16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing of pristine or PFAS contaminated soil originating from Brilon-Scharfenberg (Germany)

Many potentially harmful substances are applied to agricultural soils via compost/biosolids mixtures. Here, the microbial community in a per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) contaminated agricultural sites in Germany (Brilon-Scharfenberg, North Rhine-Westphalia: BS-NRW) was investigated. Biotransformation of PFAS substances seemed widespread in aerobic environments such as aerobic soils, as investigated here. The aim of the study was to identify microbes that are PFAS resistant or impacted by the presence of PFAS. Pristine or contaminated soil was incubated for 60 days and samples were taken in the beginning (0 days), after 28 days and at the end of the study (60 days). Microbial 16S rRNA genes were amplified using primers 515F and 806R targeting the V4 region, and subsequently library preparation with Nextera 2nd step PCR and sequencing on Illumina MiSeq, v2, 2x250 bp were performed.