Open AccessDiversity of halophilic archaea in the crystallizers of an Adriatic solar saltern
Author(s) -
Pašić Lejla,
Bartual Sergio Galán,
Ulrih Nataša Poklar,
Grabnar Miklavž,
Velikonja Blagajana Herzog
Publication year - 2005
Publication title -
fems microbiology ecology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.377
H-Index - 155
eISSN - 1574-6941
pISSN - 0168-6496
DOI - 10.1016/j.femsec.2005.06.004
Subject(s) - haloarchaea , halophile , biology , archaea , halobacteriaceae , haloferax volcanii , halomonas , 16s ribosomal rna , extremophile , phylotype , bacteriorhodopsin , extreme environment , gene , genetics , halobacterium salinarum , bacteria , microorganism , membrane
Haloarchaeal diversity in the crystallizers of Adriatic Sečovlje salterns was investigated using gene fragments encoding 16S rRNA and bacteriorhodopsin as molecular markers. Screening of 180 clones from five gene libraries constructed for each gene targeted revealed 15 different 16S rRNA and 10 different bacteriorhodopsin phylotypes, indicating higher haloarchaeal diversity than previously reported in such hypersaline environments. Furthermore, results of rarefaction analysis indicated that analysis of an increasing number of clones would have revealed additional diversity. Finally, most sequences from the crystallizers grouped within the Halorubrum branch, whereas square‐shaped ‘ Haloquadratum ’ relatives, repeatedly reported to dominate crystallizer communities, were rare. Presence of such special and diverse haloarchaeal community could be attributed to the Sečovlje salterns rare continuous short‐cycling salt production mechanism.