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Exploring the Abundance and Diversity of Bacterial Communities and Quantifying Antibiotic-Related Genes Along an Elevational Gradient in Taibai Mountain, China

  • Soil Microbiology
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Abstract

Thus far, no studies have investigated the soil microbial diversity over an elevational gradient in Taibai Mountain, the central massif of the Qinling Mountain Range. Here, we used Illumina sequencing and quantitative PCR of the 16S rRNA gene to assess the diversity and abundance of bacterial communities along an elevational gradient in representative vegetation soils in Taibai Mountain. We identified the soil, climate, and vegetation factors driving the variations in soil bacterial community structure by Pearson correlation and redundancy analysis. We also evaluated the potential for antibiotic discovery by quantitative PCR of the PKS-I, PKS-II, and NRPS genes from Actinobacteria. The results showed that soil bacterial alpha diversity increased first and then decreased with an elevational rise in both the northern and southern slopes of Taibai Mountain. The bacterial abundance was significantly correlated with soil organic matter and nitrate nitrogen. The average relative abundance of Actinobacteria in Taibai Mountain was markedly higher than those in other mountain forest soils. The absolute abundance of PKS and NPRS gene was significantly higher in the tested soils compared with the gene copy numbers reported in tropical urban soils. Taibai Mountain is rich in actinomycete resources and has great potential for antibiotic excavation.

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Acknowledgements

We sincerely thank the two corresponding authors, especially Dr. Xiaomin Wei who made more contribution to the guidance in field measurements and paper writing. We thank Dr. Chaofeng Lin (Transcend Envirotech Consulting Co., Ltd, Qingdao, China) for improving the English of the manuscript.

Funding

This work was supported by the National Sci-Tech Support Plan of China (2012BAD14B11), the Shaanxi Science & Technology Co-ordination & Innovation Project (2016KTZDNY03-03-02), and Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (2452017313).

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  1. College of Natural Resources and Environment, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, 712100, China

    Chu Peng, He Wang, Yingying Jiang, Jinhua Yang, Hangxian Lai & Xiaomin Wei

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  1. Chu Peng
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  2. He Wang
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  3. Yingying Jiang
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  4. Jinhua Yang
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Correspondence to Hangxian Lai or Xiaomin Wei.

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Peng, C., Wang, H., Jiang, Y. et al. Exploring the Abundance and Diversity of Bacterial Communities and Quantifying Antibiotic-Related Genes Along an Elevational Gradient in Taibai Mountain, China. Microb Ecol 76, 1053–1062 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00248-018-1197-x

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