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Assembly and Tracking of Microbial Community Development within a Microwell Array Platform
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Estimating and mapping ecological processes influencing microbial community assembly.

James C Stegen1, Xueju Lin1, Jim K Fredrickson1

  • 1Fundamental and Computational Sciences Directorate, Biological Sciences Division, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory Richland, WA, USA.

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|May 19, 2015
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Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Ecological community assembly depends on selection, dispersal, and drift. This study reveals these processes vary spatially, with variable selection linked to changing redox conditions in subsurface microbial communities.

Keywords:
Hanford Site 300 AreaRaup–Crickecological neutral theoryecological niche theorymicrobial biogeographynull modelingphylogenetic beta-diversityphylogenetic signal

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Area of Science:

  • Ecology
  • Microbial Ecology
  • Environmental Science

Background:

  • Ecological community assembly is shaped by selection, dispersal, and ecological drift.
  • The relative importance of these processes can differ across environments.
  • Dispersal can be limiting or homogenizing, influencing organism exchange between communities.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To estimate the influence and spatial variation of ecological processes governing community assembly.
  • To extend a statistical framework for analyzing these processes.
  • To examine subsurface microbial communities within two geologic formations.

Main Methods:

  • Extended a statistical framework to estimate ecological process influences.
  • Utilized a simulation model to validate the extended framework's accuracy.
  • Applied the framework to analyze subsurface microbial communities.

Main Results:

  • The relative influences of selection, dispersal limitation, and homogenizing dispersal varied substantially across communities, even within the same geologic formation.
  • Identified environmental and spatial features associated with each ecological process.
  • Mapped spatial variations in ecological process influences, revealing associations between variable selection and redox condition changes.

Conclusions:

  • Ecological processes influencing community assembly exhibit significant spatial variation.
  • Mapping these variations provides new insights into ecological systems.
  • In subsurface environments, variable selection is linked to the rate of change in redox conditions with depth.