Full Text]  


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