Soil Bacterial Communities Exhibit Strong Biogeographic Patterns at Fine Taxonomic Resolution

• DOI: 10.1128/msystems.00540-20
• Publication Date: 2020-07-20T14:24:10Z
• Authors: Sean K. Bay; Melodie A. McGeoch; Osnat Gillor; Nimrod Wieler; David J. Palmer; David J. Baker; Steven L. Chown; Chris Greening
• Keywords: Underpinning; Multicellular organism; Variation (astronomy)

It is commonly thought that bacterial distributions show lower spatial variation than for multicellular organisms. In this article, we present evidence these inferences are artifacts caused by methodological limitations. Through leveraging innovations in sampling design, sequence processing, and diversity analysis, provide multifaceted communities fact exhibit strong distribution patterns. This driven selection due to factors such as local soil characteristics. Altogether, findings suggest the processes underpinning patterns more unified across all domains of life previously thought, which has broad implications understanding management biodiversity.