Arsenic speciation, the abundance of arsenite-oxidizing bacteria and microbial community structures in groundwater, surface water, and soil from a gold mine.

The arsenic speciation, the abundance of arsenite-oxidizing bacteria, and microbial community structures in the groundwater, surface water, and soil from a gold mining area were explored using the PHREEQC model, cloning-ddPCR of the gene, and high-throughput sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene, respectively. The analysis of the gene showed that arsenite-oxidizing bacteria retrieved from groundwater, surface water, and soil were associated with , , and . In groundwaters from the mining area, there were relatively high ratios of /total 16S rRNA gene copies and the dominance of As, which suggested the presence and activity of arsenite-oxidizing bacteria.