Microbial Communities of the Central Asian Lakes as Indicators of Climatic and Ecological Changes in the Region

Central Asia is one of the world largest regions, which has been relatively poorly studied from the microbiological point of view. The lakes of this region have a broad range of ecological conditions, from lowmineral to hypersaline ones. Long-term observations revealed that microbial communities of these lakes reflect the climatic and ecological changes in this region. Genomic research showed that some microbial species were found only in Central Asian lakes, but not in other regions of the world. The combination of these factors makes Central Asian lakes a promising subject for microbiological investigation.