Comparing Sediment Microbiomes in Contaminated and Pristine Wetlands along the Coast of Yucatan

Abstract

Microbial communities are important players in coastal sediments for the functioning of the ecosystem and the regulation of biogeochemical cycles. They also have great potential as indicators of environmental perturbations. To assess how microbial communities can change their composition and abundance along coastal areas, we analyzed the composition of the microbiome of four locations of the Yucatan Peninsula using 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing. To this end, sediment from two conserved (El Palmar and Bocas de Dzilam) and two contaminated locations (Sisal and Progreso) from the coast northwest of the Yucatan Peninsula in three different years, 2017, 2018 and 2019, were sampled and sequenced. Microbial communities were found to be significantly different between the locations. The most noticeable difference was the greater relative abundance of Planctomycetes present at the conserved locations, versus FBP group found with greater abundance in contaminated locations. In addition to the difference in taxonomic groups composition, there is a variation in evenness, which results in the samples of Bocas de Dzilam and Progreso being grouped separately from those obtained in El Palmar and Sisal. We also carry out the functional prediction of the metabolic capacities of the microbial communities analyzed, identifying differences in their functional profiles. Our results indicate that landscape of the coastal microbiome of Yucatan sediment shows changes along the coastline, reflecting the constant dynamics of coastal environments and their impact on microbial diversity.

Geographical distribution of mobile genetic elements in microbial communities along the Yucatan coast

“…These findings are consistent with the idea that the abundance and distribution of bacterial phyla and species, along with their MGEs, can fluctuate across different geographical locations. This phenomenom was already demonstrated for the bacterial landscape of the Yucatan coast [ 54 ], as well as for the ARGs present in this same area [ 28 ]. The observed variation highlights the diverse dynamics and genetic exchange processes taking place within the microbial communities of these sites, facilitating the transfer of genetic information among individuals and populations.…”

“…Notably, the higher prevalence of the Proteobacteria phylum in Palmar and Sisal has been previously documented by Navarrete-Euan et al . (2021) [ 54 ]. In Palmar and Sisal, a notable proportion of the identified species containing MGEs were pathogenic bacteria.…”

Metabarcoding of the bacterial assemblages associated with Toxopneustes roseus in the Mexican Central Pacific

“…Punto B also showed dominance of Prolixibacteraceae and Sphingobacteriaceae during the second year of sampling. Prolixibacteraceae has been reported as the second most abundant family in wetlands of contaminated sites due to their proximity to coastal urban developments [67]. While Sphingobacteriaceae includes members resistant to physical disturbance and heavy metals [68][69][70].…”

Metabarcoding the Bacterial Assemblages Associated with Toxopneustes roseus in the Mexican Central Pacific

“…Punto B also showed a dominance of Prolixibacteraceae and Sphingobacteriaceae during the second year of sampling. Prolixibacteraceae has been reported as the second most abundant family in wetlands of contaminated sites due to its proximity to coastal urban developments [ 67 ], while Sphingobacteriaceae includes members resistant to physical disturbance and heavy metals [ 68 , 69 , 70 ]. In addition, Flavobacteriaceae and Desulfovibrionaceae presented high relative values in PB and BCH from 2018 to 2019.…”