Maurizio Mainiero

Volatilized ammonia supports extremophilic cave ecosystems with unusual nitrogen isotopic signatures

The paper shows that ammonia volatilization and trapping in sulfidic caves provides a key nitrogen source for microbial biofilms and their associated ecosystems, leading to extreme nitrogen isotope depletion.

Microbial ecology of acidic, biogenic gypsum: Community structure and distribution of extremophiles on freshly formed and relict sulfate deposits in a hydrogen sulfide-rich cave

The paper characterizes microbial communities on acidic gypsum deposits in a sulfuric acid cave, finding differences in community structure between freshly formed and older deposits based on environmental conditions.

Metagenomic insights into an enigmatic gammaproteobacterium that is important for carbon cycling in cave ecosystems worldwide

The paper identifies a Gammaproteobacterium, wb1-P19, as a methanotroph involved in carbon cycling in caves, challenging previous assumptions about its metabolic capabilities.