Research Article

Investigation of Prokaryotic Diversity in Giresun Blue Lake and Examination of Certain Industrially Significant Enzyme Activities in Cultivable Isolates

Volume: 47 Number: 1 February 27, 2026

Investigation of Prokaryotic Diversity in Giresun Blue Lake and Examination of Certain Industrially Significant Enzyme Activities in Cultivable Isolates

Abstract

Blue Lake, a newly discovered soda lake in Giresun Province, Türkiye, is characterized by alkaline water and moderate salinity, creating a unique and unexplored habitat for microorganisms. This study aimed to investigate the prokaryotic diversity of Blue Lake using both culture-dependent and culture-independent approaches and to evaluate the industrial enzyme-producing potential of the cultivable isolates. Physicochemical properties of water and sediment samples were analyzed, followed by 16S rRNA gene-based metagenomic sequencing and conventional cultivation techniques. Metagenomic analyses revealed a highly diverse prokaryotic community comprising 52 phyla and 311 species, with Proteobacteria being the dominant phylum (65.79 ± 4.94%) and Gammaproteobacteria being the most abundant class (46.58 ± 5.18%). Acinetobacter was identified as the predominant genus, while Sphingobacterium multivorum was the most prevalent species. A total of 87 bacterial isolates were obtained using culture-dependent methods, several of which exhibited significant enzymatic activities, including protease, lipase, amylase, cellulase, chitinase, and pectinase production. The presence of enzyme-producing alkaliphilic and halotolerant bacteria highlights the biotechnological and environmental potential of Blue Lake. This study provides the first integrated metagenomic and cultivation-based characterization of the prokaryotic ecosystem of Blue Lake, contributing valuable insights into soda lake microbiomes and their industrial relevance.

Keywords

Supporting Institution

Karadeniz Technical University

Project Number

Project No: FBA-2023-10956

Thanks

This study was financially supported by Karadeniz Technical University (Project No: FBA-2023-10956).

References

  1. [1] Nyakeri, E. M., Mwirichia, R., & Boga, H. (2018). Isolation and characterization of enzyme-producing bacteria from Lake Magadi, an extreme soda lake in Kenya. Journal of Microbiology & Experimentation, 6(2), 57–68. https://doi.org/10.15406/jmen.2018.06.00189
  2. [2] Groth, I., Schumann, P., Rajney, F. A., Martin, K., Schuetze, B., & Augsten, K. (1997). Bogoriella caseilytica gen. nov., sp. nov., a new alkaliphilic actinomycete from a soda lake in Africa. International Journal of Systematic Bacteriology, 47(3), 788–794. https://doi.org/10.1099/00207713-47-3-788
  3. [3] Zargar, K., Hoeft, S., Oremland, R., & Saltikov, C. W. (2010). Identification of a novel arsenite oxidase gene, arxA, in the haloalkaliphilic, arsenite-oxidizing bacterium Alkalilimnicola ehrlichii strain MLHE-1. Journal of Bacteriology, 192(14), 3755–3762. https://doi.org/10.1128/JB.00244-10
  4. [4] Sorokin, D. Y., Berben, T., Melton, E. D., Overmars, L., Vavourakis, C. D., & Muyzer, G. (2014). Microbial diversity and biogeochemical cycling in soda lakes. Extremophiles, 18(5), 791–809. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00792-014-0670-9
  5. [5] Zorz, J. K., Sharp, C., Kleiner, M., Gordon, P. M. K., Pon, R. T., & Dong, X. (2019). A shared core microbiome in soda lakes separated by large distances. Nature Communications, 10(1), 4230. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-019-12195-5
  6. [6] Asao, M., Pinkart, H. C., & Madigan, M. T. (2011). Diversity of extremophilic purple phototrophic bacteria in Soap Lake, a Central Washington (USA) soda lake. Environmental Microbiology, 13(8), 2146–2157. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1462-2920.2011.02449.x
  7. [7] Lanzén, A., Simachew, A., Gessesse, A., Chmolowska, D., Jonassen, I., & Øvreås, L. (2013). Surprising prokaryotic and eukaryotic diversity, community structure and biogeography of Ethiopian soda lakes. PLoS ONE, 8(8), e72577. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0072577
  8. [8] Soufi, H. H., Tran, D., & Louca, S. (2024). Microbiology of Big Soda Lake, a multi-extreme meromictic volcanic crater lake in the Nevada Desert. Environmental Microbiology, 26(1), e16578. https://doi.org/10.1111/1462-2920.16578

Details

Primary Language

English

Subjects

Bioinformatics and Computational Biology (Other), Microbial Ecology

Journal Section

Research Article

Publication Date

February 27, 2026

Submission Date

July 16, 2025

Acceptance Date

January 27, 2026

Published in Issue

Year 2026 Volume: 47 Number: 1

APA
Gençer, D., Yeşilyurt, A., Ceylan, E., Çanakçı, S., Nalcacioglu, R., & Katı, H. (2026). Investigation of Prokaryotic Diversity in Giresun Blue Lake and Examination of Certain Industrially Significant Enzyme Activities in Cultivable Isolates. Cumhuriyet Science Journal, 47(1), 34-43. https://doi.org/10.17776/csj.1744308
AMA
1.Gençer D, Yeşilyurt A, Ceylan E, Çanakçı S, Nalcacioglu R, Katı H. Investigation of Prokaryotic Diversity in Giresun Blue Lake and Examination of Certain Industrially Significant Enzyme Activities in Cultivable Isolates. CSJ. 2026;47(1):34-43. doi:10.17776/csj.1744308
Chicago
Gençer, Dönüş, Aydın Yeşilyurt, Esma Ceylan, Sabriye Çanakçı, Remziye Nalcacioglu, and Hatice Katı. 2026. “Investigation of Prokaryotic Diversity in Giresun Blue Lake and Examination of Certain Industrially Significant Enzyme Activities in Cultivable Isolates”. Cumhuriyet Science Journal 47 (1): 34-43. https://doi.org/10.17776/csj.1744308.
EndNote
Gençer D, Yeşilyurt A, Ceylan E, Çanakçı S, Nalcacioglu R, Katı H (February 1, 2026) Investigation of Prokaryotic Diversity in Giresun Blue Lake and Examination of Certain Industrially Significant Enzyme Activities in Cultivable Isolates. Cumhuriyet Science Journal 47 1 34–43.
IEEE
[1]D. Gençer, A. Yeşilyurt, E. Ceylan, S. Çanakçı, R. Nalcacioglu, and H. Katı, “Investigation of Prokaryotic Diversity in Giresun Blue Lake and Examination of Certain Industrially Significant Enzyme Activities in Cultivable Isolates”, CSJ, vol. 47, no. 1, pp. 34–43, Feb. 2026, doi: 10.17776/csj.1744308.
ISNAD
Gençer, Dönüş - Yeşilyurt, Aydın - Ceylan, Esma - Çanakçı, Sabriye - Nalcacioglu, Remziye - Katı, Hatice. “Investigation of Prokaryotic Diversity in Giresun Blue Lake and Examination of Certain Industrially Significant Enzyme Activities in Cultivable Isolates”. Cumhuriyet Science Journal 47/1 (February 1, 2026): 34-43. https://doi.org/10.17776/csj.1744308.
JAMA
1.Gençer D, Yeşilyurt A, Ceylan E, Çanakçı S, Nalcacioglu R, Katı H. Investigation of Prokaryotic Diversity in Giresun Blue Lake and Examination of Certain Industrially Significant Enzyme Activities in Cultivable Isolates. CSJ. 2026;47:34–43.
MLA
Gençer, Dönüş, et al. “Investigation of Prokaryotic Diversity in Giresun Blue Lake and Examination of Certain Industrially Significant Enzyme Activities in Cultivable Isolates”. Cumhuriyet Science Journal, vol. 47, no. 1, Feb. 2026, pp. 34-43, doi:10.17776/csj.1744308.
Vancouver
1.Dönüş Gençer, Aydın Yeşilyurt, Esma Ceylan, Sabriye Çanakçı, Remziye Nalcacioglu, Hatice Katı. Investigation of Prokaryotic Diversity in Giresun Blue Lake and Examination of Certain Industrially Significant Enzyme Activities in Cultivable Isolates. CSJ. 2026 Feb. 1;47(1):34-43. doi:10.17776/csj.1744308

As of 2026, Cumhuriyet Science Journal will be published in six issues per year, released in February, April, June, August, October, and December