Salinity shapes the microbial communities in surface sediments of the salt lakes in the Tibetan Plateau, China

Due to its special climate, complex and changeable terrain and far from human settlements, lakes in the region span a diverse range of environmental conditions and are not susceptible to human beings. Based on the role of microorganisms in lake ecosystems, it is of great significance to study the response of microorganisms to environmental variables for understanding the adaptation and evolution of microorganisms in the natural environment. However, little is known about the composition and distribution of microbial communities in surface sediments and their responses to environmental and spatial factors (such as salinity and geographical distance). In this study, Illumina MiSeq high-throughput sequencing was used to study the microbial diversity and community structure of surface sediments from 12 lakes on the Tibetan Plateau, the microbial data were statistically analyzed in combination with environmental variables as well.