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4 páginas.- 14 referencias.- (This article belongs to the Special Issue Microbial Communities in Cultural Heritage and Their Control), This editorial focuses on the studies published within the present Special Issue presenting advances in the field of biodeterioration of cultural heritage caused by microbial communities with a particular focus on new methods for their elimination and control.

3 páginas.- 1 tabla.- 14 referencis, Pseudomonas sp. strain L5B5 is an antimicrobial-producing bacterium isolated from an air sample collected in a pyrite mine in Lousal, Portugal. Genomic analyses predicted genes involved in virulence factors. Here, we report the complete genome sequence of this bacterium, which consists of a circular chromosome with a length of 6,811,662 bp. Copyright © 2021 Gonzalez-Pimentel et al., Financial support was obtained through project 0483_PROBIOMA_5_E, cofinanced by the European Regional Development Fund within the framework of the INTERREG VA Spain-Portugal program (POCTEP), 2014 to 2020.

10 páginas.- 1 figuras.- 3 tablas.- 41 referencias.- One supplementary table and four supplementary figures are available with the online version of this article., A novel facultatively anaerobic, non-motile, Gram-stain-negative, non-endospore-forming alphaproteobacterium, strain 1011MAR3C25T, was isolated from a white biofilm colonizing the walls of the Andalusian show cave Gruta de las Maravillas (Huelva, Spain). Strain 1011MAR3C25T grew at 8–42 °C (optimum, 20–30 °C), at pH 5.0–9.0 (optimum, pH 5.0–6.0) and in the presence of 0–12 % (w/v) NaCl (optimum 3–5 %). Cells were catalase- and oxidase-positive. The strain grew heterotrophically with various carbon sources and chemoautotrophically with thiosulfate under aerobic conditions. Results of phylogenetic analysis showed that strain 1011MAR3C25T was related to Paracoccus saliphilus DSM 18447T and Paracoccus alkanivorans LMG 30882T (97.90 % and 97.32 % 16S rRNA sequence identity values, respectively). The major respiratory quinone was ubiquinone Q-10 and the predominant fatty acid was C18 : 1 ω7c. The polar lipid profile consisted of diphosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidylcholine, phosphatidylglycerol, an unidentified aminolipid, an unidentified glycolipid and an unidentified polar lipid. The DNA G+C content was 60.3 mol%. Based on a polyphasic taxonomic study it is proposed that strain 1011MAR3C25T (=CECT 9092T=LMG 29414T) represents a novel species of the genus Paracoccus, for which the name Paracoccus onubensis sp. nov. is proposed., This study was supported by project 0483_PROBIOMA_5_E, co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund within the framework of the Interreg V A Spain–Portugal program (POCTEP) 2014–2020

18 pág.- 3 figuras.- 3 tablas.- 96 referencias, Nerja Cave, Southern Spain, was revealed as an important biodiversity reservoir from which several novel species of Aspergillus were described. We carried out an aerobiological study in Nerja Cave to assess the origin of airborne fungi. This study quantified the fungi present in the air of ten representative halls covering the three sectors comprising the cave: Touristic Galleries, High Galleries, and New Galleries. Microclimatological monitoring allowed us to understand the dynamic of airborne fungi in two seasons of the year (winter and summer), corresponding to the strongest and the lowest cave ventilation, and to validate the influence that the transport of airborne fungi from outside may have on the cave itself. The data show that cold air enters in winter, as confirmed by the abundant presence of Aspergillus and Penicillium spores inside and outside the cave. In summer, the abundance of some fungi in the air of Nerja Cave, which are not detected outside, indicates a stagnation or low ventilation, and therefore, the concentration of fungal spores is maxima. The high occurrence of Cladosporium outside the cave and the scarce abundance inside support the cave stagnation in this season., This research was funded by Nerja Cave Foundation. This work is part of an Interdisciplinary Research Project for the conservation of Nerja Cave, authorized by the Ministry of Culture of the Andalusian Government.

Lava caves differ from karstic caves in their genesis and mineral composition. Subsurface microbiology of lava tube caves in Canary Islands, a volcanic archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean, is largely unknown. We have focused the investigation in a representative lava tube cave, Fuente de la Canaria Cave, in La Palma Island, Spain, which presents different types of speleothems and colored microbial mats. Four samples collected in this cave were studied using DNA next-generation sequencing and field emission scanning electron microscopy for bacterial identification, functional profiling, and morphological characterization. The data showed an almost exclusive dominance of Bacteria over Archaea. The distribution in phyla revealed a majority abundance of Proteobacteria (37,89%), followed by Actinobacteria, Acidobacteria and Candidatus Rokubacteria. These four phyla comprised a total relative abundance of 72,96%. The main ecological functions in the microbial communities were chemoheterotrophy, methanotrophy, sulfur and nitrogen metabolisms, and CO2 fixation; although other ecological functions were outlined. Genome annotations of the especially representative taxon Ga0077536 (about 71% of abundance in moonmilk) predicted the presence of genes involved in CO2 fixation, formaldehyde consumption, sulfur and nitrogen metabolisms, and microbially-induced carbonate precipitation. The detection of several putative lineages associated with C, N, S, Fe and Mn indicates that Fuente de la Canaria Cave basalts are colonized by metabolically diverse prokaryotic communities involved in the biogeochemical cycling of major elements., This work was supported by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness through projects CGL2013-41674-P, CGL2016-75590-P, PID2019-110603RB-I00, AEI/FEDER, UE and CSIC Open Access Publication Support Initiative through its Unit of Information Resources for Research (URICI).

13 páginas.- 4 figuras.- 3 tablas.- 60 referencias, The microbiota associated with vermiculations from karst caves is largely unknown. Vermiculations are enigmatic deposits forming worm-like patterns on cave walls all over the world. They represent a precious focus for geomicrobiological studies aimed at exploring both the microbial life of these ecosystems and the vermiculation genesis. This study comprises the first approach on the microbial communities thriving in Pertosa-Auletta Cave (southern Italy) vermiculations by next-generation sequencing. The most abundant phylum in vermiculations was Proteobacteria, followed by Acidobacteria > Actinobacteria > Nitrospirae > Firmicutes > Planctomycetes > Chloroflexi > Gemmatimonadetes > Bacteroidetes > Latescibacteria. Numerous less-represented taxonomic groups (< 1%), as well as unclassified ones, were also detected. From an ecological point of view, all the groups co-participate in the biogeochemical cycles in these underground environments, mediating oxidation-reduction reactions, promoting host rock dissolution and secondary mineral precipitation, and enriching the matrix in organic matter. Confocal laser scanning microscopy and field emission scanning electron microscopy brought evidence of a strong interaction between the biotic community and the abiotic matrix, supporting the role of microbial communities in the formation process of vermiculations., Open access funding provided by Università degli Studi di Salerno within the CRUI-CARE Agreement. This work was supported by Musei Integrati dell’Ambiente Foundation, by the Spanish project MINECO [CGL2016-75590-P] with European Regional Development Fund and by University of Salerno [ORSA197159].

20 páginas.- 13 figuras.- 1 tabla.- referencias.- The Supplementary Material for this article can be found online at: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/feart.2021.642667/full#supplementary-material .- This article is part of the Research Topic Cave Deposits: Processes, Approaches and Environmental Significance, Caves are dark subsurface environments with relatively constant temperatures that allow studying bio-mineralization processes and paleoenvironmental or climate changes in optimal conditions. In the extreme and oligotrophic cave environment, manganese patinas having stromatolite-like features are uncommon. Here we provide the first detailed mineralogical, geochemical, and microbiological investigation of fine-grained and poorly crystalline MnFe stromatolite-like wall patinas formed in a deep-cave environment in Italy. These mineralizations, about 3 mm thick, consist of an alternation of Mn-layers and Fe-lenses. We show that the microbial communities' composition is dominated by Mn-oxidizing bacteria, such as Bacillus, Flavobacterium, and Pseudomonas. Our multidisciplinary investigation, integrating data from different analytical techniques (i.e., optical microscopy, SEM-EDS, μXRF, XRPD, FT-IR, Raman spectroscopy, and DNA sequencing), revealed peculiar chemical, mineralogical, and biological features: 1) A cyclical oscillation of Mn and Fe along the growth of the patinas. We propose that this oscillation represents the shift between oxic and suboxic conditions related to different phases occurring during paleo-flood events; 2) A typical spatial distribution of mineralogy and oxidation state of Mn, bacterial imprints, detrital content, and stromatolite-like morphologies along the Mn-layers. We propose that this distribution is controlled by the local hydraulic regime of the paleo-floods, which, in turn, is directly related to the morphology of the wall surface. Under less turbulent conditions, the combination of clay mineral catalysis and biological oxidation produced vernadite, a poor-crystalline phyllomanganate with a low average oxidation state of Mn, and branched columnar stromatolite-like morphologies. On the other hand, under more turbulent conditions, the sedimentation of clay minerals and microbial communities' development are both inhibited. In this local environment, a lower oxidation rate of Mn2+ favored the formation of todorokite and/or ranciéite, two compounds with a high average oxidation state of Mn, and flat-laminated or columnar stromatolite-like morphologies., The Spanish project MINECO CGL 2016-75590-P with ERDF funds is gratefully acknowledged. LJ acknowledge funding from Fundação de Amparo a Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP) grant 2018/17061-6.

17 páginas.- 7 figuras.- 4 tablas.- referecias.- The Supplementary Material for this article can be found online at: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/feart.2020.586248/full#supplementary-material .- We acknowledge support of the publication fee by the CSIC Open Access Publication Support Initiative through its Unit of Information Resources for Research (URICI)., Morgana Cave is located in Val di Scerscen, Central Italian Alps. The cave opens at an altitude of 2,600 m a.s.l. close to the retreating glacier Vedretto di Scerscen, and its entrance was discovered 30 years ago hidden underneath the glacier. A characteristic of this cave is the occurrence of vermiculation deposits on the walls and ceiling. In general, the composition of the microbial communities in cave vermiculations is relatively unknown and rarely investigated. Here we present the data of a geomicrobiological study of vermiculations from an Alpine cave subjected to extreme climate conditions. The microbial communities were dominated by 13 main phyla of Bacteria, and contained a negligible percentage (, Funding was provided by the Spanish project MINECO CGL2016-75590-P with ERDF funds. The Rotary Club in Sondrio (Italy) also provided funds for sample analysis thanks to C. Mazza, M. Boccardi, and P. Nana, with the Municipality of Lanzada (S. Bardea) and the Istituto Mineralogico Valtellinese (I. Foianini) supporting the cave research project..- We acknowledge support of the publication fee by the CSIC Open Access Publication Support Initiative through its Unit of Information Resources for Research (URICI).

33 páginas.- 14 figuras.- 3 tablas.- 97 referencias.- Supporting information, Fetida Cave is an active sulfuric acid cave influenced by seawater, showing abundant microbial communities that organize themselves under three main different morphologies: water filaments, vermiculations and moonmilk deposits. These biofilms/deposits have different cave distribution, pH, macro- and microelement and mineralogical composition, carbon and nitrogen content. In particular, water filaments and vermiculations had circumneutral and slightly acidic pH, respectively, both had abundant organic carbon and high microbial diversity. They were rich in macro- and microelements, deriving from mineral dissolution, and, in the case of water filaments, from seawater composition. Vermiculations had different color, partly associated with their mineralogy, and unusual minerals probably due to trapping capacities. Moonmilk was composed of gypsum, poor in organic matter, had an extremely low pH (0–1) and low microbial diversity. Based on 16S rRNA gene analysis, the microbial composition of the biofilms/deposits included autotrophic taxa associated with sulfur and nitrogen cycles and biomineralization processes. In particular, water filaments communities were characterized by bacterial taxa involved in sulfur oxidation and reduction in aquatic, aphotic, microaerophilic/anoxic environments (Campylobacterales, Thiotrichales, Arenicellales, Desulfobacterales, Desulforomonadales) and in chemolithotrophy in marine habitats (Oceanospirillales, Chromatiales). Their biodiversity was linked to the morphology of the water filaments and their collection site. Microbial communities within vermiculations were partly related to their color and showed high abundance of unclassified Betaproteobacteria and sulfur-oxidizing Hydrogenophilales (including Sulfuriferula), and Acidiferrobacterales (including Sulfurifustis), sulfur-reducing Desulfurellales, and ammonia-oxidizing Planctomycetes and Nitrospirae. The microbial community associated with gypsum moonmilk showed the strong dominance (>60%) of the archaeal genus Thermoplasma and lower abundance of chemolithotrophic Acidithiobacillus, metal-oxidizing Metallibacterium, Sulfobacillus, and Acidibacillus. This study describes the geomicrobiology of water filaments, vermiculations and gypsum moonmilk from Fetida Cave, providing insights into the microbial taxa that characterize each morphology and contribute to biogeochemical cycles and speleogenesis of this peculiar seawater-influenced sulfuric acid cave. © 2019 D’Angeli et al., C work was supported by UNIBO (Ricerca Fondamentale e Orientata—RFO) and the Rectorate of UNIBO. Funding for microbial analyses was provided by Europlanet 2020 15-EPN1-029 and 17-EPN3-021 grants. Europlanet 2020 RI has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 654208. Further funding was provided by the Spanish project MINECO CGL2016-75590-P with ERDF funds.