Distribution of microbial arsenic reduction, oxidation and extrusion genes along a wide range of environmental arsenic concentrations.

The presence of the arsenic oxidation, reduction, and extrusion genes arsC, arrA, aioA, and acr3 was explored in a range of natural environments in northern Chile, with arsenic concentrations spanning six orders of magnitude. A combination of primers from the literature and newly designed primers were used to explore the presence of the arsC gene, coding for the reduction of As (V) to As (III) in one of the most common detoxification mechanisms. Enterobacterial related arsC genes appeared only in the environments with the lowest As concentration, while Firmicutes-like genes were present throughout the range of As concentrations.

Evaluation of DNA extraction methods from complex phototrophic biofilms.

Phototrophic biofilms are used in a variety of biotechnological and industrial processes. Understanding their structure, ie microbial composition, is a necessary step for understanding their function and, ultimately, for the success of their application. DNA analysis methods can be used to obtain information on the taxonomic composition and relative abundance of the biofilm members.