Lipid biomarkers, pigments and cyanobacterial diversity of microbial mats across intertidal flats of the arid coast of the Arabian Gulf (Abu Dhabi, UAE).

Variations in morphology, fatty acids, pigments and cyanobacterial community composition were studied in microbial mats across intertidal flats of the arid Arabian Gulf coast. These mats experience combined extreme conditions of salinity, temperature, UV radiation and desiccation depending on their tidal position. Different mat forms were observed depending on the topology of the coast and location.

Contribution of Chloroflexus respiration to oxygen cycling in a hypersaline microbial mat from Lake Chiprana, Spain.

In dense stratified systems such as microbial mats, photosynthesis and respiration are coupled due to a tight spatial overlap between oxygen-producing and -consuming microorganisms. We combined microsensors and a membrane inlet mass spectrometer with two independent light sources emitting in the visible (VIS) and near infrared (NIR) regions to study this coupling in more detail. Using this novel approach, we separately quantified the activity of the major players in the oxygen cycle in a hypersaline microbial mat: gross photosynthesis of cyanobacteria, NIR light-dependent respiration of Chloroflexus-like bacteria (CLB) and respiration of aerobic heterotrophs.