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Illuminating the functional rare biosphere of the Greenland Ice Sheet’s Dark Zone

Jarishma K. Gokul, Karen A. Cameron, Tristram D.L. Irvine-Fynn, Joseph M. Cook, Alun Hubbard, Marek Stibal, Matt Hegarty, View ORCID ProfileLuis A.J. Mur, Arwyn Edwards
doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/664334
Jarishma K. Gokul
1Institute of Biological, Rural and Environmental Sciences, Aberystwyth University, Aberystwyth, UK.
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Karen A. Cameron
1Institute of Biological, Rural and Environmental Sciences, Aberystwyth University, Aberystwyth, UK.
2Department of Geochemistry, Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland, 1350 Copenhagen, Denmark.
3Center for Permafrost, University of Copenhagen, 1350 Copenhagen, Denmark.
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Tristram D.L. Irvine-Fynn
4Centre for Glaciology, Department of Geography and Earth Sciences, Aberystwyth University, Aberystwyth, UK.
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Joseph M. Cook
1Institute of Biological, Rural and Environmental Sciences, Aberystwyth University, Aberystwyth, UK.
5Department of Geography, University of Sheffield, Winter Street, Sheffield, UK.
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Alun Hubbard
4Centre for Glaciology, Department of Geography and Earth Sciences, Aberystwyth University, Aberystwyth, UK.
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Marek Stibal
6Department of Ecology, Faculty of Science, Charles University, Prague, Czechia.
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Matt Hegarty
1Institute of Biological, Rural and Environmental Sciences, Aberystwyth University, Aberystwyth, UK.
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Luis A.J. Mur
1Institute of Biological, Rural and Environmental Sciences, Aberystwyth University, Aberystwyth, UK.
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  • ORCID record for Luis A.J. Mur
Arwyn Edwards
1Institute of Biological, Rural and Environmental Sciences, Aberystwyth University, Aberystwyth, UK.
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  • For correspondence: aye@aber.ac.uk
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Abstract

The Dark Zone of the western Greenland Ice Sheet is the most expansive region of contiguous bare terrestrial ice in the Northern Hemisphere. Microbial processes within the Dark Zone play an important role in driving extensive albedo reduction and amplified melting, yet the composition and function of those consortia have not been fully identified. Here we present the first results from joint 16S rRNA gene and 16S rRNA (cDNA) analysis for the comparison of input (snow), storage (cryoconite), and output (supraglacial stream water) habitats across the Dark Zone over the melt season. Our analysis reveals that all three Dark Zone communities are characterized by a preponderance of rare taxa exhibiting high protein synthesis potential (PSP). Furthermore, taxa with high PSP represent highly connected “bottlenecks” within community structure, consistent with roles as metabolic hubs within their communities. Finally, the detection of low abundance-high PSP taxa affiliated with Methylobacterium within snow and stream water indicates a potential role for Methylobacterium in the carbon cycle of Greenlandic snowpacks, and importantly, the export of potentially active methylotrophs to the bed of the Greenland Ice Sheet. By comparing the dynamics of bulk and potentially active microbial communities in the Dark Zone of the Greenland Ice Sheet our study provides insight into the mechanisms and impacts of the microbial colonization of this critical region of our melting planet.

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Posted June 10, 2019.
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Illuminating the functional rare biosphere of the Greenland Ice Sheet’s Dark Zone
Jarishma K. Gokul, Karen A. Cameron, Tristram D.L. Irvine-Fynn, Joseph M. Cook, Alun Hubbard, Marek Stibal, Matt Hegarty, Luis A.J. Mur, Arwyn Edwards
bioRxiv 664334; doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/664334
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Illuminating the functional rare biosphere of the Greenland Ice Sheet’s Dark Zone
Jarishma K. Gokul, Karen A. Cameron, Tristram D.L. Irvine-Fynn, Joseph M. Cook, Alun Hubbard, Marek Stibal, Matt Hegarty, Luis A.J. Mur, Arwyn Edwards
bioRxiv 664334; doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/664334

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