Abstract:

Diversity of genes degrading polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) was investigated in salt marsh soils collected from sites exposed to variable oiling levels in northern Barataria Bay, Louisiana, through cloning and sequencing. The alpha subunit of the PAH-ring hydroxylating dioxygenases (PAH-RHDα) was involved in the initial step of the aerobic metabolism of PAH Gram positive (GP) and Gram negative (GN) bacteria. This study provides new information on the diversity of bacteria capable of degrading PAHs in salt marshes impacted by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. The data are individual gene sequences obtained from the samples by cloning and sequencing. Multiple genes were investigated for each sample. The sequences are available through NCBI under the accession numbers provided in the Excel file.

Suggested Citation:

Ren, Jiusheng. 2021. Genetic diversity of oil-degrading bacterial community in salt marsh soil. Distributed by: GRIIDC, Harte Research Institute, Texas A&M University–Corpus Christi. doi:10.7266/n7-er66-sz04

Purpose:

Identify specific populations of oil-degrading genes that will yield information on the diversity of oil degrading bacteria in northern Barataria Bay, Louisiana. This method has the sensitivity to detect unknown variants of these genes.

Data Parameters and Units:

The headers are sample_name, collection_date, Lat_lon, accession, bioproject_accession, biosample_accession, library_ID., title, library_strategy, library_source, library_selection, library_layout, platform, filetype, filename, design_description

Methods:

Samples of salt marsh soil exposed to variable oiling levels during the Deepwater Horizon oil spill were collected on 2011-01-06 and 2018-10-30 in northern Barataria Bay, Louisiana. The oiling levels were designated as heavily oiled, moderately oiled, or reference based on the 2010 SCAT survey. Samples were collected from the surface 2 cm of the designated sites, placed in sterile plastic bags, and transported to the lab on ice within 8 hours and then stored at 4 degrees Celsius overnight. The following morning the samples were processed to aseptically remove roots and non-soil material such as shells, then the samples were stored at -80 degrees Celsius until DNA extraction. DNA was extracted from the samples and PCR amplified using the primers GN PAH-RHDα, and GP PAH-RHDα. The resulting PCR products were gel purified and cloned with pCR4-TOPO vectors. The vector DNA was digested and sequenced with Sanger technology by Eurofins.

Individual Files: