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Despite the widely observed predominance of Cand. Patescibacteria in subsurface communities, their input source and ecophysiology are poorly understood. Here we study mechanisms of the formation of a groundwater microbiome and the subsequent differentiation of Cand. Patescibacteria. In the Hainich Critical Zone Exploratory, Germany, we trace the input of microorganisms from forested soils of preferential recharge areas through fractured aquifers along a 5.4 km hillslope well transect. Cand. Patescibacteria were preferentially mobilized from soils and constituted 66% of species-level OTUs shared between seepage and shallow groundwater. These OTUs, mostly related to Cand. Kaiserbacteraceae, Cand. Nomurabacteraceae, and unclassified UBA9983 at the family level, represented a relative abundance of 71.4% of the Cand. Patescibacteria community at the shallowest groundwater well, and still 44.4% at the end of the transect. Several Cand. Patescibacteria subclass-level groups exhibited preferences for different conditions in the two aquifer assemblages investigated: Cand. Kaiserbacteraceae surprisingly showed positive correlations with oxygen concentrations, while Cand. Nomurabacteraceae were negatively correlated. Co-occurrence network analysis revealed a central role of Cand. Patescibacteria in the groundwater microbial communities and pointed to potential associations with specific organisms, including abundant autotrophic taxa involved in nitrogen, sulfur and iron cycling. Strong associations among Cand. Patescibacteria themselves further suggested that for many groups within this phylum, distribution was mainly driven by conditions commonly supporting a fermentative life style without direct dependence on specific hosts. We propose that import from soil, and community differentiation driven by hydrochemical conditions, including the availability of organic resources and potential hosts, determine the success of Cand. Patescibacteria in groundwater environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Structures of colloidal compounds in soil, including organo–mineral and mineral–mineral associations, are considered as composite building units (CBUs) that may combine into soil microaggregates. Despite the ubiquitous occurrence of CBUs, the major formation mechanisms are rather obscure and little is known about whether they form primarily during weathering of the parent rocks or by aggregation processes from the soil suspension. We studied the formation of CBUs from suspensions composed of minerals and organic matter typical for temperate soils (i.e. quartz, goethite, illite and extracellular polymeric substances [EPS]). Without EPS, we found CBUs formed as mineral–mineral associations by hetero coagulation of illite and quartz that is bridged by goethite. The presence of EPS, in contrast, led to the formation of a stable suspension of clay‐sized CBUs with no involvement of quartz. We explained this by the rapid formation of organo–mineral CBUs made of EPS‐associated goethite and EPS‐associated illite. The sorption of EPS to goethite screened its surface charge, thereby reducing the electrostatic attraction between goethite and illite. This interaction effectively impeded the formation of mineral–mineral CBUs. Moreover, interactions of EPS with goethite resulted in a marked decrease of the phosphorus/carbon ratio in the suspension. This suggested a preferred adsorption of phosphorus‐containing EPS constituents to goethite and in turn to a compositional fractionation of EPS constituents between the solid and liquid phase as shown by Fourier‐transform infrared spectroscopy with attenuated total reflection (FTIR–ATR). Laser light diffraction measurements revealed a shift from the fine silt fraction to that of the fine sand that also supports the role of EPS as a 'binding' agent. Highlights: Composite building units (CBUs) form in suspensions with different mineral and organic components.Both, hetero mineral–mineral and organo–mineral CBUs were formed.The initial composition of the suspension controls type and properties of resulting CBUs.Depending on the mineral surfaces, EPS may serve as a separation or binding agent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The fate of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) is known to depend on the release and redistribution of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and particles. We studied the release of PAH, DOC, and particles up to a size of 200 µm with column outflow experiments using gravelly soil material. The material was collected at an abandoned industrial tar-oil contaminated site. To detect rate-limited release, the experiments were performed at two different mean pore water velocities, while multiple flow-interrupts were imposed. Effluent was analyzed for DOC, pH, electrical conductivity, turbidity, and particles larger than <0.7 µm after filtration. The 16 Environmental Protection Agency PAHs were analyzed in the filtrate and in the particle fraction. Upon onset of flow large initial effluent concentrations were found for DOC, particles, turbidity, and particle-associated PAHs. This so-called first-flush export levelled off after a few pore volumes had been exchanged. The release of DOC and PAH in the filtrate was strongly rate limited. Measured PAH concentrations differed markedly from those calculated by Raoult's law. Equilibrium dissolution seems to be of minor importance for the studied materials. Particle release as well as the release of particle-associated PAHs was dependent on the flow velocity. However, effluent concentrations decreased significantly during no-flow conditions due to sedimentation of larger particles. At the lower flow velocity, 33% of the total PAHs were found in the retentate (66% in the filtrate), while at the higher flow velocity the amount of particle-associated PAH increased to 42%. The comparison of the PAH pattern in the filtrate and the retentate suggests that PAH transport takes place predominantly in the form of small NAPL droplets or fragments. The strong correlation of DOC with the PAH in the filtrate implies a marked influence of DOC on PAH transport. From these findings we conclude that PAH release and transport at contaminated sites is affected by three processes, i.e., (i) first-flush export, (ii) detachment of particle-associated PAHs due to hydraulic mobilization and (iii) the rate-limited release of particles and particle/colloid-associated PAHs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mobile organic sorbents (MOS) such as dissolved and colloidal phase organic matter control flow of water and transport of solutes in soils. We studied the effect of MOS on contaminant fate by systematic numerical case studies. The scenarios considered were (i) enhanced mobility, (ii) reduced mobility due to cosorption, and (iii) reduced mobility due to cumulative sorption. The enhanced mobility and cosorption scenario require contaminant sorption to the MOS. The cosorption and cumulative sorption scenario require sorption of MOS to the immobile sorbent. Simulations were run for physicochemically different fractions of dissolved organic matter and two model contaminants. Mobile organic sorbents mobility is characterized by a wide range of retardation parameters. Continued import of MOS to subsoil material high in MOS-specific sorption sites will increase the solid phase organic matter content. Enhanced mobility was observed for soils without MOS-specific sorption sites or for situations where MOS are in sorptive equilibrium with the immobile sorbent. Cosorption resulted in reduced contaminant mobility. The extent to which reduced mobility was observed depended on the ratio of the affinities of the free contaminant and the MOS-bound contaminant. As the sorption of the MOS-bound contaminants is controlled by the properties of the MOS, the characterization of these properties is a crucial step for the estimation of the effect of MOS on contaminant mobility. Cumulative sorption resulted in reduced contaminant mobility as well. However, this result is the consequence of the increase of the sorption capacity due to the sorption of MOS, a long-term process that may last for years to decades. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]