Dataset Information

Dark stains on rock surfaces in Driny Cave (Little Carpathian Mountains, Slovakia).

ABSTRACT: Mycobiota are important in underground ecology. In 2014, we discovered dark stains on clayey sediments on the walls of Driny Cave, Slovakia. Our description is based on the morphology of the fungus and the phylogenetic relationships of the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region. In addition, data on its capacity for the production of extracellular enzymes, growth, and survival in vitro at different temperatures are reported. Our analyses revealed that this dark stains on the wall was produced by Penicillium glandicola. The fungus was able to synthesize amylases, proteases and cellulases, but not pectinases and keratinases. The vegetative structures of mycelium of this fungus are viable in vitro after storage at cool temperatures (from -72 to 5 °C), and show active growth at temperatures from 5 to 25 °C, but without spore germination, and without active growth at 30 and 37 °C. Penicillium glandicola is a psychrotolerant species and belong to var. glandicola.

SUBMITTER: Ogorek R

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4996882 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

ACCESS DATA

Publications

Dark stains on rock surfaces in Driny Cave (Little Carpathian Mountains, Slovakia).

Ogórek Rafał R Dyląg Mariusz M Kozak Bartosz B

Extremophiles : life under extreme conditions 20160617 5

Mycobiota are important in underground ecology. In 2014, we discovered dark stains on clayey sediments on the walls of Driny Cave, Slovakia. Our description is based on the morphology of the fungus and the phylogenetic relationships of the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region. In addition, data on its capacity for the production of extracellular enzymes, growth, and survival in vitro at different temperatures are reported. Our analyses revealed that this dark stains on the wall was produced ...[more]

PMID: 27315167

Similar Datasets

Project description:In show caves, artificial lighting is intended to illuminate striking cave formations for visitors. However, artificial lighting also promotes the growth of novel and diverse biofilm communities, termed lampenflora, that obtain their energy from these artificial light sources. Lampenflora, which generally consist of cyanobacteria, algae, diatoms, and bryophytes, discolor formations and introduce novel ecological interactions in cave ecosystems. The source of lampenflora community members and patterns of diversity have generally been understudied mainly due to technological limitations. In this study, we investigate whether members of lampenflora communities in an iconic show cave-Lehman Caves-in Great Basin National Park (GRBA) in the western United States also occur in nearby unlit and rarely visited caves. Using a high-throughput environmental DNA metabarcoding approach targeting three loci-the ITS2 (fungi), a fragment of the 16S (bacteria), and a fragment of 23S (photosynthetic bacteria and eukaryotes)-we characterized diversity of lampenflora communities occurring near artificial light sources in Lehman Caves and rock surfaces near the entrances of seven nearby "wild" caves. Most caves supported diverse and distinct microbial-dominated communities, with little overlap in community members among caves. The lampenflora communities in the show cave were distinct, and generally less diverse, from those occurring in nearby unlit caves. Our results suggest an unidentified source for a significant proportion of lampenflora community members in Lehman Caves, with the majority of community members not found in nearby wild caves. Whether the unique members of the lampenflora communities in Lehman Caves are related to distinct abiotic conditions, increased human visitation, or other factors remains unknown. These results provide a valuable framework for future research exploring lampenflora community assemblies in show caves, in addition to a broad perspective into the range of microbial and lampenflora community members in GRBA. By more fully characterizing these communities, we can better monitor the establishment of lampenflora and design effective strategies for their management and removal.

Project description:BackgroundCave anthropization related to rock art tourism can lead to cave microbiota imbalance and microbial alterations threatening Paleolithic artwork, but the underpinning microbial changes are poorly understood. Caves can be microbiologically heterogeneous and certain rock wall alterations may develop in different rooms despite probable spatial heterogeneity of the cave microbiome, suggesting that a same surface alteration might involve a subset of cosmopolitan taxa widespread in each cave room. We tested this hypothesis in Lascaux, by comparing recent alterations (dark zones) and nearby unmarked surfaces in nine locations within the cave.ResultsIllumina MiSeq metabarcoding of unmarked surfaces confirmed microbiome heterogeneity of the cave. Against this background, the microbial communities of unmarked and altered surfaces differed at each location. The use of a decision matrix showed that microbiota changes in relation to dark zone formation could differ according to location, but dark zones from different locations displayed microbial similarities. Thus, dark zones harbor bacterial and fungal taxa that are cosmopolitan at the scale of Lascaux, as well as dark zone-specific taxa present (i) at all locations in the cave (i.e. the six bacterial genera Microbacterium, Actinophytocola, Lactobacillus, Bosea, Neochlamydia and Tsukamurella) or (ii) only at particular locations within Lascaux. Scanning electron microscopy observations and most qPCR data evidenced microbial proliferation in dark zones.ConclusionFindings point to the proliferation of different types of taxa in dark zones, i.e. Lascaux-cosmopolitan bacteria and fungi, dark zone-specific bacteria present at all locations, and dark zone-specific bacteria and fungi present at certain locations only. This probably explains why dark zones could form in various areas of the cave and suggests that the spread of these alterations might continue according to the area of distribution of key widespread taxa.

Project description:BackgroundSequencing of the human genome has identified numerous chromosome copy number additions and subtractions that include stable partial gene duplications and pseudogenes that when not properly annotated can interfere with genetic analysis. As an example of this problem, an evolutionary chromosome event in the primate ancestral chromosome 18 produced a partial duplication and inversion of rho-associated protein kinase 1 (ROCK1 -18q11.1, 33 exons) in the subtelomeric region of the p arm of chromosome 18 detectable only in humans. ROCK1 and the partial gene copy, which the gene databases also currently call ROCK1, include non-unique single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs).ResultsHere, we characterize this partial gene copy of the human ROCK1, termed Little ROCK, located at 18p11.32. Little ROCK includes five exons, four of which share 99% identity with the terminal four exons of ROCK1 and one of which is unique to Little ROCK. In human while ROCK1 is expressed in many organs, Little ROCK expression is restricted to vascular smooth muscle cell (VSMC) lines and organs rich in smooth muscle. The single nucleotide polymorphism database (dbSNP) lists multiple variants contained in the region shared by ROCK1 and Little ROCK. Using gene and cDNA sequence analysis we clarified the origins of two non-synonymous SNPs annotated in the genome to actually be fixed differences between the ROCK1 and the Little ROCK gene sequences. Two additional coding SNPs were valid polymorphisms selectively within Little ROCK. Little ROCK-Green Fluorescent fusion proteins were highly unstable and degraded by the ubiquitin-proteasome system in vitro.ConclusionIn this report we have characterized Little ROCK (ROCK1P1), a human expressed pseudogene derived from partial duplication of ROCK1. The large number of pseudogenes in the human genome creates significant genetic diversity. Our findings emphasize the importance of taking into consideration pseudogenes in all candidate gene and genome-wide association studies, as well as the need for complete annotation of human pseudogenome.

Dataset Information

Dark stains on rock surfaces in Driny Cave (Little Carpathian Mountains, Slovakia).

Publications

Dark stains on rock surfaces in Driny Cave (Little Carpathian Mountains, Slovakia).

Similar Datasets

OmicsDI is part of the ELIXIR infrastructure

Tweets