Microbial diversity in a vertical gradient_without_RNA_later Metagenome. uncultured prokaryote

High elevation ecosystems in high Andes are considered one of the most extreme environments on Earth, characterized by the presence of periglacial soils that may be analogous to the polar regions of Mars. Llullaillaco volcano (6739 masl) is located on the Chilean-Argentinian border. We studied the distribution of microorganisms in an altitude gradient, considering their polyextreme conditions. 21 soil samples were taken from 5100 masl to 6200 masl each 200 m (3 replicates per altitude) to analyze the microbial communities using the bacterial 16S rRNA gene (Illumina). Our analyses performed by MOTHUR showed a total of 652108 sequences and 24232 different OTUs. Moreover, we detected a total of 26 different phyla. We observed that the microbial structure based in nMDS analyses from 5100 to 5600 masl samples are similar in composition and abundance dominated mainly by Actinobacteria and Proteobacteria. Nevertheless, samples from 5800 to 6200 mals present specific niches dominated by Proteobacteria (6200 masl sample).