Multi‐model assessment of hydrological and environmental impacts on streambed microbes in Mediterranean catchments

Gionchetta, Giulia; Artigas, Joan; Arias-Real, Rebeca; Oliva, Francesc; Romaní, Anna M.

doi:10.1111/1462-2920.14990

Cited by 16 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 75 publications

(120 reference statements)

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“…Specifically, the carbon metabolic activity of the biofilm stabilized at the control level at the end of rewetting after the short-term drought, while it did not return to the control level after the long-term drought (Figure d,g). This result suggested that prolonged drought slowed the recovery rate of the biofilm carbon metabolism, leading to irreversible effects after rewetting. − …”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of the Desiccation Duration on the Dynamic Responses of Biofilm Metabolic Activities to Rewetting

Miao

Adyel

et al. 2023

Environ. Sci. Technol.

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Global climate changes have increased the duration and frequency of river flow interruption, affecting the physical and community structure of benthic biofilms. However, the dynamic responses of biofilm metabolism during the dry−wet transition remain poorly understood. Herein, the dynamic changes in biofilm metabolic activities were investigated through mesocosm experiments under short-term (25 day) and longterm drought (90 day), followed by a 20 day rewetting. The biofilm ecosystem metabolism, as measured by gross primary production and community respiration, was significantly inhibited and turned heterotrophic during the desiccation phase and then recovered, becoming autotrophic during the rewetting period regardless of the desiccation periods due to the high resilience of the autotrophic community. However, long-term drought decreased the recovery rate of the ecosystem metabolism and also caused irreparable damage to the biofilm carbon metabolism, measured using Biolog Eco Plates. Specifically, the recovery of the total carbon metabolic activity is related to the specific carbon source utilized by biofilm microorganisms, such as polymers, carbohydrates, and carboxylic acids. However, the divergent changes of amino acids caused the failure of the total carbon metabolism in long-term drought treatments to recover to the control level even after 20 days of rewetting. This research provides direct evidence that the increased duration of non-flow periods affects biofilm-mediated carbon biogeochemical processes.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of the Desiccation Duration on the Dynamic Responses of Biofilm Metabolic Activities to Rewetting

Miao

Adyel

et al. 2023

Environ. Sci. Technol.

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“…Litchman & Klausmeier, 2008), others are difficult to measure or cannot be attributed to a single cell (e.g., exo-enzymatic activity and photosynthetic pigment composition; Gionchetta et al, 2020;Colls et al, 2021).…”

Section: Historical Use Of Trait Terms In Freshwater Researchmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Second, some microorganisms can acquire genes from other species, for example, by horizontal gene transfer (Abby et al., 2012; Polz et al., 2013), limiting the capacity to relate inherited cell traits to fitness. Third, whereas some functional traits can be measured at the cellular level (e.g., cell size, shape, and cell wall structure; Litchman & Klausmeier, 2008), others are difficult to measure or cannot be attributed to a single cell (e.g., exo‐enzymatic activity and photosynthetic pigment composition; Gionchetta et al., 2020; Colls et al., 2021).…”

Section: Trait Definitions Terms and Limitations: A Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In addition, aggregated microorganisms in colonies and biofilms provide functions in a similar way as aggregations of body cells (e.g., organs) within individual multicellular organisms, suggesting that the choice of an individual scale of trait measurement can be subjective and not sufficiently inclusive. As such, measures of colony or community‐level traits encompassing microorganism aggregations represent an alternative way to understand environmental responses and effects on ecosystem functioning (Colls et al., 2021; Gionchetta et al., 2020; Graça et al., 2022).…”

Section: Recommendations For the Use Of Trait Terminology In Freshwat...mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Use of trait concepts and terminology in freshwater ecology: Historic, current, and future perspectives

Gutiérrez‐Cánovas,

Stubbington,

von Schiller

et al. 2024

Freshwater Biology

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Trait‐based approaches have received increasing interest among freshwater scientists given their capacity to predict community structure and biodiversity effects on ecosystem functioning. However, the inconsistent development and use of trait concepts and terms across freshwater scientific disciplines may have limited realisation of the potential of traits. Here, we reviewed trait definitions and terms use to provide recommendations for their consistent application in freshwater science. To do so, we first reviewed literature to identify established trait definitions, historical and current use of trait terms and challenges restricting the application of trait‐based approaches in freshwater science. Next, we surveyed 414 freshwater researchers from 54 countries to assess variability in the current use of trait terminology in relation to respondent characteristics (i.e., professional experience, geographical region, research discipline, and focal freshwater ecosystem, biotic group, and ecosystem function). Our literature review identified two well‐established trait definitions, which emphasise individual phenotypic characteristics that influence either eco‐evolutionary aspects (i.e., organism performance and fitness) or ecosystem dynamics and processes (i.e., responses to the environment and/or effects on ecosystem functioning). Publications used a range of trait‐related terms and their frequency of use varied among scientific fields. The term functional trait dominated fields such as biodiversity conservation, environmental sciences and ecology, plant sciences and microbiology. In contrast, the terms biological trait, functional trait, and species trait were used with similar frequencies in fields such as entomology, fisheries, marine and freshwater biology, and zoology. We also found that well‐established trait definitions are difficult to apply to freshwater unicellular organisms, colonial multicellular organisms, genomic information, and cultural traits. Our survey revealed highly inconsistent use of trait terms among freshwater researchers. Terms including biological trait, functional trait, structural measure, and ecosystem function were commonly used to describe the same traits or functions. Variability in the use of terms was generally explained by research discipline, geographical region, and focal biotic group and ecosystem functions. We propose making the trait concept flexible enough to be applicable to all freshwater biota and their characteristics, while keeping and integrating links to eco‐evolutionary and ecosystem aspects. Specifically, our new definition expands the established functional trait definition by considering also supra‐individual scales of trait measurement (colonial‐ or community‐mean traits), genotypic traits (e.g., functional gene markers of enzymes) and cultural traits (e.g., feeding behaviours, communication skills). To reduce terminological ambiguity, we also recommend that researchers define trait terms, prioritising the use of functional trait as an overarching term over alternative terms (e.g., biological trait), and restricting specific terms (e.g., morphological trait) to situations in which such precision is desirable. The findings of our integrative study could help to improve terminological consistency across freshwater disciplines and to better recognise the potential of traits to elucidate the mechanisms behind ecological patterns.

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“…During these phases, the biological stress caused by desiccation is often exacerbated by the incoming solar radiation and high streambed temperatures (i.e., its environmental severity; Muñoz et al 2018; Colls et al 2019). Longitudinal impacts of nonflowing periods have been well described (Shumilova et al 2019; von Schiller et al 2019), but determining the effects of nonflow duration or frequency has been largely limited to experimental manipulation in the field or using mesocosms (Acuña et al 2015; Muñoz et al 2018; Gionchetta et al 2020, Majdi et al 2020).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Biofilm pigments in temporary streams indicate duration and severity of drying

Colls

Timoner

Font

et al. 2021

Limnology & Oceanography

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Increased duration and frequency of droughts under global change may affect both temporary and formerly permanent watercourses. Streambed desiccation, cooccurring solar radiation, and high temperature all may affect the composition and metabolism of photoautotrophic organisms in benthic biofilms. To test these effects, we characterized the composition of pigments when biofilms were exposed to dry conditions, and compared this to pigments measured after flow resumed, as well as to others measured from permanent streams in the same region. This comparison revealed important differences in pigmentary composition based on flow conditions. Active chlorophylls decreased exponentially with the duration and severity of the nonflow period, while chlorophyll degradation products and protective carotenoids increased. Streams experiencing longer and more severe nonflow periods showed the highest dissimilarities in their biofilm pigmentary composition, and this pattern was maintained after flow resumed. Our results pointed to duration of nonflowing periods as the major driver of pigmentary composition, regardless of whether these were interrupted or not by short intervals of water flows. Multivariate changes in pigmentary composition between sampling periods highlighted the influence of the long‐term hydrological history on the relative abundance of different taxonomic groups and their associated pigments. Overall, pigmentary fingerprints are informative of the biofilm capacity to resist water flow interruption and of their ability to recover after water flow returns.

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Multi‐model assessment of hydrological and environmental impacts on streambed microbes in Mediterranean catchments

Cited by 16 publications

References 75 publications

Effects of the Desiccation Duration on the Dynamic Responses of Biofilm Metabolic Activities to Rewetting

Effects of the Desiccation Duration on the Dynamic Responses of Biofilm Metabolic Activities to Rewetting

Use of trait concepts and terminology in freshwater ecology: Historic, current, and future perspectives

Biofilm pigments in temporary streams indicate duration and severity of drying

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