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Microorganisms
Special Issues
Ice and Snow Microbiology
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Ice and Snow Microbiology

A special issue of Microorganisms (ISSN 2076-2607). This special issue belongs to the section "Environmental Microbiology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 December 2020) | Viewed by 26228

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Catherine Larose

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Ecole Centrale de Lyon, Ecully, France
Interests: cryosphere microbiology; microbial ecology; colonization; microbes and climate change; microbial community structure; sub-zero metabolism; biogeochemical cycling; frozen environments
Dr. Lorrie Maccario

E-Mail
Guest Editor
Section of Microbiology, Department of Biology, Copenhagen University , Universitetsparken 15, Building 1, DK 2200 Copenhagen, Denmark
Interests: microbial ecology; polar and cryosphere microbiology

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Over the past decade, our view on cryosphere ecosystems has evolved drastically. What was once considered as inhospitable is now recognized as a diverse ecosystem with multiple niches for microbial communities. These communities are dynamic, complex and provide excellent models for our understanding of evolution, adaptation, function and community interactions. Much remains to be explored and in order to evaluate the consequences of climate-mediated alterations and the potential loss of microbes from the Earth’s cryosphere, ice and snow ecosystems need to be fully characterized.

This Special Issue will publish papers that address: (1) paradigms and future research on cryosphere microorganisms; (2) colonization, selection and adaptation of microbial communities; (3) interactions among microbial communities and the impact on ecosystem functioning (this includes viruses); (4) functional analyses of microbial communities in relation to changes in the environment; (5) the role of microorganisms in transforming their environment and feedback on cryosphere climate regulation; and (6) modeling of microbial community structure, interactions and function.

Dr. Catherine Larose
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

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Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Microorganisms is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • cryosphere microbiology
  • sub-zero life
  • climate change
  • microbe interactions
  • biogeochemisty

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Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

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16 pages, 285 KiB  
Article
Diversity, Distribution, and Ecology of Fungi in the Seasonal Snow of Antarctica
by Graciéle C.A. de Menezes, Soraya S. Amorim, Vívian N. Gonçalves, Valéria M. Godinho, Jefferson C. Simões, Carlos A. Rosa and Luiz H. Rosa
Microorganisms 2019, 7(10), 445; https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms7100445 - 12 Oct 2019
Cited by 43 | Viewed by 5831
Abstract
We characterized the fungal community found in the winter seasonal snow of the Antarctic Peninsula. From the samples of snow, 234 fungal isolates were obtained and could be assigned to 51 taxa of 26 genera. Eleven yeast species displayed the highest densities; among [...] Read more.
We characterized the fungal community found in the winter seasonal snow of the Antarctic Peninsula. From the samples of snow, 234 fungal isolates were obtained and could be assigned to 51 taxa of 26 genera. Eleven yeast species displayed the highest densities; among them, Phenoliferia glacialis showed a broad distribution and was detected at all sites that were sampled. Fungi known to be opportunistic in humans were subjected to antifungal minimal inhibition concentration. Debaryomyces hansenii, Rhodotorula mucilaginosa, Penicillium chrysogenum, Penicillium sp. 3, and Penicillium sp. 4 displayed resistance against the antifungals benomyl and fluconazole. Among them, R. mucilaginosa isolates were able to grow at 37 °C. Our results show that the winter seasonal snow of the Antarctic Peninsula contains a diverse fungal community dominated by cosmopolitan ubiquitous fungal species previously found in tropical, temperate, and polar ecosystems. The high densities of these cosmopolitan fungi suggest that they could be present in the air that arrives at the Antarctic Peninsula by air masses from outside Antarctica. Additionally, we detected environmental fungal isolates that were resistant to agricultural and clinical antifungals and able to grow at 37 °C. Further studies will be needed to characterize the virulence potential of these fungi in humans and animals. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Ice and Snow Microbiology)
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22 pages, 3946 KiB  
Article
Ecophysiology of Chloromonas hindakii sp. nov. (Chlorophyceae), Causing Orange Snow Blooms at Different Light Conditions
by Lenka Procházková, Daniel Remias, Tomáš Řezanka and Linda Nedbalová
Microorganisms 2019, 7(10), 434; https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms7100434 - 10 Oct 2019
Cited by 26 | Viewed by 4469
Abstract
Slowly melting snowfields in mountain and polar regions are habitats of snow algae. Orange blooms were sampled in three European mountain ranges. The cysts within the blooms morphologically resembled those of Chloromonas nivalis (Chlorophyceae). Molecular and morphological traits of field and cultured material [...] Read more.
Slowly melting snowfields in mountain and polar regions are habitats of snow algae. Orange blooms were sampled in three European mountain ranges. The cysts within the blooms morphologically resembled those of Chloromonas nivalis (Chlorophyceae). Molecular and morphological traits of field and cultured material showed that they represent a new species, Chloromonas hindakii sp. nov. The performance of photosystem II was evaluated by fluorometry. For the first time for a snow alga, cyst stages collected in a wide altitudinal gradient and the laboratory strain were compared. The results showed that cysts were well adapted to medium and high irradiance. Cysts from high light conditions became photoinhibited at three times higher irradiances (600 µmol photons m−2 s−1) than those from low light conditions, or likewise compared to cultured flagellates. Therefore, the physiologic light preferences reflected the conditions in the original habitat. A high content of polyunsaturated fatty acids (about 60% of total lipids) and the accumulation of the carotenoid astaxanthin was observed. They are regarded as adaptations to cope with extreme environmental conditions of snow that include low temperatures, freeze-thaw cycles, and variable light intensity. The intraspecific ability of adaptation of the photosynthetic apparatus to different irradiance regimes seems to be advantageous for thriving in different snow habitats. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Ice and Snow Microbiology)
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12 pages, 3053 KiB  
Article
Genomic Insights of Dyadobacter tibetensis Y620-1 Isolated from Ice Core Reveal Genomic Features for Succession in Glacier Environment
by Liang Shen, Yongqin Liu, Ninglian Wang and Namita Paudel Adhikari
Microorganisms 2019, 7(7), 211; https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms7070211 - 22 Jul 2019
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 4329
Abstract
Glaciers have been recognized as biomes, dominated by microbial life. Many novel species have been isolated from glacier ecosystems, and their physiological features are well characterized. However, genomic features of bacteria isolated from the deep ice core are poorly understood. In this study, [...] Read more.
Glaciers have been recognized as biomes, dominated by microbial life. Many novel species have been isolated from glacier ecosystems, and their physiological features are well characterized. However, genomic features of bacteria isolated from the deep ice core are poorly understood. In this study, we performed a comparative genomic analysis to uncover the genomic features of strain Dyadobacter tibetensis Y620-1 isolated from a 59 m depth of the ice core drilled from a Tibetan Plateau glacier. Strain D. tibetensis Y620-1 had the smallest genome among the 12 cultured Dyadobacter strains, relatively low GC content, and was placed at the root position of the phylogenomic tree. The gene family based on a nonmetric multidimensional scaling (NMDS) plot revealed a clear separation of strain D. tibetensis Y620-1 from the reference strains. The genome of the deep ice core isolated strain contained the highest percentage of new genes. The definitive difference is that all genes required for the serine-glyoxylate cycle in one-carbon metabolism were only found in strain D. tibetensis Y620-1, but not in any of the reference strains. The placement of strain D. tibetensis Y620-1 in the root of the phylogenomic tree suggests that these new genes and functions are of ancient origin. All of these genomic features may contribute to the survival of D. tibetensis Y620-1 in the glacier. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Ice and Snow Microbiology)
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16 pages, 3007 KiB  
Article
The Biodiversity and Geochemistry of Cryoconite Holes in Queen Maud Land, East Antarctica
by Stefanie Lutz, Lori A. Ziolkowski and Liane G. Benning
Microorganisms 2019, 7(6), 160; https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms7060160 - 1 Jun 2019
Cited by 28 | Viewed by 6890
Abstract
Cryoconite holes are oases of microbial diversity on ice surfaces. In contrast to the Arctic, where during the summer most cryoconite holes are ‘open’, in Continental Antarctica they are most often ‘lidded’ or completely frozen year-round. Thus, they represent ideal systems for the [...] Read more.
Cryoconite holes are oases of microbial diversity on ice surfaces. In contrast to the Arctic, where during the summer most cryoconite holes are ‘open’, in Continental Antarctica they are most often ‘lidded’ or completely frozen year-round. Thus, they represent ideal systems for the study of microbial community assemblies as well as carbon accumulation, since individual cryoconite holes can be isolated from external inputs for years. Here, we use high-throughput sequencing of the 16S and 18S rRNA genes to describe the bacterial and eukaryotic community compositions in cryoconite holes and surrounding lake, snow, soil and rock samples in Queen Maud Land. We cross correlate our findings with a broad range of geochemical data including for the first time 13C and 14C analyses of Antarctic cryoconites. We show that the geographic location has a larger effect on the distribution of the bacterial community compared to the eukaryotic community. Cryoconite holes are distinct from the local soils in both 13C and 14C and their isotopic composition is different from similar samples from the Arctic. Carbon contents were generally low (≤0.2%) and older (6–10 ky) than the surrounding soils, suggesting that the cryoconite holes are much more isolated from the atmosphere than the soils. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Ice and Snow Microbiology)
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8 pages, 644 KiB  
Opinion
Should We Not Further Study the Impact of Microbial Activity on Snow and Polar Atmospheric Chemistry?
by Florent Domine
Microorganisms 2019, 7(8), 260; https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms7080260 - 14 Aug 2019
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 3812
Abstract
Since 1999, atmospheric and snow chemists have shown that snow is a very active photochemical reactor that releases reactive gaseous species to the atmosphere including nitrogen oxides, hydrocarbons, aldehydes, halocarbons, carboxylic acids and mercury. Snow photochemistry therefore affects the formation of ozone, a [...] Read more.
Since 1999, atmospheric and snow chemists have shown that snow is a very active photochemical reactor that releases reactive gaseous species to the atmosphere including nitrogen oxides, hydrocarbons, aldehydes, halocarbons, carboxylic acids and mercury. Snow photochemistry therefore affects the formation of ozone, a potent greenhouse gas, and of aerosols, which affect the radiative budget of the planet and, therefore, its climate. In parallel, microbiologists have investigated microbes in snow, identified and quantified species, and sometimes discussed their nutrient supplies and metabolism, implicitly acknowledging that microbes could modify snow chemical composition. However, it is only in the past 10 years that a small number of studies have revealed that microbial activity in cold snow (< 0 °C, in the absence of significant amounts of liquid water) could lead to the release of nitrogen oxides, halocarbons, and mercury into the atmosphere. I argue here that microbes may have a significant effect on snow and atmospheric composition, especially during the polar night when photochemistry is shut off. Collaborative studies between microbiologists and snow and atmospheric chemists are needed to investigate this little-explored field. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Ice and Snow Microbiology)
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