Prokaryotic Diversity in the Antarctic: The Tip of the Iceberg
Prokaryotic Diversity in the Antarctic: The Tip of the Iceberg
复制标题
南极洲的原核生物多样性：冰山一角
作者：
B. Tindall
与在南极洲发现的相当有限的植物和动物多样性相比，该大陆的微生物多样性已被证明是“令人惊讶的”多样性。显然，贫瘠的土壤和岩石景观，以及在大陆边缘发现的众多多样的湖泊，孕育着一系列原核生物，这表明季节性的极低温度并不妨碍微生物的定植。直接培养方法和现代分子遗传学方法都有助于我们了解待发现的生物体的范围。基于培养的研究往往受到用于分离生物体的方法中固有的限制的阻碍。基于分子的方法不会受到同样的基于培养的偏见的影响，但需要考虑其他问题。在一项研究中，几乎不可能将这两种技术联合收割机结合起来，通常也不可能将从一种环境的研究中得出的结果和结论应用于同一环境下的一系列实验。南极洲可以被认为是一个地理上孤立的研究区域。与也可能与其周围环境“隔离”的其他环境（即，温泉或高盐水湖）允许绘制平行线。得出的结论提供了重要的见解南极可能已经殖民化和微生物群多样化的方式。除了编制清单这一简单任务之外，还有许多工作要做。复杂的社区，如垫系统的功能，需要了解系统的生态，不仅在整个系统的水平，而且在该系统中的局部环境的作用。在没有动植物群落的情况下，这些生态系统也许在监测极地气候变化方面发挥了作用。目前所掌握的资料清楚地表明，南极值得在微生物一级进行进一步研究。
In contrast to the rather limited diversity of plants and animals to be found in the Antarctic, the microbial diversity of this continent has been shown to be “surprisingly” diverse. Apparently barren soil and rock landscapes, as well as the numerous and diverse lakes found at the edges of the continent, harbor a range of prokaryotes which indicate that the extremely low temperatures which prevail seasonally are no obstacle to microbial colonization. Both direct cultivation methods and modern molecular genetic methods have contributed to our understanding of the range of organisms to be found. Cultivation based studies are often hampered by constraints inherent in the methods selected for the isolation of organisms. Molecular-based approaches do not suffer from the same cultivation-based biases, but other problems need to be taken into consideration. It has rarely been possible to combine both techniques in a single study, nor has it usually been possible to take the results and conclusions drawn from the study of one environment and apply this knowledge to a further series of experiments on the same environment. The Antarctic may be considered to be a geographically well isolated area to study. Comparison with other environments that may also be “isolated” from their surroundings (i.e., hot springs or highly saline lakes) allows parallels to be drawn. The conclusions drawn provide important insights into the way the Antarctic may have been colonized and the microbiota diversified. Much work still needs to be done beyond the simple task of making an inventory. The functioning of complex communities, such as mat systems, requires an understanding of the ecology of the systems, not only at the level of the whole system, but also the role of localized environments within that system. Perhaps these ecosystems have, in the absence of plant and animal communities, a role to play in the monitoring of polar climate change. The information available at present clearly indicates that the Antarctic is deserving of further study at the microbial level.