Publication Details

Category Text Publication
Reference Category Journals
DOI 10.1038/s41598-026-42528-6
Licence creative commons licence
Title (Primary) The first high-throughput sequencing of bacterioplankton sheds light on bacterial and cyanobacterial diversity in high-altitude Lake Sevan, Armenia
Author Gevorgyan, G.; Khachikyan, T.; Mamyan, A.; Aghayan, S.; Belykh, O.; Rinke, K.; Schultze, M.; Lipko, I.; Kan, G.; Zimens, E.; Potapov, S.; Sorokovikova, E.; Krasnopeev, A.; Tikhonova, I.
Source Titel Scientific Reports
Year 2026
Department SEEFO
Volume 16
Page From art. 12480
Language englisch
Topic T5 Future Landscapes
Supplements Supplement 1
Keywords Lake Sevan; bacterioplankton; cyanobacteria; 16S rRNA gene sequencing; seasonal variation; genetic diversity
Abstract Lake Sevan, located in the Armenian Highlands, is one of the world’s largest high-altitude freshwater lakes (1900 m a.s.l.). Hydrobiological investigations in the lake have an almost century-long history; however, the bacterial diversity has never been studied. In this study, bacterioplankton composition in Lake Sevan has been characterized for the first time. The samples were collected from different depths at the deepest points of both subbasins, Big and Small Sevan, once per season in 2018 and analyzed genetically by high-throughput sequencing of the V3-V4 region of 16 S rRNA gene. According to the 16 S rRNA gene sequencing, the majority of the bacterioplankton consisted of well-known freshwater microorganisms of the phyla Pseudomonadota, Actinomycetota, Bacteroidota, Cyanobacteriota, and Candidatus Kapabacteria. Representatives from Verrucomicrobiota, Planctomycetota, Bdellovibrionota, Gemmatimonadota, Myxococcota, and other phyla were found sporadically or in minor abundance. Alpha diversity was generally high, except during the summer cyanobacterial bloom. Two types of cyanobacterial occurrence were identified: (1) filamentous, potentially harmful cyanobacteria, such as Dolichospermum flos-aquae, which bloomed in summer, and (2) autotrophic picocyanobacteria, primarily Synechococcus, which dominated the cyanobacterial community in spring, autumn, and winter. In addition, pathogenic bacteria were detected in the lake, including species pathogenic to fish and humans, as well as intracellular parasites.
Gevorgyan, G., Khachikyan, T., Mamyan, A., Aghayan, S., Belykh, O., Rinke, K., Schultze, M., Lipko, I., Kan, G., Zimens, E., Potapov, S., Sorokovikova, E., Krasnopeev, A., Tikhonova, I. (2026):
The first high-throughput sequencing of bacterioplankton sheds light on bacterial and cyanobacterial diversity in high-altitude Lake Sevan, Armenia
Sci. Rep. 16 , art. 12480
10.1038/s41598-026-42528-6