Deterministic Processes Shape Abundant and Rare Bacterial Communities in Drinking Water

The deep mechanisms shaping bacterial assembly are a crucial challenge in drinking water ecosystem. However, much less is known about seasonal diversity distributions and assembly mechanisms of abundant and rare bacteria in drinking water. The combination of environmental variables and high-throughput 16S rRNA gene sequencing was conducted to examine the composition, assembly, co-occurrence patterns of abundant and rare bacteria from five drinking water sites across four seasons in one year in China. The results indicated that abundant taxa were mainly composed of Rhizobiales_UG1, Sphingomonadales_UG1, and Comamonadaceae, while rare taxa were Sphingomonadales_UG1, Rhizobiales_UG2, and Rhizobiales_UG1. The richness of rare bacteria was greater than that of abundant ones, and the richness had no differences among seasons. The beta diversity was significantly discrepant in abundant and rare communities and among seasons. Deterministic mechanism accounted for a larger contribution to abundant taxa than rare taxa. Furthermore, water temperature had higher effects on abundant microbiome than rare ones. Co-occurrence network analysis indicated that abundant taxa that occupied frequently in central positions had stronger effect on co-occurrence network. In our study, these results collectively suggested that rare bacteria respond to environmental variables with an analogical pattern to abundant counterparts (similar community assembly), but their ecological diversities, driving forces, and co-occurrence patterns were not equivalent in drinking water. [Graphics]

Automated summary

This study examined the distribution and assembly mechanisms of abundant and rare bacteria in drinking water across four seasons in China. High-throughput 16S rRNA gene sequencing and environmental variables were used to analyze composition, assembly, and co-occurrence patterns. The results showed that abundant taxa were mainly composed of Rhizobiales_UG1, Sphingomonadales_UG1, and Comamonadaceae, while rare taxa were Sphingomonadales_UG1, Rhizobiales_UG2, and Rhizobiales_UG1. Unique patterns were observed in the diversity, assembly, and co-occurrence of abundant and rare bacteria.