Shotgun metagenome of humic lakes

Shotgun metagenome of multiple layers of three different humic lakes. Thousands of stratified, net heterotrophic lakes dominate the boreal landscape, but besides their profound role as emitters of natural greenhouse gases, we have only glimpsed at the microbial functionality in these systems. Using shotgun metagenomics, we show that the functional potential differs among lake types with humic lakes possessing particularly high potential for carbon degradation. Most of the pathways exhibited oxygen and temperature dependent depth patterning coinciding with shifts in bacterial community composition, suggesting that stratification is a major factor in determining total lake metabolism