scholarly journals Mechanisms of microbial carbon sequestration in the ocean – future research directions

2014 ◽  
Vol 11 (6) ◽  
pp. 7931-7990 ◽  
Author(s):  
N. Jiao ◽  
C. Robinson ◽  
F. Azam ◽  
H. Thomas ◽  
F. Baltar ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Carbon Sequestration ◽  
Organic Carbon ◽  
Spatial Scales ◽  
Microbial Community Composition ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Climate Trends ◽  
Isotopic Tracers ◽  
Carbon Pump ◽  
Microbial Carbon ◽  
New Research

Abstract. This paper reviews progress on understanding biological carbon sequestration in the ocean with special reference to the microbial formation and transformation of recalcitrant dissolved organic carbon (RDOC), the microbial carbon pump (MCP). We propose that RDOC is a relative concept with a wide continuum of recalcitrance. Most RDOC compounds maintain their levels of recalcitrance only in a specific environmental context (RDOCt). The ocean RDOC pool also contains compounds that may be inaccessible to microbes due to their extremely low concentration (RDOCc). This differentiation allows us to appreciate the linkage between microbial source and RDOC composition on a range of temporal and spatial scales. Analyses of biomarkers and isotopic records show intensive MCP processes in the anoxic Proterozoic oceans when the MCP could have played a significant role in regulating climate. Understanding the dynamics of the MCP in conjunction with the better constrained biological pump (BP) over geological timescales could help to predict future climate trends. Integration of the MCP and the BP will require new research approaches and opportunities. Major goals include understanding the interactions between particulate organic carbon (POC) and RDOC that contribute to sequestration efficiency, and the concurrent determination of the chemical composition of organic carbon, microbial community composition and enzymatic activity. Molecular biomarkers and isotopic tracers should be employed to link water column processes to sediment records, as well as to link present-day observations to paleo-evolution. Ecosystem models need to be developed based on empirical relationships derived from bioassay experiments and field investigations in order to predict the dynamics of carbon cycling along the stability continuum of POC and RDOC under potential global change scenarios. We propose that inorganic nutrient input to coastal waters may reduce the capacity for carbon sequestration as RDOC. The nutrient regime enabling maximum carbon storage from combined POC flux and RDOC formation should therefore be sought.

scholarly journals Mechanisms of microbial carbon sequestration in the ocean – future research directions

2014 ◽  
Vol 11 (19) ◽  
pp. 5285-5306 ◽  
Author(s):  
N. Jiao ◽  
C. Robinson ◽  
F. Azam ◽  
H. Thomas ◽  
F. Baltar ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Carbon Sequestration ◽  
Organic Carbon ◽  
Spatial Scales ◽  
Microbial Community Composition ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Climate Trends ◽  
Isotopic Tracers ◽  
Carbon Pump ◽  
Microbial Carbon ◽  
New Research

Abstract. This paper reviews progress on understanding biological carbon sequestration in the ocean with special reference to the microbial formation and transformation of recalcitrant dissolved organic carbon (RDOC), the microbial carbon pump (MCP). We propose that RDOC is a concept with a wide continuum of recalcitrance. Most RDOC compounds maintain their levels of recalcitrance only in a specific environmental context (RDOCt). The ocean RDOC pool also contains compounds that may be inaccessible to microbes due to their extremely low concentration (RDOCc). This differentiation allows us to appreciate the linkage between microbial source and RDOC composition on a range of temporal and spatial scales. Analyses of biomarkers and isotopic records show intensive MCP processes in the Proterozoic oceans when the MCP could have played a significant role in regulating climate. Understanding the dynamics of the MCP in conjunction with the better constrained biological pump (BP) over geological timescales could help to predict future climate trends. Integration of the MCP and the BP will require new research approaches and opportunities. Major goals include understanding the interactions between particulate organic carbon (POC) and RDOC that contribute to sequestration efficiency, and the concurrent determination of the chemical composition of organic carbon, microbial community composition and enzymatic activity. Molecular biomarkers and isotopic tracers should be employed to link water column processes to sediment records, as well as to link present-day observations to paleo-evolution. Ecosystem models need to be developed based on empirical relationships derived from bioassay experiments and field investigations in order to predict the dynamics of carbon cycling along the stability continuum of POC and RDOC under potential global change scenarios. We propose that inorganic nutrient input to coastal waters may reduce the capacity for carbon sequestration as RDOC. The nutrient regime enabling maximum carbon storage from combined POC flux and RDOC formation should therefore be sought.

scholarly journals The Microbial Carbon Pump: from Genes to Ecosystems

2011 ◽  
Vol 77 (21) ◽  
pp. 7439-7444 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nianzhi Jiao ◽  
Qiang Zheng
Keyword(s):  
Carbon Sequestration ◽  
Organic Carbon ◽  
Abc Transporter ◽  
Biological Degradation ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Future Global Warming ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Carbon Pump ◽  
Microbial Carbon ◽  
Microbial Carbon Pump

ABSTRACTThe majority of marine dissolved organic carbon (DOC) is resistant to biological degradation and thus can remain in the water column for thousands of years, constituting carbon sequestration in the ocean. To date the origin of such recalcitrant DOC (RDOC) is unclear. A recently proposed conceptual framework, the microbial carbon pump (MCP), emphasizes the microbial transformation of organic carbon from labile to recalcitrant states. The MCP is concerned with both microbial uptakes and outputs of DOC compounds, covering a wide range from gene to ecosystem levels. In this minireview, the ATP binding cassette (ABC) transporter is used as an example for the microbial processing of DOC at the genetic level. The compositions of the ABC transporter genes of the two major marine bacterial cladesRoseobacterand SAR11 demonstrate that they have distinct patterns in DOC utilization:Roseobacterstrains have the advantage of taking up carbohydrate DOC, while SAR11 bacteria prefer nitrogen-containing DOC. At the ecosystem level, bacterially derived RDOC based ond-amino acid biomarkers is reported to be responsible for about a quarter of the total marine RDOC pool. Under future global warming scenarios, partitioning of primary production into DOC could be enhanced, and thus the MCP could play an even more important role in carbon sequestration by the ocean. Joint efforts to study the MCP from multiple disciplines are required to obtain a better understanding of ocean carbon cycle and its coupling with global change.

scholarly journals Origin and fate of particulate and dissolved organic matter in a naturally iron-fertilized region of the Southern Ocean

2014 ◽  
Vol 11 (10) ◽  
pp. 14097-14132 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. Tremblay ◽  
J. Caparros ◽  
K. Leblanc ◽  
I. Obernosterer
Keyword(s):  
Organic Matter ◽  
Organic Carbon ◽  
Dissolved Organic Matter ◽  
Southern Ocean ◽  
Surface Waters ◽  
Bacterial Degradation ◽  
Natural Iron ◽  
Average Proportion ◽  
Carbon Pump ◽  
Microbial Carbon

Abstract. Natural iron fertilization of high-nutrient low-chlorophyll (HNLC) waters induces annually occurring spring phytoplankton blooms off Kerguelen Islands (Southern Ocean). To examine the origin and fate of particulate and dissolved organic matter (POM and DOM), D- and L-amino acids (AA) were quantified at bloom and HNLC stations. Total hydrolysable AA accounted for 21–25% of surface particulate organic carbon (%POCAA) at the bloom sites, but for 10% at the HNLC site. A marked decrease in %POCAA with depth was observed at the most productive stations leading to values between 3 and 5% below 300 m depth. AA contributed to only 0.9–4.4% of dissolved organic carbon (%DOCAA) at all stations. The only consistent vertical trend was observed at the most productive station (A3-2) where %DOCAA decreased from ∼2% in the surface waters to 0.9% near 300 m. These AA yields and other markers revealed that POM and DOM were more rapidly altered or mineralized at the bloom sites compared to the HNLC site. Different molecular markers indicated that POM mostly originated from diatoms and bacteria. The estimated average proportion of POM from intact phytoplankton cells in surface waters was 45% at the bloom station A3-2, but 14% at the HNLC site. Estimates based on D-AA yields indicated that ∼15% of POM and ∼30% of DOM was of bacterial origin (cells and cell fragments) at all stations. Surprisingly, the DOM in HNLC waters appeared less altered than the DOM from the bloom, had slightly higher dissolved AA concentrations, and showed no sign of alteration within the water column. Unfavorable conditions for bacterial degradation in HNLC regions can explain these findings. In contrast, large inputs of labile organic molecules and iron, likely stimulate the degradation of organic matter (priming effect) and the production of more recalcitrant DOM (microbial carbon pump) during iron-fertilized blooms.

Modelling the Microbial Carbon Pump in a changing ocean: current state and future directions

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luca Polimene ◽  
Sevrine Sailley ◽  
Darren Clark ◽  
Susan Kimmance
Keyword(s):  
Numerical Models ◽  
Process Models ◽  
Bacterial Degradation ◽  
Ocean Current ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Adequate Model ◽  
Carbon Pump ◽  
Microbial Carbon ◽  
Microbial Carbon Pump ◽  
Residual Product

<p>Circa 624 gigatons of carbon are locked in the ocean as dissolved organic matter (DOM), an amount comparable with the entire CO<sub>2</sub> content of the extant atmosphere. This DOM is operationally defined as refractory, meaning that it is resistant to bacterial degradation and persists in the ocean for millennia. Refractory DOM is considered primarily a residual product of heterotrophic bacterial activity after the bacterial consumption of more labile (i.e. easily degradable) DOM produced by marine autotrophs through photosynthesis. The process through which bacteria form refractory-DOM is termed the ‘Microbial Carbon Pump’ (MCP). Abiotic degradation (e.g. photo-degradation) is thought to balance refractory DOM production, thus maintaining its current pool in steady state. However, recent studies suggest that changes in surface ocean inorganic nutrient availability, due to climate change related increases in thermal stratification, could modify MCP activity, increasing refractory-DOM production with respect to its consumption. Marine bacteria thus have the potential to mitigate increases in atmospheric CO<sub>2</sub> by shunting more photosynthesised carbon into refractory-DOM. This hypothesis can only be tested by including the MCP in numerical models used for climate prediction. However, the lack of mechanistic understanding of the process (due, in turn, to the lack of experimental data) has hitherto prevented the development of adequate model formulations. In this talk, I will discuss the potential (and limitations) of existing process models to simulate (at least partially) the MCP and highlight future research directions (and related challenges) to develop new model formulations describing this process.</p>

scholarly journals Origin and fate of particulate and dissolved organic matter in a naturally iron-fertilized region of the Southern Ocean

2015 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 607-621 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. Tremblay ◽  
J. Caparros ◽  
K. Leblanc ◽  
I. Obernosterer
Keyword(s):  
Organic Matter ◽  
Organic Carbon ◽  
Dissolved Organic Matter ◽  
Southern Ocean ◽  
Surface Waters ◽  
Bacterial Degradation ◽  
Natural Iron ◽  
Average Proportion ◽  
Carbon Pump ◽  
Microbial Carbon

Abstract. Natural iron fertilization of high-nutrient low-chlorophyll (HNLC) waters induces annually occurring spring phytoplankton blooms off the Kerguelen Islands (Southern Ocean). To examine the origin and fate of particulate and dissolved organic matter (POM and DOM), D- and L-amino acids (AA) were quantified at bloom and HNLC stations. Total hydrolyzable AA accounted for 21–25% of surface particulate organic carbon (%POCAA) at the bloom sites, but for 10% at the HNLC site. A marked decrease in %POCAA with depth was observed at the most productive stations leading to values between 3 and 5% below 300 m depth. AA contributed to only 0.9–4.4% of dissolved organic carbon (%DOCAA) at all stations. The only consistent vertical trend was observed at the most productive station (A3-2) where %DOCAA decreased from ~ 2% in the surface waters to 0.9% near 300 m. These AA yields revealed that POM and DOM were more rapidly altered or mineralized at the bloom sites compared to the HNLC site. Alteration state was also assessed by trends in C / N ratio, %D-AA and degradation index. Different molecular markers indicated that POM mostly originated from diatoms and bacteria. The estimated average proportion of POM from intact phytoplankton cells in surface waters was 45% at the bloom station A3-2, but 14% at the HNLC site. Estimates based on D-AA yields indicated that ~ 15% of POM and ~ 30% of DOM was of bacterial origin (cells and cell fragments) at all stations. Surprisingly, the DOM in HNLC waters appeared less altered than the DOM from the bloom, had slightly higher dissolved AA concentrations, and showed no sign of alteration within the water column. Unfavorable conditions for bacterial degradation in HNLC regions can explain these findings. In contrast, large inputs of labile organic molecules and iron likely stimulate the degradation of organic matter (priming effect) and the production of more recalcitrant DOM (microbial carbon pump) during iron-fertilized blooms.

scholarly journals Past climate variations recorded in needle-like aragonites correlate with organic carbon burial efficiency as revealed by lake sediments in Croatia

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ivan Razum ◽  
Petra Bajo ◽  
Dea Brunović ◽  
Nikolina Ilijanić ◽  
Ozren Hasan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Organic Carbon ◽  
Stable Carbon Isotope ◽  
Climate Variations ◽  
Before Present ◽  
Stable Carbon ◽  
Climate Trends ◽  
Geochemical Proxies ◽  
Carbon Burial ◽  
Organic Carbon Burial ◽  
Burial Efficiency

AbstractThe drivers of organic carbon (OC) burial efficiency are still poorly understood despite their key role in reliable projections of future climate trends. Here, we provide insights on this issue by presenting a paleoclimate time series of sediments, including the OC contents, from Lake Veliko jezero, Croatia. The Sr/Ca ratios of the bulk sediment are mainly derived from the strontium (Sr) and calcium (Ca) concentrations of needle-like aragonite in Core M1-A and used as paleotemperature and paleohydrology indicators. Four major and six minor cold and dry events were detected in the interval from 8.3 to 2.6 calibrated kilo anno before present (cal ka BP). The combined assessment of Sr/Ca ratios, OC content, carbon/nitrogen (C/N) ratios, stable carbon isotope (δ13C) ratios, and modeled geochemical proxies for paleoredox conditions and aeolian input revealed that cold and dry climate states promoted anoxic conditions in the lake, thereby enhancing organic matter preservation and increasing the OC burial efficiency. Our study shows that the projected future increase in temperature might play an important role in the OC burial efficiency of meromictic lakes.

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