‘Follow the Water’: Microbial Water Acquisition in Desert Soils
Water availability is the dominant driver of microbial community structure and function in desert soils. However, these habitats typically only receive very infrequent large-scale water inputs (e.g., from precipitation and/or run-off). In light of recent studies, the paradigm that desert soil microo...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2023-06-01
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| Series: | Microorganisms |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2607/11/7/1670 |
| _version_ | 1827732297429811200 |
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| author | Don A Cowan S. Craig Cary Jocelyne DiRuggiero Frank Eckardt Belinda Ferrari David W. Hopkins Pedro H. Lebre Gillian Maggs-Kölling Stephen B. Pointing Jean-Baptiste Ramond Dana Tribbia Kimberley Warren-Rhodes |
| author_facet | Don A Cowan S. Craig Cary Jocelyne DiRuggiero Frank Eckardt Belinda Ferrari David W. Hopkins Pedro H. Lebre Gillian Maggs-Kölling Stephen B. Pointing Jean-Baptiste Ramond Dana Tribbia Kimberley Warren-Rhodes |
| author_sort | Don A Cowan |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Water availability is the dominant driver of microbial community structure and function in desert soils. However, these habitats typically only receive very infrequent large-scale water inputs (e.g., from precipitation and/or run-off). In light of recent studies, the paradigm that desert soil microorganisms are largely dormant under xeric conditions is questionable. Gene expression profiling of microbial communities in desert soils suggests that many microbial taxa retain some metabolic functionality, even under severely xeric conditions. It, therefore, follows that other, less obvious sources of water may sustain the microbial cellular and community functionality in desert soil niches. Such sources include a range of precipitation and condensation processes, including rainfall, snow, dew, fog, and nocturnal distillation, all of which may vary quantitatively depending on the location and geomorphological characteristics of the desert ecosystem. Other more obscure sources of bioavailable water may include groundwater-derived water vapour, hydrated minerals, and metabolic hydro-genesis. Here, we explore the possible sources of bioavailable water in the context of microbial survival and function in xeric desert soils. With global climate change projected to have profound effects on both hot and cold deserts, we also explore the potential impacts of climate-induced changes in water availability on soil microbiomes in these extreme environments. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-11T00:48:51Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-6b0818549b4646ffafea75ac3909ea84 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-2607 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-11T00:48:51Z |
| publishDate | 2023-06-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Microorganisms |
| spelling | doaj.art-6b0818549b4646ffafea75ac3909ea842023-11-18T20:34:48ZengMDPI AGMicroorganisms2076-26072023-06-01117167010.3390/microorganisms11071670‘Follow the Water’: Microbial Water Acquisition in Desert SoilsDon A Cowan0S. Craig Cary1Jocelyne DiRuggiero2Frank Eckardt3Belinda Ferrari4David W. Hopkins5Pedro H. Lebre6Gillian Maggs-Kölling7Stephen B. Pointing8Jean-Baptiste Ramond9Dana Tribbia10Kimberley Warren-Rhodes11Centre for Microbial Ecology and Genomics, Department of Biochemistry, Genetics and Microbiology, University of Pretoria, Pretoria 0002, South AfricaSchool of Biological Sciences, University of Waikato, Hamilton 3216, New ZealandDepartments of Biology, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21218, USADepartment of Environmental and Geographical Science, University of Cape Town, Cape Town 7701, South AfricaSchool of Biotechnology and Biological Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW 2052, AustraliaScotland’s Rural College, West Mains Road, Edinburgh EH9 3JG, UKCentre for Microbial Ecology and Genomics, Department of Biochemistry, Genetics and Microbiology, University of Pretoria, Pretoria 0002, South AfricaGobabeb-Namib Research Institute, Walvis Bay 13013, NamibiaDepartment of Biological Sciences, National University of Singapore, Singapore 117558, SingaporeCentre for Microbial Ecology and Genomics, Department of Biochemistry, Genetics and Microbiology, University of Pretoria, Pretoria 0002, South AfricaSchool of Biotechnology and Biological Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW 2052, AustraliaNASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, CA 94035, USAWater availability is the dominant driver of microbial community structure and function in desert soils. However, these habitats typically only receive very infrequent large-scale water inputs (e.g., from precipitation and/or run-off). In light of recent studies, the paradigm that desert soil microorganisms are largely dormant under xeric conditions is questionable. Gene expression profiling of microbial communities in desert soils suggests that many microbial taxa retain some metabolic functionality, even under severely xeric conditions. It, therefore, follows that other, less obvious sources of water may sustain the microbial cellular and community functionality in desert soil niches. Such sources include a range of precipitation and condensation processes, including rainfall, snow, dew, fog, and nocturnal distillation, all of which may vary quantitatively depending on the location and geomorphological characteristics of the desert ecosystem. Other more obscure sources of bioavailable water may include groundwater-derived water vapour, hydrated minerals, and metabolic hydro-genesis. Here, we explore the possible sources of bioavailable water in the context of microbial survival and function in xeric desert soils. With global climate change projected to have profound effects on both hot and cold deserts, we also explore the potential impacts of climate-induced changes in water availability on soil microbiomes in these extreme environments.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2607/11/7/1670anhydrobiosisdesert soilshyper-aridmicrobiomesdesiccationxerophily |
| spellingShingle | Don A Cowan S. Craig Cary Jocelyne DiRuggiero Frank Eckardt Belinda Ferrari David W. Hopkins Pedro H. Lebre Gillian Maggs-Kölling Stephen B. Pointing Jean-Baptiste Ramond Dana Tribbia Kimberley Warren-Rhodes ‘Follow the Water’: Microbial Water Acquisition in Desert Soils Microorganisms anhydrobiosis desert soils hyper-arid microbiomes desiccation xerophily |
| title | ‘Follow the Water’: Microbial Water Acquisition in Desert Soils |
| title_full | ‘Follow the Water’: Microbial Water Acquisition in Desert Soils |
| title_fullStr | ‘Follow the Water’: Microbial Water Acquisition in Desert Soils |
| title_full_unstemmed | ‘Follow the Water’: Microbial Water Acquisition in Desert Soils |
| title_short | ‘Follow the Water’: Microbial Water Acquisition in Desert Soils |
| title_sort | follow the water microbial water acquisition in desert soils |
| topic | anhydrobiosis desert soils hyper-arid microbiomes desiccation xerophily |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2607/11/7/1670 |
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