Poster Session 3, 1:15 PM - 2:00 PM: Campus Center Auditorium [A36]

Differences in Microbial Communities in Metal Contaminated and Non-Contaminated Salt Marshes

Presenter: Camille Maxwell

Faculty Sponsor: Brook Moyers

School: UMass Boston

Research Area: Biology

ABSTRACT

Bioremediation is the removal of harmful substances from the environment through natural biological processes. The rhizosphere is the closely associated microbes located in the soil immediately surrounding a plants root system, in which the plant chemically affects the composition of microorganisms. Microbes promote plant growth and remediate the environment. As an extension of a project studying the rhizosphere of Salicornia depressa in metal contaminated and non-contaminated environments, this study aims to evaluate the differences in microbial communities in the soils at two sites in which Salicornia depressa grows.  The first soil site is Folgers Marsh, a largely undisturbed and protected salt marsh located on Nantucket Island. The second comparison site is Savin Hill Cove. Located adjacent to Morrissey Boulevard and close to the University, it experiences high metal contamination due to runoff and the nearby peninsula being built using contaminated soils. The goal of this study is to evaluate differences in microbial diversity between “pristine” and “contaminated” sites. This will be done via 16s, 18s/ITS, and whole genome shotgun sequencing to understand the role metal contamination plays in environmental selection of microbial species in local salt marshes. I predict that taxa found in the contaminated site will have a higher representation of metal tolerant bacteria and fungi compared to the pristine site. This information can allow for better understanding of salt marsh health, and the effects of anthropogenic activity on an important ecosystem within the urban harbor.

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