Characterization of halophilic microbial community from a Sardinian hypersaline environment

摘要

The Molentargius Regional Nature Park is one of the largest wetlands in South Sardinia (Italy). It is important for the maintenance of the floral and faunal biodiversity and for the breeding of numerous endangered species of birds, such as flamingos. This Park, included in 1976 in the Ramsar list of wetlands of international importance, also comprises sites known as Saline, solar salterns whose salt exploitation activities ended in 1984. The nearness of the towns of Cagliari and Quartu leads to excessive anthropization of the area that may affect the site's ecology. The Saline consist of a multi-pond system with different NaCl concentrations, ranging from seawater to saturation amounts. These hypersaline environments are inhabited by halophilic microorganisms, Archaea and Bacteria, which have evolved specialized mechanisms of osmoregulation in order to tolerate such extreme conditions. The study of the halophilic microbial communities in Saline is important to understand the ecology of such extreme environments and can give information useful for the management of these areas.