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Green algae (Viridiplantae) in sediments from three lakes on Vega Island, Antarctica, assessed using DNA metabarcoding

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Abstract

Background

Vega Island is located off the eastern tip of the Antarctic Peninsula (Maritime Antarctica), in the Weddell Sea. In this study, we used metabarcoding to investigate green algal DNA sequence diversity present in sediments from three lakes on Vega Island (Esmeralda, Copépodo, and Pan Negro Lakes).

Methods and results

Total DNA was extracted and the internal transcribed spacer 2 region of the nuclear ribosomal DNA was used as a DNA barcode for molecular identification. Green algae were represented by sequences representing 78 taxa belonging to Phylum Chlorophyta, of which 32% have not previously been recorded from Antarctica. Sediment from Pan Negro Lake generated the highest number of DNA reads (11,205), followed by Esmeralda (9085) and Copépodo (1595) Lakes. Esmeralda Lake was the richest in terms of number of taxa (59), with Copépodo and Pan Negro Lakes having 30 taxa each. Bray–Curtis dissimilarity among lakes was high (~ 0.80). The Order Chlamydomonadales (Chlorophyceae) gave the highest contribution in terms of numbers of taxa and DNA reads in all lakes. The most abundant taxon was Chlorococcum microstigmatum.

Conclusions

The study confirms the utility of DNA metabarcoding in assessing potential green algal diversity in Antarctic lakes, generating new Antarctic records.

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Availability of data and material

All data generated or analysed during this study are included in this published article.

Code availability

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Acknowledgements

This study received financial support from Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq), Programa Antártico Brasileiro (PROANTAR), Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de Minas Gerais (FAPEMIG), Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES), Institutos Nacionais de Ciência e Tecnologia (INCT) Criosfera 2. P. Convey is supported by Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) core funding to the British Antarctic Survey (BAS) ‘Biodiversity, Evolution and Adaptation’ Team. Thanks also to congresswoman Jô Moraes, to Instituto de Ciências Biológicas da Universidade de Brasília and to the Brazilian Navy and Air Force. We thank the Instituto Antártico Argentino for the logistical and financial support of the Antarctic campaign to Vega Island and to the Lagos Field Group.

Funding

National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq), Brazilian Antarctic Program (PROANTAR), Research Foundation of the State of Minas Gerais (FAPEMIG), Coordination for the Improvement of Higher Education Personnel (CAPES), National Institutes of Science and Technology (INCT) Criosfera 2, Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) core funding to the British Antarctic Survey (BAS) ‘Biodiversity, Evolution and Adaptation’ Team.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Independent Researcher, Brasília, DF, Brazil

    Bárbara Medeiros Fonseca

  2. Departamento de Botânica, Universidade de Brasília, Brasília, DF, Brazil

    Paulo Eduardo Aguiar Saraiva Câmara & Micheline Carvalho-Silva

  3. Departamento de Microbiologia, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil

    Mayara Baptistucci Ogaki & Luiz Henrique Rosa

  4. Departamento de Biologia Celular, Universidade de Brasília, Brasília, DF, Brazil

    Otávio Henrique Bezerra Pinto

  5. Instituto Antártico Argentino, Buenos Aires, Argentina

    Juan Manuel Lirio & Silvia H. Coria

  6. Instituto de Geociências, Universidade Federal Fluminense, Niterói, RJ, Brazil

    Rosemary Vieira

  7. CNCFLORA, Jardim Botânico do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil

    Eduardo Toledo Amorim

  8. British Antarctic Survey, Cambridge, UK

    Peter Convey

  9. Department of Zoology, University of Johannesburg, Auckland Park, South Africa

    Peter Convey

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  1. Bárbara Medeiros Fonseca
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  2. Paulo Eduardo Aguiar Saraiva Câmara
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  10. Peter Convey
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  11. Luiz Henrique Rosa
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Contributions

All authors contributed to the study conception and design. Material preparation, data collection and analysis were performed by Paulo Eduardo Aguiar Saraiva Câmara, Mayara Baptistucci Ogaki, Otávio Henrique Bezerra Pinto, Juan Manuel Lirio, Silvia H. Coria, Rosemary Vieira, Micheline Carvalho-Silva, Eduardo Toledo Amorim, Peter Convey, Luiz Henrique Rosa and Bárbara Medeiros Fonseca. The first draft of the manuscript was written by Bárbara Medeiros Fonseca and Paulo Eduardo Aguiar Saraiva Câmara and all authors commented on previous versions of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

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Correspondence to Bárbara Medeiros Fonseca.

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Fonseca, B.M., Câmara, P.E.A.S., Ogaki, M.B. et al. Green algae (Viridiplantae) in sediments from three lakes on Vega Island, Antarctica, assessed using DNA metabarcoding. Mol Biol Rep 49, 179–188 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11033-021-06857-1

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