Community structure of phototrophic co-cultures from extreme environments

Cyanobacteria are found in most illuminated environments and are key players in global carbon and nitrogen cycling. Although significant efforts have been made to advance our understanding of this important phylum, still little is known about how members of the cyanobacteria affect and respond to changes in complex biological systems. This lack of knowledge is in part due to the reliance on our ability to maintain pure cultures when determining the metabolism and function of a microorganism. To fill this knowledge-gap, we selected 26 photosynthetic co-cultures from the Culture Collection of Microorganisms from Extreme Environments (CCMEE) for 16S rRNA gene sequencing. We assessed if samples readily available from the CCMEE could contribute valuable insights to advance applied and fundamental science in the areas of global and local carbon and nitrogen cycling, without growing individual members of these co-cultures axenically. Results from this work will aid in determining whether culture depositories in general hold the potential to advance fundamental and applied research. Since maintaining culture depositories is resource intensive, such an assessment will be of great value in guiding future funding decisions.