Affiliation:
1. Laboratory of Phylogenomic Ecology, Institute of Molecular Biology of the Slovak Academy of Sciences, Dúbravská cesta 21, 845 51 Bratislava, Slovak Republic
2. Division of Biochemistry, Department of Chemistry, BOKU – University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, Austria
Abstract
Abstract
In this study we aimed to analyse the structure and diversity of overall bacterial community and its resistance determinants from nickel-contaminated soil in Slovakia by both, cultivation-dependent and independent approaches. The phylogeny was reconstructed using partial sequences of 16S rRNA (16S rDNA) and heavy-metal resistance genes from separated isolates and bacterial clones. A total of 518 bacterial sequences obtained from both, isolates and clones, represented 266 species belonging to 8 bacterial phyla: Acidobacteria, Actinobacteria, Bacteroidetes, Cyanobacteria, Firmicutes, Gemmatimonadetes, Proteobacteria (α-, β- and γ-classes), Verrucomicrobia, and one yet unclassified group. In addition, among isolates and clones, 49 different nccA-like genes were found in the final output. Majority of them were assigned to a system of transmembrane metal pumps. Our results demonstrate the fact that the nickel-contaminated soil is able to present very specific heavy-metal resistant bacterial community which can be used in different bioremediation processes.