Meeting Abstract
Deep-sea hydrothermal vents are recognized as important biogeochemical environments that support unique ecosystems rich in microbial diversity. As the high temperature hydrothermal fluid mixes with the cold, oxygenated seawater, minerals precipitate to form vent deposits. These porous deposits are quickly colonized by a diversity of Archaea and Bacteria that harness the abundant geochemical energy available in the hydrothermal fluids. High throughput 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing has shown that the microbial diversity associated with these deposits is strongly influenced by the mode of hydrothermal fluid mixing and geochemistry of the fluids. In order to explore the functional diversity in these communities, three metagenomes were compared from two different vent fields along the Eastern Lau Spreading Center in the southwestern Pacific. The metagenomic phylogenetic diversity shared the 16S rRNA amplicon patterns, and provided insights into differences between key potential carbon fixation, nitrogen assimilation, hydrogen oxidation and sulfur oxidation/reduction metabolisms. Furthermore, the metagenomes provided hints of the physical environmental differences within the sulfide deposits that most likely helped drive the microbial community assembly.
