Allochthonous and autochthonous organic matter deposited in benthic sediments are mineralized by microbial communities, resulting in release of nutrients to the water column. Lakes with different trophic states may have sediments with different carbon and nutrient concentration with consequently different microbial communities. Microbial diversity of surface sediments of three subtropical lakes...

Unraveling the microbial diversity and its complexity in petroleum reservoir environments has been a challenge throughout the years. Despite the techniques developed in order to improve methodologies involving DNA extraction from crude oil, microbial enrichments using different culture conditions can be applied as a way to increase the recovery of DNA from environments with low cellular density...

Fluvial ecosystems process large quantities of dissolved organic matter as it moves from the headwater streams to the sea. In particular, hyporheic sediments are centers of high biogeochemical reactivity due to their elevated residence time and high microbial biomass and activity. However, the interaction between organic matter and microbial dynamics in the hyporheic zone remains poorly underst...

A combined lipid biomarker-16S rRNA gene denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis analysis was used to monitor changes in the physiological status, biomass, and microbial composition of a microbial mat. In the morning hours, an increase in the biomass of layers containing a high density of phototrophs and a decrease in the growth rate in the deep layers were observed. The combined approach also ...

The effect of four triazinyl-sulfonylurea herbicides (cinosulfuron, prosulfuron, thifensulfuron methyl, triasulfuron) on soil microbial biomass, soil respiration, metabolic activity, metabolic quotient, and some enzymatic activities (acid and alkaline phosphatase, β-glucosidase, arylsulphatase, and fluorescein diacetate hydrolysis) were monitored under controlled conditions over 30 days. The he...

Soybean is the most important oilseed cultivated in the world and Brazil is the second major producer. Expansion of soybean cultivation has direct and indirect impacts on natural habitats of high conservation value, such as the Brazilian savannas (Cerrado). In addition to deforestation, land conversion includes the use of fertilizers and pesticides and can lead to changes in the soil microbial ...

The purpose of this paper is to describe the effects of C02 and N treatments on soil pC02, calculated CO2 efflux, root biomass and soil carbon in open-top chambers planted with Pinus ponderosa seedlings. Based upon the literature, it was hypothesized that both elevated CO2 and N would cause increased root biomass which would in turn cause increases in both total soil CO2 efflux and microbial re...

BACKGROUND Loss of biodiversity and increased nutrient inputs are two of the most crucial anthropogenic factors driving ecosystem change. Although both received considerable attention in previous studies, information on their interactive effects on ecosystem functioning is scarce. In particular, little is known on how soil biota and their functions are affected by combined changes in plant dive...

BACKGROUND The 'attached cultivation' technique for microalgae production, combining the immobilized biofilm technology with proper light dilution strategies, has shown improved biomass production and photosynthetic efficiency over conventional open-pond suspended cultures. However, how light is transferred and distributed inside the biofilm has not been clearly defined yet. RESULTS In this r...

Biomass, nucleic acid synthesis, and specific growth rates of the microbial communities were measured throughout a vertical profile of a coastal marine sediment. The microbial biomass, as determined by ATP concentrations, in the sediment-water interface was over twice that measured in the other horizons of a 10-cm profile. Likewise, biomass carbon production, as determined by DNA synthesis, and...