DOI: 10.5061/dryad.m63xsj431
title: Data from: Metataxonomy and pigments analyses unravel microbial diversity and the relevance of retinal-based photoheterotrophy at different salinities in the Odiel Salterns (SW, Spain)

description: In this work, metabarcoding of 16S and 18S rRNA gene coding sequences were
 employed to characterize the prokaryotic and eukaryotic communities across
 the salinity gradient (3.5, 7.8, 14.4, and 31.8% NaCl) in Odiel salterns,
 located in the city of Huelva (SW Spain). Coastal salterns are excellent
 environments to study the dynamics of the microbiota across the salinity
 gradient since we find from seawater, the most abundant ecosystem on
 Earth, to crystallization pools, one of the most extreme. Diverse harsh
 conditions converge in solar salterns, including high salt concentration,
 temperature, and solar irradiance. Most environmental factors are similar
 in the different ponds that comprise the salterns, excepting salinity,
 which increases through the series of ponds until reaching saturation
 concentrations. Understanding the microbiology of these ponds is important
 for the salt production process, given that this microbiota can physically
 affect the evaporation process and chemically interact with dissolved
 ions. In addition, these microorganisms are crucial in these ecosystems,
 supporting bird populations, and potentially a source of enzymes and
 useful carotenoids for many biotechnological applications.
description: Water samples were
 collected from four ponds of the Odiel salt flats with 3.5, 7.5, 15, and
 30% salinity. Fresh biomass was harvested from 2 L of each water sample by
 centrifugation at 19,800 ×g. The obtained pellet was used for the
 extraction of genomic DNA with the GeneJET Genomic Purification kit
 (Thermo Fisher Scientific, Waltham, MA, USA) following the manufacturer’s
 instructions. The genomic DNA was used as a template for PCR amplification
 of specific regions of 16S rRNA and 18S rRNA coding genes. The
 hypervariable region V3-V4 of the 16S rRNA coding gene was amplified by
 using the primer set 341F/806R, while the primer pair 1380F/1510R was used
 for the amplification of the region V9 of the 18S rRNA coding gene. PCR
 reactions were carried out with Phusion® High-Fidelity PCR Master Mix (New
 England Biolabs, MA, USA). PCR products were mixed in equal ratios and
 purified following the Qiagen Gel Extraction Kit (Qiagen, Germany).
 Purified PCR products were employed for the generation of libraries with
 NEBNext® UltraTM DNA Library Prep Kit for Illumina and quantified via
 Qubit and Q-PCR. Finally, amplicons were sequenced on the Illumina
 platform to generate paired-end raw reads. To keep the reliability of the
 data, quality controls were performed at each step of the procedure, from
 the raw DNA samples to the final data (Q&gt;36).
description: # Metataxonomy of the microbial population inhabiting Odiel saltern ponds
 (SW, Spain) along the salinity gradient
 [https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.m63xsj431](https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.m63xsj431) ## Description of the data and file structure Information about samples | | Location | Type of sample | Salinity (% w/v) | Primer | rRNA coding gene | Hypervariable region | | :------------- | :------------- | :------------- | :--------------- | :------ | :--------------- | :------------------- | | D4\_16S\_1.fq | Odiel Salterns | Water | 3.40% | Forward | 16S | V3-V4 | | D4\_16S\_2.fq | Odiel Salterns | Water | 3.40% | Reverse | 16S | V3-V4 | | D5\_16S\_1.fq | Odiel Salterns | Water | 7.7% | Forward | 16S | V3-V4 | | D5\_16S\_2.fq | Odiel Salterns | Water | 7.7% | Reverse | 16S | V3-V4 | | D6\_16S\_1.fq | Odiel Salterns | Water | 15% | Forward | 16S | V3-V4 | | D6\_16S\_2.fq | Odiel Salterns | Water | 15% | Reverse | 16S | V3-V4 | | D10\_16S\_1.fq | Odiel Salterns | Water | 30% | Forward | 16S | V3-V4 | | D10\_16S\_2.fq | Odiel Salterns | Water | 30% | Reverse | 16S | V3-V4 | | | | | | | | | | D4\_18S\_1.fq | Odiel Salterns | Water | 3.4% | Forward | 18S | V9 | | D4\_18S\_2.fq | Odiel Salterns | Water | 3.4% | Reverse | 18S | V9 | | D5\_18S\_1.fq | Odiel Salterns | Water | 7.7% | Forward | 18S | V9 | | D5\_18S\_2.fq | Odiel Salterns | Water | 7.7% | Reverse | 18S | V9 | | D6\_18S\_1.fq | Odiel Salterns | Water | 15% | Forward | 18S | V9 | | D6\_18S\_1.fq | Odiel Salterns | Water | 15% | Reverse | 18S | V9 | | D10\_18S\_1.fq | Odiel Salterns | Water | 30% | Forward | 18S | V9 | | D10\_18S\_2.fq | Odiel Salterns | Water | 30% | Reverse | 18S | V9 |