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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Microbiol.
Sec. Aquatic Microbiology
Volume 15 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fmicb.2024.1436735

Unveiling the Microbial Diversity across the Northern Ninety East Ridge in the Indian Ocean

Provisionally accepted
Ding Li Ding Li 1,2Liping Wang Liping Wang 2*Fan Jiang Fan Jiang 1,2*Xiang Zeng Xiang Zeng 2Qinzeng Xu Qinzeng Xu 3Xuelei Zhang Xuelei Zhang 3Qiang Zheng Qiang Zheng 1Zongze Shao Zongze Shao 2*
  • 1 Xiamen University, Xiamen, China
  • 2 Third Institute of Oceanography, State Oceanic Administration, Xiamen, Fujian Province, China
  • 3 First Institute of Oceanography, Ministry of Natural Resources, Qingdao, Shandong Province, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Prokaryotes play a crucial role in marine ecosystem health and drive biogeochemical processes. The northern Ninety East Ridge (NER) of the Indian Ocean, a pivotal yet understudied area for these cycles, has been the focus of our study. We employed highthroughput 16S rRNA gene sequencing to analyze 35 water samples from five stations along the ridge, categorized into three depth-and dissolved oxygen-level-based groups. Our approach uncovered a clear stratification of microbial communities, with key bioindicators such as Prochlorococcus MIT9313, Sva0996 marine group, and Candidatus Actinomarina in the upper layer; Ketobacter, Pseudophaeobacter, Nitrospina, and SAR324 clade in the middle layer; and Methylobacterium-Methylorubrum, Sphingomonas, Sphingobium and Erythrobacter in the deep layer. Methylobacterium-Methylorubrum emerged as the most abundant bacterial genus, while Nitrosopumilaceae predominated among archaeal communities. The spatial and depth-wise distribution patterns revealed that Ketobacter was unique to the northern NER, whereas Methylobacterium-Methylorubrum, UBA10353, SAR324 clade, SAR406, Sva0996_marine_group, Candidatus Actinomarina were ubiquitous across various marine regions, exhibiting niche differentiation at the OTU level.Environmental factors, especially dissolved oxygen (DO), silicate, nitrate, and salinity, significantly influence community structure. These findings not only reveal the novelty and adaptability of the microbial ecosystem in the northern NER but also contribute to the broader understanding of marine microbial diversity and its response to environmental heterogeneity. This research advances our knowledge of microbial biogeography and has profound implications for global oceanographic studies, informing strategies for marine ecosystem conservation and monitoring.

    Keywords: Ninety-East Ridge, Microbial Diversity, 16S rRNA gene, Ecological differentiation, Bioindicator

    Received: 22 May 2024; Accepted: 03 Sep 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Li, Wang, Jiang, Zeng, Xu, Zhang, Zheng and Shao. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence:
    Liping Wang, Third Institute of Oceanography, State Oceanic Administration, Xiamen, 361005, Fujian Province, China
    Fan Jiang, Xiamen University, Xiamen, China
    Zongze Shao, Third Institute of Oceanography, State Oceanic Administration, Xiamen, 361005, Fujian Province, China

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