Amazonian rainforest bioaerosol influenced by African dust intrusion
Abstract
Biological particles are an important but poorly understood component of Amazonian aerosols, having impacts on ecosystems, climate and human health. Here, we show that African dust plumes transport microbial communities across the Atlantic into the Amazon rainforest. We characterize the bacterial, fungal, and archaeal communities at 42 and 323 m above ground at the Amazon Tall Tower Observatory, both during background conditions and a five-day North African dust intrusion. Under background conditions, bacterial communities vary with height and time, reflecting diverse local and transported sources, whereas fungal communities remain stable and are dominated by locally produced fungi. During the dust intrusion, bacterial communities shift strongly towards microorganisms associated with dryland soils, biological soil crusts, and marine environments, while fungal communities remain unchanged. Additionally, airborne endotoxin concentrations increase threefold, without enriching obligate pathogens. Our findings demonstrate that African dust is not only a mineral nutrient source but also a vector of intercontinental microbial transport, with potential consequences for ecosystem functioning, atmospheric processes and human health.
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BibTeX
@article{weber2026amazonian,
title = {{Amazonian rainforest bioaerosol influenced by African dust intrusion}},
author = {Jens Weber and Isabella Hrabe de Angelis and Sebastian Brill and Cybelli G. G. Barbosa and Michal T. Chilinski and Kalliopi Violaki and Stefanie Maier and Petya Yordanova and Rodrigo Paidano Alves and Cleo Q. Dias-Junior and Alessandro Araújo and Janine Fröhlich-Nowoisky and Paulo Artaxo and Ricardo H. M. Godoi and Ulrich Pöschl and Christopher Pöhlker and Bettina Weber},
journal = {Communications Earth \& Environment},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.1038/s43247-026-04119-1},
url = {https://www.nature.com/articles/s43247-026-04119-1},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Amazonian rainforest bioaerosol influenced by African dust intrusion
AU - Jens Weber
AU - Isabella Hrabe de Angelis
AU - Sebastian Brill
AU - Cybelli G. G. Barbosa
AU - Michal T. Chilinski
AU - Kalliopi Violaki
AU - Stefanie Maier
AU - Petya Yordanova
AU - Rodrigo Paidano Alves
AU - Cleo Q. Dias-Junior
AU - Alessandro Araújo
AU - Janine Fröhlich-Nowoisky
AU - Paulo Artaxo
AU - Ricardo H. M. Godoi
AU - Ulrich Pöschl
AU - Christopher Pöhlker
AU - Bettina Weber
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/27
JO - Communications Earth & Environment
DO - 10.1038/s43247-026-04119-1
UR - https://www.nature.com/articles/s43247-026-04119-1
AB - Biological particles are an important but poorly understood component of Amazonian aerosols, having impacts on ecosystems, climate and human health. Here, we show that African dust plumes transport microbial communities across the Atlantic into the Amazon rainforest. We characterize the bacterial, fungal, and archaeal communities at 42 and 323 m above ground at the Amazon Tall Tower Observatory, both during background conditions and a five-day North African dust intrusion. Under background conditions, bacterial communities vary with height and time, reflecting diverse local and transported sources, whereas fungal communities remain stable and are dominated by locally produced fungi. During the dust intrusion, bacterial communities shift strongly towards microorganisms associated with dryland soils, biological soil crusts, and marine environments, while fungal communities remain unchanged. Additionally, airborne endotoxin concentrations increase threefold, without enriching obligate pathogens. Our findings demonstrate that African dust is not only a mineral nutrient source but also a vector of intercontinental microbial transport, with potential consequences for ecosystem functioning, atmospheric processes and human health.
SN - 2662-4435
ER -