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Metagenomic Identification And Classification Of The Mercury-Methylating Gene Hgca In Response To Water Table And Plant Functional Group Manipulations In Peat Soil, Madeline Peterson
Metagenomic Identification And Classification Of The Mercury-Methylating Gene Hgca In Response To Water Table And Plant Functional Group Manipulations In Peat Soil, Madeline Peterson
Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports
Methyl-mercury (MeHg) is a potent neurotoxin that threatens the health of humans and wildlife alike. Climate warming threatens to shift regional precipitation and climate regimes in peatland environments, which could destabilize northern peatlands and accelerate both Hg release from soil and MeHg production. Peatlands are among the leading hotspots for MeHg, yet little is known about the community composition or functional relationship of mercury-methylating microbes in response to varying environmental conditions. The recognized mercury-methylating genes responsible for this activity are the obligatory gene pair hgcA and hgcB. Metagenomic data from the full-factorial peatland mesocosm experiment PEATcosm was obtained to …