Hidden Partners in Diversity: Acidobacteriota and Their Distribution in the Cape Floristic Region
Janca Pieters, Karin Jacobs, Tersia Andrea Conradie

TL;DR
This study explores the diversity and distribution of Acidobacteriota in nutrient-poor soils of the Cape Floristic Region, revealing their links to soil properties and highlighting their ecological significance.
Contribution
The study reports the first detection of Acidobacteriota subdivisions 22 and 17 in fynbos soils and identifies their associations with soil abiotic factors.
Findings
Subdivision 1 of Acidobacteriota was the most dominant in both reserves, with significant differences in abundance.
Distinct community compositions were observed between the two reserves, influenced by soil pH, moisture, phosphate, and enzyme activities.
Positive and negative correlations were found between Acidobacteriota subdivisions and various soil properties.
Abstract
The Cape Floristic Region, a biodiversity hotspot in South Africa, is characterised by acidic, nutrient‐poor soils and distinctive fynbos vegetation. Despite the ecological importance and metabolic versatility of Acidobacteriota, their diversity and functional roles in fynbos soils remain poorly understood. This study investigated the diversity and abundance of Acidobacteriota in two nature reserves, Jonkershoek and Kogelberg, and the influence of soil abiotic factors and enzyme activities on their distribution and composition at the subdivision (SD) level. A total of 26 bulk soil samples were collected, and the V1–V9 regions of the 16S rRNA gene were sequenced using the Oxford Nanopore platform. The mean relative abundance of Acidobacteriota ranged from 1.5% to 36.25%. Subdivision 1 was the most dominant, with relative abundances of 66.96 ± 8.96% in Kogelberg Nature Reserve and 30.35 ±…
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Taxonomy
TopicsSoil Carbon and Nitrogen Dynamics · Biocrusts and Microbial Ecology · Legume Nitrogen Fixing Symbiosis
