Raw sequence data and OTU tables of soil microorganisms obtained across a summit in the Lesotho highlands

Mountain regions represent unique environments characterized by strong
topographical diversity which drive climatic and environmental variability
within these environments. These regions thus provide an opportunity to
explore the relationships between various environmental factors and soil
microorganisms. In this study, we investigated the impact of
micro-topographical (i.e., north/south-facing slope aspects and flat
plateau between them) variations on microbial diversity and community
structures across a Lesotho mountain summit. Raw sequenced data were
generated using the Illumina MiSeq platform on DNA extracted from soil
samples collected across the plateau, north- and south-facing slopes. This
data was then used for taxonomic classification of the bacterial and
fungal OTUs for the determination of the alpha- and beta-diversity across
the slopes. These analyses revealed that a relatively greater bacterial
and fungal diversity could be observed for the north-facing slope compared
to the south-facing slope and plateau. While there was no difference in
group variance of bacterial and fungal community structures across the
plateau, north- and south-facing slopes. Multiple comparison analyses were
conducted to determine the impact of various abiotic and geographical
factors on bacterial and fungal diversity and community structures. These
analyses indicated that the slope aspect significantly affects bacterial
and fungal community structures at this location. These results provide an
original insight into soil microbial diversity in the Lesotho highlands
and offer an opportunity to investigate the response of soil
microorganisms to changes in environmental and climatic factors in highly
variable mountain environments such as the Lesotho highlands.