We assessed fungal diversity in deep-sea sediments obtained from different depths in the Southern Ocean using the internal transcribed spacer 2 (ITS2) region of nuclear ribosomal DNA by metabarcoding through high-throughput sequencing (HTS). We detected 655,991 DNA reads representing 263 fungal amplicon sequence variants (ASVs), dominated by Ascomycota, Basidiomycota, Mortierellomycota, Mucoromycota, Chytridiomycota and Rozellomycota, confirming that deep-sea sediments can represent a hotspot of fungal diversity in Antarctica. The community diversity detected included 17 dominant fungal ASVs, 62 intermediate and 213 rare. The dominant fungi included taxa of Mortierella, Penicillium, Cladosporium, Pseudogymnoascus, Phaeosphaeria and Torula. Despite the extreme conditions of the Southern Ocean benthos, the total fungal community detected in these marine sediments displayed high indices of diversity and richness, and moderate dominance, which varied between the different depths sampled. The highest diversity indices were obtained in sediments from 550 m and 250 m depths. Only 49 ASVs (18.63%) were detected at all the depths sampled, while 16 ASVs were detected only in the deepest sediment sampled at 1463 m. Based on sequence identities, the fungal community included some globally distributed taxa, primarily recorded otherwise from terrestrial environments, suggesting transport from these to deep marine sediments. The assigned taxa included symbionts, decomposers and plant-, animal- and human-pathogenic fungi, suggesting that deep-sea sediments host a complex fungal diversity, although metabarcoding does not itself confirm that living or viable organisms are present.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00248-020-01658-8 | DOI Listing |
Environ Microbiol
January 2025
Frontiers Science Center for Deep Ocean Multispheres and Earth System, and College of Marine Life Sciences, Ocean University of China, Qingdao, China.
Deep-sea sediments contain a large number of Thaumarchaeota that are phylogenetically distinct from their pelagic counterparts. However, their ecology and evolutionary adaptations are not well understood. Metagenomic analyses were conducted on samples from various depths of a 750-cm sediment core collected from the Mariana Trench Challenger Deep.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSensors (Basel)
December 2024
Key Laboratory of System Control and Information Processing, Department of Automation, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, China.
The suspended sediment plume generated in the deep-sea mining process significantly impacts the marine environment and seabed ecosystem. Accurate boundary estimation can effectively monitor the scope of environmental impact, guiding mining operations to prevent ecological damage. In this paper, we propose a dynamic boundary estimation approach for the suspended sediment plume, leveraging the sensing capability of the Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUVs).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMolecules
December 2024
Marine Natural Products Research and Development Key Laboratory of Qingdao, First Institute of Oceanography, Ministry of Natural Resources, Qingdao 266061, China.
The exploration and exploitation of deep-sea microbial resources is of great scientific value for understanding biological evolution under extreme conditions. Deep-sea microorganisms are critical in the ocean carbon cycle, and marine heterotrophic microorganisms secrete extracellular carbonic anhydrase (CA) to fix inorganic carbon, an important process in climate regulation. Extracellular CA provides a green method for fixing carbon dioxide into stable minerals containing Ca.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEnviron Sci Technol
January 2025
Guangdong Basic Research Center of Excellence for Ecological Security and Green Development, Guangdong University of Technology, Guangzhou 510006, China.
The massive production and widespread use of plastics have resulted in a growing marine plastic pollution problem. Cold seep ecosystems are maintained by microorganisms related to nitrogen and carbon cycling that occur in deep-sea areas, where cold hydrocarbon-rich water seeps from the ocean floor. Little is known about plastic pollution in this ecosystem.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSci Total Environ
January 2025
Research Centre of Ecology & Environment for Coastal Area and Deep Sea, Guangdong University of Technology, Guangzhou 510006, China; Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Guangzhou), Guangzhou 511458, China; School of Ecology, Environment and Resources, Guangdong University of Technology, Guangzhou 510006, China; Guangdong Basic Research Center of Excellence for Ecological Security and Green Development, Guangdong University of Technology, Guangzhou 510006, China. Electronic address:
Methane leaking from the deep seabed is a primary source of carbon and energy for various microorganisms, sustaining the evolution and productivity of cold seep ecosystems. However, the dynamics of methane hydrate formation under methane seepage conditions and potential impacts on the evolution of cold seep ecosystems remain unclear. This study investigated the dynamic formation characteristics of gas hydrates within cold seep sediments by simulating the methane leakage process.
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