Although stone surfaces seem unlikely to be habitable, they support microbial life. Life on these surfaces are subjected to many varying harsh conditions and require the inhabitants to exhibit resistance to environmental factors including UV irradiation, toxic metal exposure, and fluctuating temperatures and humidity. Here we report the effect of hosting stone geochemistry on the microbiome of stone ruins found in Tamil Nadu, India. The microbial communities found on the two lithologies, granite and granodiorite, hosted distinct populations of bacteria. Geochemical composition analysis of sampled stones revealed quartz mineral content as a major driver of microbial community structure, particularly promoting community richness and proportions of Cyanobacteria and Deinococcus-Thermus. Other geochemical parameters including ilmenite, albite, anorthite, and orthoclase components or elemental concentrations (Ti, Fe, Mn, Na, and K) also influenced community structure to a lesser degree than quartz. Core members of the stone microbiome community found on both lithologies were also identified and included Cyanobacteria (Chroococcidiopsaceae and Dapisostemonum CCIBt 3536), Rubrobacter, and Deinococcus. A cluster of taxa including Sphingomonas, Geodermatophilus, and Truepera were mostly found in the granodiorite samples. Community diversity correlated with quartz mineral content in these samples may indicate that the microbial communities that attach to quartz surfaces may be transient and regularly changing. This work has expanded our understanding of built-stone microbial community structure based on lithology and geochemistry.

尽管石材表面似乎不太适合居住，但它们可支持微生物生活。这些表面上的生命要经受许多不同的恶劣条件，并要求居民表现出对环境因素的抵抗力，包括紫外线辐射，有毒金属暴露以及温度和湿度的波动。在这里，我们报告了在印度泰米尔纳德邦发现石头地球化学对石头废墟微生物组的影响。在两种岩性（花岗岩和花岗闪长岩）上发现的微生物群落具有不同的细菌种群。采样石头的地球化学成分分析表明，石英矿物含量是微生物群落结构的主要驱动力，特别是促进了群落丰富度以及蓝细菌和嗜热球菌-热菌的比例。其他地球化学参数包括钛铁矿，钠长石，钙长石，正长石成分或元素浓度（Ti，Fe，Mn，Na和K）对群落结构的影响程度也比石英小。还确定了在两种岩性中发现的石头微生物组群落的核心成员，包括蓝细菌（Croococcicidiopsaceae和Dapisostemonum CCIBt 3536），红杆菌和Deinococcus。类群包括的簇鞘氨醇，Geodermatophilus和Truepera花岗闪长岩样品中大多发现。这些样品中与石英矿物含量相关的群落多样性可能表明，附着在石英表面的微生物群落可能是短暂的且有规律地变化。这项工作扩大了我们对基于岩性和地球化学的人造石微生物群落结构的了解。