INVESTIGADORES
MARCOS magali Silvina
congresos y reuniones científicas
Título:
Culture-independent and metagenomic analyses of hydrocarbon-degrading bacteria from polluted subantarctic marine sediments
Autor/es:
GUIBERT, L.M.; LOVISO, C.L.; SARANGO, S.; MARCOS, M.S.; LOZADA, M.; DIONISI, H.M
Lugar:
Porto Alegre
Reunión:
Congreso; VI Simpósio de Microbiología Aplicada; 2012
Resumen:
Marine microorganisms drive globally important biogeochemical cycles and have a major role determining the environmental quality of marine ecosystems. Despite their global importance, the underlying mechanisms shaping the microbial communities and the effect of human-induced changes on microbial services are poorly understood. Sediments, one of the most biodiverse environments on Earth, harbor complex bacterial communities that play major roles in the cycling of organic matter. Among organic pollutants, hydrocarbons are major factors affecting coastal sediment environments. Sediments act as a major sinks of hydrocarbons due to the hydrophobic nature of these compounds. Hydrocarbon pollution is of particular concern, as it can be highly persistent in cold regions. At the Environmental Microbiology Lab of the Centro Nacional Patagónico in Puerto Madryn, Argentina, we are currently using several culture-independent approaches to gain insights into microbial community structure and function, particularly hydrocarbon biodegradation potential, in coastal marine environments of Patagonia. Of our sampling sites along the Patagonian coast, one of the most deeply characterized is the chronicallypolluted Subantarctic environment of Ushuaia Bay, Tierra del Fuego, Argentina. The goal of this study was to characterize intertidal sediment bacteria that can be associated with hydrocarbon-degradation, as well as their catabolic genes and pathways, by means of culture-independent and metagenomic approaches. These strategies included large-scale sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene using DNA extracted from sediment microbial communities, cloning and sequencing of hydrocarbon degradation genes (oxygenases) and the construction and screening of a metagenomic fosmid library.