Culturable Thermophilic Cyanobacteria in the Hot Spring Gediz-Kutahya, Turkey

Abstract

Thermophilic cyanobacteria in the Gediz hot spring (92 degrees C) in Kutahya province, Turkey were isolated and identified according to the partial 16S rRNA gene region sequence. According to the result of a comparison of the 16S rRNA gene sequence of the obtained isolates with the gene bank, four operational taxonomic units (OTUs) were obtained. Filamentous isolates were collected in a single taxonomic group, and this taxonomic group was classified as Geitlerinema sp. previously obtained from the hot spring Eynal in Kutahya. Single-cell isolates were distributed within three different taxonomic units (OTUs) classified as Synechococcus sp. One of them formed the new OTU, which showed similarity below 97%. Upon examining the distribution of the obtained taxonomic units in the hot springs of the world, it was observed that Geitlerinema sp. matched with the isolates obtained from the hot springs in Italy, while Synechococcus sp. matched with the isolates obtained from the hot springs in Costa Rica, Tibet, Russia and Japan. It was understood with the current study conducted that the distribution of culturable cyanobacteria of the Gediz hot spring (92 degrees C), which is an extreme source in terms of temperature, in the world is limited, and further cultivation studies are required.