Abstract: The essay was aimed at exploring the characteristics of prokaryotic diversity and its relation with the properties of the sediments at the estuary of Hangzhou Bay. The DNA sequences of 16S rRNA gene at the V3-V4 region were analyzed with the Illumina Miseq high-throughput sequencing platform. The results showed that 1118 genera, 688 families, 419 orders, 210 classes and 65 phyla were found in the 13 samples, and the average of Shannon-Wiener diversity index reached 9.72. The dominant prokaryotes were Proteobacteria, Choloroflexi, Bacteroidetes at the phylum level, with the relative abundance of Proteobacteria being the highest among those of the 13 samples. The abundances of the Firmicutes in samples from the south bank of Hangzhou Bay were higher than that of the north bank. Compared to the Shangyu industrial zone, samples from Jinshan Industrial Zone could be found higher abundance of β-Proteobacteria but the lower abundance of γ-Proteobacteria. There was significant correlation between the abundances of Bacteroidetes and β-Proteobacteria and total organic carbon (TOC), and the abundances of Bacteroidetes, Actinobacteria and Acidobacteria were significantly impacted by pH. The contents of Fe and As were significantly correlated with the abundances of α-Proteobacteria, GN04 and Cholorobi respectively, while Mn and Cu were significantly correlated with GN04 and Spirochaetes, respectively.Therefore, the characteristics of prokaryotic diversity in the sediments at the estuary of Hangzhou Bay could be analyzed by the method of high-throughput sequencing. Furthermore, the relationships between the environmental factors and the prokaryotic diversity could be illustrated.

Key words: sediment, prokaryotic diversity, 16S rRNA gene, high-throughput sequencing, Estuary of Hangzhou Bay