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Purkamo, Lotta ; Dittrich, Maria ; Lüders, Tillmann:
Editorial: Celebrating the biogeosphere at the joint meeting of International Societies for Environmental Biogeochemistry and Subsurface Microbiology.
In: FEMS Microbiology Ecology.
Bd. 101
(2025)
Heft 5
.
- fiaf049.
ISSN 1574-6941
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/femsec/fiaf049
Abstract
As we reflect on the second joint ISEB–ISSM conference held from 22 to 28 October 2023 in the stunning landscapes of Banff, Canada, we are reminded of the breathtaking beauty that surrounded us—majestic mountains dusted with the season’s first snow, the vibrant hues of autumn foliage, steam rising from snow-covered hot springs, and the rich aromas of local delicacies ranging from poutine to maple syrup fudge. This picturesque setting provided the perfect backdrop for discussions on the remarkable advancements in subsurface microbial ecology that are shaping our understanding of Earth’s systems. It was also the long-craved opportunity to reconnect to our colleagues, friends, and societies after the pandemic disruption of regular conference schedules. This thematic issue showcases a selection of groundbreaking research that highlights the intricate roles microbes play in various environments, from deep subsurface ecosystems to industrial gas storage systems.
Several studies in this issue explore fundamental biogeochemical processes on our planet where the role of microbes remains unclear. The review by Ruff et al. (2024) provides an expert perspective of exciting recent ventures into possible mechanisms of subsurface oxygenesis independent of light, revealing the widespread occurrence of “dark oxygen production” (DOP), a process that could have been crucial for the origin of life on our planet. The recent discovery of oxygen production in seemingly anoxic groundwater (Ruff et al. 2023) provides a new explanation for many previously dubious reports on aerobic microorganisms found in highly reducing, oxygen-lacking habitats of the deep subsurface. The authors hope that their work will inspire new investigations on DOP not only in subsurface ecosystems but also in other oxygen- and light-deprived ecosystems on Earth’s surface.
Another ancient, the least energetically expensive CO2-fixing microbial pathway, the Wood–Ljungdahl pathway has been investigated in dark hypersaline ecosystems (Shoemaker et al. 2024). Throughout geological time and even at the modern Earth’s surface, such environments can be found under evaporation conditions. Shoemaker et al. (2024) uncover intriguing and unstudied questions about the primary producers in benthic regions of hypersaline environments of Great Salt Lake, Utah, USA. In the 30 cm sediment depth of the hypersaline basin of Great Salt Lake, the highly energetic stressful environmental conditions are polyextremophilic, which means both hypersalinity and euxinia. The discovery of microorganisms living under such conditions applying diverse and often novel Wood–Ljungdahl pathways shows a wide range of microbial adaptation that allows cells to survive extreme conditions on early Earth and possibly on other planets.
The adaptation of microorganisms from early Earth’s ecosystem to modern extreme environments is a focus of studies by Vuillemin et al. The environmental conditions in sediments of ferruginous anoxic modern lakes (Vuillemin et al. 2024) are considered to be analogous to those of Earth’s early oceans during the Proterozoic. The authors study the metabolically diverse phylum of Chloroflexota, which is essential for bioremediation and medical technology. The findings address metabolic uncertainties of Chloroflexota through a diligent metagenomic and taxonomic analysis of environmental classes of Chloroflexota in anoxygenic ferruginous lake sediments. Their findings underscore the complexity of microbial communities and their adaptive strategies in challenging environments.
Extant species of fungi may have existed and co-evolved with the Earth for up to 6 million years, but their ecological role and functioning aquatic sediments remain cryptic. To understand the impact of climate and landscape on fungi communities in such habitats, Retter et al. (2024) studied fungal microbiota along an alpine riverine corridor during two seasons applying Bayesian network modeling. Riverine fungi were comparatively more diverse, but unique fungal assemblages were found in adjacent groundwater, including typical aquatic lineages such as Rozellomycota and Olpidiomycota. Retter et al. (2024) show that current fungal communities may play a role in mineral weathering, carbon cycling, and nitrogen cycling in groundwater, as well as the impacts of changing land use on fungal diversity in freshwater ecosystems.
In the last of this elegant suite of studies on microbes in aquatic sediments, Coskun et al. (2024) have analyzed carbon fixation of microbiota in hydrothermal fluids of a deep subsurface aquifer, combining quantitative stable isotope probing and state-of-the-art metagenomics. They discovered that specific metagenome-assembled genomes encoding the reverse citric acid cycle (TCA cycle) only became labeled under elevated bicarbonate concentrations. The research provides valuable insights into the potential contributions of extremophilic microbiota to primary production in deep subsurface ecosystems.
Subsurface hydrocarbon reservoirs are the subject of investigation in the second suite of manuscripts published in the thematic issue. Nagakura et al. (2024) investigate microbial hydrocarbon utilization in hydrothermally influenced sediments of the Guaymas Basin. The researchers found that local sediment heating via geological processes leads to the production of bioavailable organic substrates, which stimulate microbial activity. Notably, the addition of hydrocarbons and methane enhanced sulfate reduction rates in certain sediment samples, indicating the potential of these microorganisms to degrade a range of hydrocarbons even in presumably low-activity deep-subsea sediments. Venturing even deeper into oil itself, Brauer et al. (2024) analyze the microbiota found in minute water droplets enclosed in hydrocarbons of the Pitch Lake natural asphalt seep, Trinidad and Tobago. They show that a core microbiota can be identified between droplets and investigate the ecological mechanism of community assembly in the isolated compartments of this intriguing habitat. Further down the oil and gas production pipeline, Scheffer et al. (2025) provide a meticulous investigation of how souring of a production water storage pond can be mitigated by the addition of nitrate, and the harnessing of intrinsic microbial communities’ capacity to reduce nitrate to dinitrogen or ammonium.
Shifting gears toward the investigation of depleted natural gas reservoirs, a back-to-back set of manuscripts by A. and M. Ranchou-Peyruse embarks on the microbiota and microbially driven processes in these systems in the perspective of subsurface hydrogen gas storage. The first study highlights the potential of such a formation for biomethanation, identifying key microbial families that utilize hydrogen and contribute to organic carbon production, which can enhance methane production while increasing pH levels (Ranchou-Peyruse et al. 2024). The second study introduces the concept of artificial subsurface lithoautotrophic microbial ecosystems (SLiMEs) that may emerge from large-scale hydrogen injection into underground gas storage facilities (Ranchou-Peyruse 2024). These artificial SLiMEs can lead to increased methanogenic activity and come with risks for hydrogen storage. Together, these findings underscore the importance of understanding formation microbiology in the context of renewable energy storage and sustainability.
Finally, the continuous development of novel methods in subsurface microbiology is also a steady contribution to the ISEB and ISSM symposia. In an appealing minireview and perspective, Morais et al. (2024) summarize recent innovations in microfluidic technologies to investigate microbial life in deep geological environments. These technologies allow the simulation of various environmental conditions in a “lab-on-a-chip,” enabling detailed, real-time analysis of microbial interactions and biogeochemical processes.
The special issue editors and conference organizers are grateful to all the prominent subsurface microbiology groups that contributed their work to this thematic issue, and to the many anonymous reviewers who helped greatly in guaranteeing the scientific quality of the published manuscripts. Very much hope to see all of you again at the next symposia, ISEB to be held in October 2025 in Dublin (https://www.iseb-2025.org/) followed by the next ISSM coming up in September 2026 in Vienna.
Weitere Angaben
| Publikationsform: | Artikel in einer Zeitschrift |
|---|---|
| Begutachteter Beitrag: | Ja |
| Institutionen der Universität: | Fakultäten > Fakultät für Biologie, Chemie und Geowissenschaften > Fachgruppe Biologie > Lehrstuhl Ökologische Mikrobiologie > Lehrstuhl Ökologische Mikrobiologie - Univ.-Prof. Dr. Tillmann Lüders |
| Titel an der UBT entstanden: | Ja |
| Themengebiete aus DDC: | 500 Naturwissenschaften und Mathematik > 570 Biowissenschaften; Biologie |
| Eingestellt am: | 21 Okt 2025 07:27 |
| Letzte Änderung: | 21 Okt 2025 07:27 |
| URI: | https://eref.uni-bayreuth.de/id/eprint/94948 |