Microcosm: Bacterial communities growing on different crude oils exposed to light

Microcosm experiments were performed to examine the bacterioplankton community structure after growth of Water Accommodated Fractions (WAFs) made from seven different crude oils. Each WAF was produced under different solar exposures and added to replicate 1-liter microcosms at a final concentration of 4%. Changes in bacterial community structure were determined by Illumina sequencing of 16S rDNA amplicons in samples collected after 30 and 48 hours of growth.