Abstract
The Thailand flood crisis in 2011 was one of the largest recorded floods in modern history, causing enormous damage to the economy and ecological habitats of the country. In this study, bacterial and fungal diversity in sediments and waters collected from ten flood areas in Bangkok and its suburbs, covering residential and agricultural areas, were analyzed using high-throughput 454 pyrosequencing of 16S rRNA gene and internal transcribed spacer sequences. Analysis of microbial community showed differences in taxa distribution in water and sediment with variations in the diversity of saprophytic microbes and sulfate/nitrate reducers among sampling locations, suggesting differences in microbial activity in the habitats. Overall, Proteobacteria represented a major bacterial group in waters, while this group co-existed with Firmicutes, Bacteroidetes, and Actinobacteria in sediments. Anaeromyxobacter, Steroidobacter, and Geobacter were the dominant bacterial genera in sediments, while Sulfuricurvum, Thiovirga, and Hydrogenophaga predominated in waters. For fungi in sediments, Ascomycota, Glomeromycota, and Basidiomycota, particularly in genera Philipsia, Rozella, and Acaulospora, were most frequently detected. Chytridiomycota and Ascomycota were the major fungal phyla, and Rhizophlyctis and Mortierella were the most frequently detected fungal genera in water. Diversity of sulfate-reducing bacteria, related to odor problems, was further investigated using analysis of the dsrB gene which indicated the presence of sulfate-reducing bacteria of families Desulfobacteraceae, Desulfobulbaceae, Syntrobacteraceae, and Desulfoarculaceae in the flood sediments. The work provides an insight into the diversity and function of microbes related to biological processes in flood areas.
Highlights
In 2011, Thailand witnessed the most enormous flood in its history, which devastated infrastructure, agriculture, industry, and society as a whole
Microbial diversity in floodwater is related to decomposition of organic matters and other biochemical activities in water, such as photosynthesis, recycling of nutrients, and sulfate/nitrate reduction, which are directly related to water properties [1]
The sample temperatures at the time of collection were in the range of 23.5–29.6°C. pH was in the neutral range and showed no substantial difference among the samples
Summary
In 2011, Thailand witnessed the most enormous flood in its history, which devastated infrastructure, agriculture, industry, and society as a whole. With the impact of La Nina causing increasing tropical storms and annual rainfall, large-scale flooding is expected. Flash flooding causes immense damage to ecological niches in flooded areas, resulting in changes in microbial communities. Compared to diversity in aquatic and marine environments, the microbial community in floodwater is temporally variable, but has a higher impact on human habitat and public health issues [2, 3]. This includes contamination of floodwater to water sources for human consumption, which can cause widespread health public problems in the area [4]. Few studies have examined microbial diversity during flooding, and these have used conventional, culture-dependent isolation techniques which generated only a limited insight on the microbial diversity in flood areas [3]
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