Near-Bottom Hypoxia Impacts Dynamics of Bacterioplankton Assemblage throughout Water Column of the Gulf of Finland (Baltic Sea)

PLoS One. 2016 May 23;11(5):e0156147. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0156147. eCollection 2016.

Abstract

Over the past century the spread of hypoxia in the Baltic Sea has been drastic, reaching its 'arm' into the easternmost sub-basin, the Gulf of Finland. The hydrographic and climatological properties of the gulf offer a broad suite of discrete niches for microbial communities. The current study explores spatiotemporal dynamics of bacterioplankton community in the Gulf of Finland using massively parallel sequencing of 16S rRNA fragments obtained by amplifying community DNA from spring to autumn period. The presence of redoxcline and drastic seasonal changes make spatiotemporal dynamics of bacterioplankton community composition (BCC) and abundances in such estuary remarkably complex. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study that analyses spatiotemporal dynamics of BCC in relation to phytoplankton bloom throughout the water column (and redoxcline), not only at the surface layer. We conclude that capability to survive (or benefit from) shifts between oxic and hypoxic conditions is vital adaptation for bacteria to thrive in such environments. Our results contribute to the understanding of emerging patterns in BCCs that occupy hydrographically similar estuaries dispersed all over the world, and we suggest the presence of a global redox- and salinity-driven metacommunity. These results have important implications for understanding long-term ecological and biogeochemical impacts of hypoxia expansion in the Baltic Sea (and similar ecosystems), as well as global biogeography of bacteria specialized inhabiting similar ecosystems.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Aquatic Organisms / metabolism*
  • Bacteria* / genetics
  • Bacteria* / growth & development
  • Bacteria* / metabolism
  • Baltic States
  • Biota* / genetics
  • Ecosystem
  • Estuaries
  • Finland
  • Hydrostatic Pressure
  • Hypoxia* / microbiology
  • Oxidation-Reduction
  • Phytoplankton
  • Plankton* / genetics
  • Plankton* / growth & development
  • Plankton* / metabolism
  • RNA, Ribosomal, 16S / analysis
  • RNA, Ribosomal, 16S / genetics
  • Seawater / chemistry
  • Seawater / microbiology*

Substances

  • RNA, Ribosomal, 16S

Grants and funding

The present work was supported by institutional research funding IUT (IUT19-6) of the Estonian Ministry of Education and Research and by the Estonian Science Foundation grants no. 8930 and 9023. Jaak Simm is funded by Research Council KU Leuven (GOA/10/09 MaNet, CoE PFV/10/016 SymBioSys) and PhD/Postdoc grants from Flemish Government (IOF, Hercules Stitching, iMinds Medical Information Technologies SBO 2014), by Intel, Janssen Pharmaceutica and the Institute for the Promotion of Innovation through Science and Technology in Flanders (IWT). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.