Rio de Janeiro Coastline

Although Brazil is well known for the great biodiversity within its flora and fauna, the microbial diversity has been poorly characterized. The geographic formation of Rio de Janeiro results in a combination of distinct environments near the coastal Atlantic Ocean, such as Atlantic rain forest, restingas, estuaries, bay areas, hypersaline lagoons and freshwater lakes. All together make the surrounding areas of Rio de Janeiro coastline a microbial diversity hotspot. These tropical regions are of enormous interest since they are considered an important source of novel and unique microorganisms for bioremediation and for biotechnological industries. However, the adjacent areas present either a deficient sewage treatment or/and a busy industrial park that can severely impact the environment. Therefore, the aim of this study is to characterize the microbial community and the functional diversity from pristine and contaminated aquatic environments from Rio de Janeiro coastline. Studying the microbial and functional distributions associated with environmental data, we will be able to identify the effect of environmental factors on the microbial community. This information will be useful to preserve the natural conditions of these tropical areas.

尽管巴西以其丰富的动植物生物多样性闻名于世，但学界对其微生物多样性的解析仍十分有限。里约热内卢的地理构造使其大西洋沿岸区域兼具多种独特生境，涵盖大西洋热带雨林、滨海沙丘植被带（restingas）、河口、海湾、高盐泻湖与淡水湖泊，上述生境共同使里约热内卢沿岸周边区域成为微生物多样性热点区域。这些热带区域具有极高的研究价值，因其被视为可用于生物修复与生物技术产业的新型独特微生物的重要来源，但该区域周边要么存在污水处理设施不完善的问题，要么毗邻繁忙的工业园区，或二者兼具，均会对环境造成严重破坏。因此，本研究旨在对里约热内卢沿岸原生与受污染水生环境中的微生物群落及其功能多样性进行解析与表征，通过结合环境数据开展微生物与功能分布特征研究，我们能够明确环境因子对微生物群落的影响机制，该研究成果将为保护这些热带区域的自然生态环境提供重要支撑。