Culturable Bacterial Diversity from the Basaltic Subsurface of the Young Volcanic Island of Surtsey, Iceland

Research on Surtsey, Iceland, reveals the subsurface of this young volcanic island hosts diverse and active microbial communities, with over 195 culturable bacterial strains identified. These belong to six phyla, including Firmicutes (40%) and Gammaproteobacteria (28.7%), with Bacillus being the dominant genus. Over 13% of the strains may represent novel species, closely related to those found in soil, seawater, and hydrothermal sites. The study used enrichment cultures under varying conditions, media, and temperatures, combined with MALDI-TOF MS analysis and 16S rRNA gene sequencing. While only five phyla were cultivated, they accounted for over 80% of the detected ASVs, underscoring the importance of both culture-dependent and -independent methods in exploring extreme volcanic environments.

Bergsten, P., Vannier, P., Frion, J., Mougeolle, A., & Marteinsson, V. Þ. (2022). Culturable Bacterial Diversity from the Basaltic Subsurface of the Young Volcanic Island of Surtsey, Iceland. Microorganisms, 10(6), 1177. https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms10061177