Dataset Information

Stream benthic macroinvertebrates abundances over a 6-year monitoring period of an Italian glacier-fed stream.

ABSTRACT: Background:Aquatic macroinvertebrates are widely used as bioindicators for water quality assessments involving different kinds of disruptive factors, such as hydrological regime variations or pollutant spills. Recently, they demonstrated to be effective in monitoring effects of climate change in alpine stream and rivers. Indeed, since the distribution of macroinvertebrates in glacier-fed streams has been succesfully investigated and described by several authors, the discrepancy in presence/absence and quantity of specific taxa from the established models may represent an early warning of the effects of climatic changes occurring in alpine riverine ecosystems. New information:Together with the present paper, we provide a dataset covering a period of 6 years (2010-2015) sampling of aquatic macroinvertebrates along a longitudinal transect of a glacier-fed stream located in the Italian Alps, inside the International Long Term Ecological Research (ILTER) macrosite of Matsch|Mazia (IT-25). Data were collected during the glacial melt period (April - September), with monthly resolution. Owing to the unique temporal resolution of the dataset, we aim to produce a reliable tool (i.e. reference point) for future ecological assessment on the same stream, but also to similar streams worldwide.

SUBMITTER: Scotti A

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6416225 | biostudies-literature | 2019

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Stream benthic macroinvertebrates abundances over a 6-year monitoring period of an Italian glacier-fed stream.

Scotti Alberto A Tappeiner Ulrike U Bottarin Roberta R

Biodiversity data journal 20190306

<h4>Background</h4>Aquatic macroinvertebrates are widely used as bioindicators for water quality assessments involving different kinds of disruptive factors, such as hydrological regime variations or pollutant spills. Recently, they demonstrated to be effective in monitoring effects of climate change in alpine stream and rivers. Indeed, since the distribution of macroinvertebrates in glacier-fed streams has been succesfully investigated and described by several authors, the discrepancy in presen ...[more]

PMID: 30872941

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Project description:Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a universal phenomenon the origins of which lay in natural ecological interactions such as competition within niches, within and between micro- to higher-order organisms. To study these phenomena, it is crucial to examine the origins of AMR in pristine environments, i.e., limited anthropogenic influences. In this context, epilithic biofilms residing in glacier-fed streams (GFSs) are an excellent model system to study diverse, intra- and inter-domain, ecological crosstalk. We assessed the resistomes of epilithic biofilms from GFSs across the Southern Alps (New Zealand) and the Caucasus (Russia) and observed that both bacteria and eukaryotes encoded twenty-nine distinct AMR categories. Of these, beta-lactam, aminoglycoside, and multidrug resistance were both abundant and taxonomically distributed in most of the bacterial and eukaryotic phyla. AMR-encoding phyla included Bacteroidota and Proteobacteria among the bacteria, alongside Ochrophyta (algae) among the eukaryotes. Additionally, biosynthetic gene clusters (BGCs) involved in the production of antibacterial compounds were identified across all phyla in the epilithic biofilms. Furthermore, we found that several bacterial genera (Flavobacterium, Polaromonas, Superphylum Patescibacteria) encode both atimicrobial resistance genes (ARGs) and BGCs within close proximity of each other, demonstrating their capacity to simultaneously influence and compete within the microbial community. Our findings help unravel how naturally occurring BGCs and AMR contribute to the epilithic biofilms mode of life in GFSs. Additionally, we report that eukaryotes may serve as AMR reservoirs owing to their potential for encoding ARGs. Importantly, these observations may be generalizable and potentially extended to other environments that may be more or less impacted by human activity. IMPORTANCE Antimicrobial resistance is an omnipresent phenomenon in the anthropogenically influenced ecosystems. However, its role in shaping microbial community dynamics in pristine environments is relatively unknown. Using metagenomics, we report the presence of antimicrobial resistance genes and their associated pathways in epilithic biofilms within glacier-fed streams. Importantly, we observe biosynthetic gene clusters associated with antimicrobial resistance in both pro- and eukaryotes in these biofilms. Understanding the role of resistance in the context of this pristine environment and complex biodiversity may shed light on previously uncharacterized mechanisms of cross-domain interactions.

Project description:Microbial life in glacier-fed streams (GFSs) is dominated by benthic biofilms which fulfill critical ecosystem processes. However, it remains unclear how the bacterial communities of these biofilms assemble in stream ecosystems characterized by rapid turnover of benthic habitats and high suspended sediment loads. Using16S rRNA gene amplicon sequence data collected from 54 GFSs across the Himalayas, European Alps, and Scandinavian Mountains, we found that benthic biofilms harbor bacterial communities that are distinct from the bacterial assemblages suspended in the streamwater. Our data showed a decrease in species richness in the benthic biofilms compared to the bacterial cells putatively free-living in the water. The benthic biofilms also differed from the suspended water fractions in terms of community composition. Differential abundance analyses highlighted bacterial families that were specific to the benthic biofilms and the suspended assemblages. Notably, source-sink models suggested that the benthic biofilm communities are not simply a subset of the suspended assemblages. Rather, we found evidence that deterministic processes (e.g., species sorting) shape the benthic biofilm communities. This is unexpected given the high vertical mixing of water and contained bacterial cells in GFSs and further highlights the benthic biofilm mode of life as one that is determined through niche-related processes. Our findings therefore reveal a "native" benthic biofilm community in an ecosystem that is currently threatened by climate-induced glacier shrinkage. IMPORTANCE Benthic biofilms represent the dominant form of life in glacier-fed streams. However, it remains unclear how bacterial communities within these biofilms assemble. Our findings from glacier-fed streams from three major mountain ranges across the Himalayas, the European Alps and the Scandinavian Mountains reveal a bacterial community associated with benthic biofilms that is distinct from the assemblage in the overlying streamwater. Our analyses suggest that selection is the underlying process to this differentiation. This is unexpected given that bacterial cells that are freely living or attached to the abundant sediment particles suspended in the water continuously mix with the benthic biofilms. The latter colonize loose sediments that are subject to high turnover owing to the forces of the water flow. Our research unravels the existence of a microbiome specific to benthic biofilms in glacier-fed streams, now under major threats due to global warming.

Dataset Information

Stream benthic macroinvertebrates abundances over a 6-year monitoring period of an Italian glacier-fed stream.

Publications

Stream benthic macroinvertebrates abundances over a 6-year monitoring period of an Italian glacier-fed stream.

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