Sulfidic Habitats in the Gypsum Karst System of Monte Conca (Italy) Host a Chemoautotrophically Supported Invertebrate Community

Nicolosi, Giuseppe; Galdenzi, Sandro; Messina, Maria Anna; Miller, Ana Z.; Petralia, Salvatore; Sarbu, Serban M.; Isaia, Marco

doi:10.3390/ijerph19052671

Cited by 3 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 33 publications

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“…The abundance of Phyllobacterium in cave species (Table S5 ) may be due to its tolerance to heavy metals [ 68 , 69 ], which are often present in mineral-rich cave environments. The joint action of nutrition, rock and other factors may contribute to the richness of symbiotic bacteria in caves [ 70 , 71 ], and may also explain the observed difference in symbiotic bacteria between cave and non-cave organisms. Further studies are needed to fully understand the mechanisms underlying these observations.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Environmental specificity of karst cave habitats evidenced by diverse symbiotic bacteria in Opiliones

Zhao,

Xiao,

Zhang

et al. 2024

BMC Ecol Evo

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Background Karst caves serve as natural laboratories, providing organisms with extreme and constant conditions that promote isolation, resulting in a genetic relationship and living environment that is significantly different from those outside the cave. However, research on cave creatures, especially Opiliones, remains scarce, with most studies focused on water, soil, and cave sediments. Results The structure of symbiotic bacteria in different caves were compared, revealing significant differences. Based on the alpha and beta diversity, symbiotic bacteria abundance and diversity in the cave were similar, but the structure of symbiotic bacteria differed inside and outside the cave. Microorganisms in the cave play an important role in material cycling and energy flow, particularly in the nitrogen cycle. Although microbial diversity varies inside and outside the cave, Opiliones in Beijing caves and Hainan Island exhibited a strong similarity, indicating that the two environments share commonalities. Conclusions The karst cave environment possesses high microbial diversity and there are noticeable differences among different caves. Different habitats lead to significant differences in the symbiotic bacteria in Opiliones inside and outside the cave, and cave microorganisms have made efforts to adapt to extreme environments. The similarity in symbiotic bacteria community structure suggests a potential similarity in host environments, providing an explanation for the appearance of Sinonychia martensi in caves in the north.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Environmental specificity of karst cave habitats evidenced by diverse symbiotic bacteria in Opiliones

Zhao,

Xiao,

Zhang

et al. 2024

BMC Ecol Evo

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“…The validity of the Paleozoic Ophel-driven hypothesis is also undermined by the deep phylogeny of peracaridean orders based on the small-subunit (SSU) rRNA gene, which showed that the thermosbaenacean lineage does not occupy a basal position relative to other peracarids ( Spears et al, 2005 ). Numerous terrestrial sites having rich sulfidic waters have been discovered in the last century, and also recently ( Nicolosi et al, 2022 ; Popa et al, 2019 ), after Por (2007) ; Por (2011) presented his “Ophel paradigm ” . In general, we don’t see much evidence for a terrestrial Ophelic biome as old as the Cambrian.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Shedding light on the Ophel biome: the trans-Tethyan phylogeography of the sulfide shrimp Tethysbaena (Peracarida: Thermosbaenacea) in the Levant

Guy-Haim,

Kolodny,

Frumkin

et al. 2023

PeerJ

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Background Tethysbaena are small peracarid crustaceans inhabiting extreme environments such as subterranean lakes and thermal springs, represented by endemic species found around the ancient Tethys, including the Mediterranean, Arabian Sea, Mid-East Atlantic, and the Caribbean Sea. Two Tethysbaena species are known from the Levant: T. relicta, found along the Dead Sea-Jordan Rift Valley, and T. ophelicola, found in the Ayyalon cave complex in the Israeli coastal plain, both belonging to the same species-group based on morphological cladistics. Along the biospeleological research of the Levantine subterranean fauna, three biogeographic hypotheses determining their origins were proposed: (1) Pliocenic transgression, (2) Mid-late Miocenic transgression, and (3) The Ophel Paradigm, according to which these are inhabitants of a chemosynthetic biome as old as the Cambrian. Methods Tethysbaena specimens of the two Levantine species were collected from subterranean groundwaters. We used the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) gene and the nuclear ribosomal 28S (28S rRNA) gene to establish the phylogeny of the Levantine Tethysbaena species, and applied a molecular clock approach for inferring their divergence times. Results Contrary to the morphological cladistic-based classification, we found that T. relicta shares an ancestor with Tethysbaena species from Oman and the Dominican Republic, whereas the circum-Mediterranean species (including T. ophelicola) share another ancestor. The mean age of the node linking T. relicta from the Dead Sea-Jordan Rift Valley and Tethysbaena from Oman was 20.13 MYA. The mean estimate for the divergence of T. ophelicola from the Mediterranean Tethysbaena clade dated to 9.46 MYA. Conclusions Our results indicate a two-stage colonization of Tethysbaena in the Levant: a late Oligocene transgression, through a marine gulf extending from the Arabian Sea, leading to the colonization of T. relicta in the Dead Sea-Jordan Rift Valley, whereas T. ophelicola, originating from the Mesogean ancestor, inhabited anchialine caves in the coastal plain of Israel during the Mid-Miocene.

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“…Given that these lithic compounds generally occur in trace amounts, chemosynthetic processes are thought to play a minor role in cave microbial ecosystems, except in globally rare, deep geothermally-heated caves usually isolated from the surface [15][16][17][18][19][20] .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Microbial aerotrophy enables continuous primary production in diverse cave ecosystems

Bay,

Ni,

Lappan

et al. 2024

Preprint

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Most aerated cave ecosystems are assumed to be oligotrophic given they receive minimal inputs of light energy. Diverse microorganisms have nevertheless been detected within caves, though it remains unclear what strategies enable them to meet their energy and carbon needs. Here we determined the processes and mediators of primary production in aerated limestone and basalt caves through paired metagenomic and biogeochemical profiling. Based on 1458 metagenome-assembled genomes, over half of microbial cells in caves encode enzymes to use atmospheric trace gases as energy and carbon sources. The most abundant microbes in these systems are chemosynthetic primary producers, notably the novel gammaproteobacterial methanotrophic order Ca. Methylocavales and two uncultivated actinobacterial genera predicted to grow on atmospheric hydrogen, carbon dioxide, and carbon monoxide. In situ and ex situ biogeochemical and isotopic measurements consistently confirmed that these gases are rapidly consumed at rates sufficient to meet community-wide energy needs and drive continual primary production. Conventional chemolithoautotrophs, which use trace lithic compounds such as ammonium and sulfide, are also enriched and active alongside these trace gas scavengers. These results indicate that caves are unique in both their microbial composition and the biogeochemical processes that sustain them. Based on these findings, we propose caves are the first known ecosystems where atmospheric trace gases primarily sustain growth rather than survival and define this process as "aerotrophy". Cave aerotrophy may be a hidden process supporting global biogeochemistry.

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Sulfidic Habitats in the Gypsum Karst System of Monte Conca (Italy) Host a Chemoautotrophically Supported Invertebrate Community

Cited by 3 publications

References 33 publications

Environmental specificity of karst cave habitats evidenced by diverse symbiotic bacteria in Opiliones

Environmental specificity of karst cave habitats evidenced by diverse symbiotic bacteria in Opiliones

Shedding light on the Ophel biome: the trans-Tethyan phylogeography of the sulfide shrimp Tethysbaena (Peracarida: Thermosbaenacea) in the Levant

Microbial aerotrophy enables continuous primary production in diverse cave ecosystems

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