Potential effect of freshwater virus on the structure and activity of bacterial communities in the Marennes-Oléron bay (France).

12 páginas, 6 figuras, 2 tablas.Batch culture experiments using viral enrichment were conducted to test the response of a coastal bacterial community to autochthonous (i.e., co-existing) or allochthonous riverine viruses. The effects of viral infections on bacterial dynamics and activity were assessed by epifluorescence microscopy and thymidine incorporation, respectively, whereas the effect of viral infection on bacterial community composition was examined by polymerase chain reaction-single strand conformation polymorphism 16S ribosomal RNA fingerprinting. The percentages of high nucleic acid-containing cells, evaluated by flow cytometry, were significantly correlated (r 2 =0.91, n=12, p