Endospore-forming bacteria as an indicator of pollution in sediments of Lake Geneva

Treated wastewater and runoff-water is released by the outlet of the sewage treatment plant of Vidy (Lausanne) directly into the Lake of Geneva via a pipe located 300m from the shore. Even if this water is properly treated with modern technologies, we can observe an accumulation of micro pollutants into the sediments, and particularly heavy-metals. The main objective of this project is to investigate how these elevated concentrations of heavy metals affect both abundance and diversity of prokaryotes in the sediments. A special emphasis was given to endospore-forming bacteria, which could use sporulation as a survival strategy to resist in highly contaminated areas. This study could have implications both for understanding the role of endospore-forming bacteria in the environment as well as in terms of improving the bioremediation processes.