Originality-Significance Statement
The Taklimakan Desert is the largest desert in China and the
second-largest mobile desert in the world. The detailed microbial
ecology of the Taklimakan Desert has been poorly investigated to date.
Therefore, a comprehensive investigation is necessary for the taxonomic
diversity of bacterial communities in the Taklimakan Desert. This work
investigated the physicochemical parameters and bacterial communities of
48 sand samples along to altitude gradient.
The obtained taxonomic data revealed
significant differences in the relative abundance of bacterial
communities and populations among the samples. Altitude and pH were the
primary factors that shaped the bacterial communities in the desert.
Studying bacterial diversity and community assembly processes along an
altitude gradient are necessary for deeply understanding the fundamental
ecological processes in desert ecosystems.