Tukhtaboyeva Yu.A., Redkina V.V.,  Bukin Yu.S., Temraleyeva A.D. CYANOBACTERIA AND ALGAL DIVERSITY IN ERODED SOILS OF THE FERGANA VALLEY (UZBEKISTAN) AS DETERMINED BY LIGHT MICROSCOPY AND HIGH-THROUGHPUT SEQUENCING // Arid Ecosystems. 2025. Vol. 31. № 2 (103). P. 126-141. | PDF

In this study, the taxonomic compositions of cyanobacterial and algal communities in eroded soils of the Fergana Valley (Uzbekistan) are compared for the first time using morphological analysis and microbiological profiling.

Characteristic features of the algal flora of the Rezoksaisky Ravines, compared to those of the Levy Hills, is the presence of yellow-green algae, the absence of heterocytic cyanobacteria capable of nitrogen fixation, an increased proportion of monadic forms and/or algae capable of zoosporogenesis, and an overall lower taxonomic richness and algae diversity. We determined that light microscopy used along with high-throughput sequencing partially confirms the fact of cyanobacteria and algae diversity in the studied soils, but only detects half of the taxa. However, the presence of yellow-green algae was confirmed exclusively by light microscopy instead of metabarcoding. Using the V3-V4 of the chloroplast 16S rRNA gene, we identified additional genera of green algae, including Edaphochlorella, Pseudomuriella, and Watanabea, as well as diatoms of the genera Bacillaria, Fistulifera, and Entomoneis, and the charophyte alga Klebsormidium. However, approximately 20% of algae remain unidentified due to the lack of ITS2 reference sequences for green microalgae in genetic databases.

Funding. This study was funded by the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation (122040100065-3).

Keywords: algal flora, foothill zone, gray soils, morphology, DNA metabarcoding, V3-V4 16S rRNA, ITS2.

DOI: 10.24412/1993-3916-2025-2-126-141

EDN: PQOPFO