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Applied and Environmental Microbiology, April 2009, p. 2192-2199, Vol. 75, No. 7
0099-2240/09/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/AEM.02500-08
Copyright © 2009, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Insights into the Diversity of Eukaryotes in Acid Mine Drainage Biofilm Communities{triangledown}

Brett J. Baker,1* Gene W. Tyson,2 Lindsey Goosherst,3 and Jillian F. Banfield1,2

Departments of Earth and Planetary Sciences,1 Environmental Sciences, Policy, and Management,2 Plant and Microbial Biology, University of California, Berkeley, California 947203

Received 31 October 2008/ Accepted 2 February 2009

Microscopic eukaryotes are known to have important ecosystem functions, but their diversity in most environments remains vastly unexplored. Here we analyzed an 18S rRNA gene library from a subsurface iron- and sulfur-oxidizing microbial community growing in highly acidic (pH < 0.9) runoff within the Richmond Mine at Iron Mountain (northern California). Phylogenetic analysis revealed that the majority (68%) of the sequences belonged to fungi. Protists falling into the deeply branching lineage named the acidophilic protist clade (APC) and the class Heterolobosea were also present. The APC group represents kingdom-level novelty, with <76% sequence similarity to 18S rRNA gene sequences of organisms from other environments. Fluorescently labeled oligonucleotide rRNA probes were designed to target each of these groups in biofilm samples, enabling abundance and morphological characterization. Results revealed that the populations vary significantly with the habitat and no group is ubiquitous. Surprisingly, many of the eukaryotic lineages (with the exception of the APC) are closely related to neutrophiles, suggesting that they recently adapted to this extreme environment. Molecular analyses presented here confirm that the number of eukaryotic species associated with the acid mine drainage (AMD) communities is low. This finding is consistent with previous results showing a limited diversity of archaea, bacteria, and viruses in AMD environments and suggests that the environmental pressures and interplay between the members of these communities limit species diversity at all trophic levels.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Hilgard Hall, University of California—Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720. Phone: (510) 643-2225. Fax: (510) 643-9980. E-mail: acidophile{at}gmail.com

{triangledown} Published ahead of print on 6 February 2009.

Applied and Environmental Microbiology, April 2009, p. 2192-2199, Vol. 75, No. 7
0099-2240/09/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/AEM.02500-08
Copyright © 2009, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.





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