Microbial diversity in two cold springs on the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau

The microbial diversity in Wuli Area, Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau was investigated using 16S rRNA gene phylogenetic analyses. A total of 117 bacterial and 66 archaeal 16S rRNA gene clones were obtained from the Wuli cold springs. The bacterial clones could be classified into Proteobacteria, Acidobacteria, Deinococci, Sphingobacteria, Flavobacteria, Nitrospirae, Actinobacteria, Gemmatimonadetes, and unclassified-bacteria; and the archaeal clones could be classified into Crenarchaeota and Thaumarchaeota. Among the major groups, Proteobacteria and Crenarchaeota were dominant in the bacterial and archaeal 16S rRNA gene clone libraries, respectively. The clone sequences obtained in Wuli cold springs were closely related to those from cold habitats, such as snow/ice/soils on high mountains or at high latitude. Especially, the microbial community composition of Wuli Area was more similar to that in Tibetan glaciers than cold environments of other locations. The data presented in this study have implications for a better understanding of microbial diversity in cold springs on the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau.

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► Microbial diversity in Wuli cold springs (WCS) on the Tibetan Plateau identified.
► Microbial community (MC) related to those from other cold habitats.
► MC similar to those in Tibetan glaciers than to other low-T habitats.