Effects of Phosphorus in Growth Media on Biomineralization and Cell Surface Properties of Marine Cyanobacteria Synechococcus

Abstract

Through geological time, cyanobacterial picoplankton have impacted the global carbon cycle by sequestrating CO2 and forming authigenic carbonate minerals. Various studies have emphasized the cyanobacterial cell envelopes as nucleation sites for calcium carbonate formation. Little is known, however, about how environmental conditions (e.g., nutrient content) trigger a cell surface and its properties and, consequently, influence biomineralization. Our study aims to understand how phosphorus (P) concentration impacts the properties of cell surfaces and cell–mineral interactions. Changes to the surface properties of marine Synechococcus strains grown under various P conditions were characterized by potentiometric titrations, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and tip-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (TERS). Biomineralization experiments were performed using cyanobacterial cells, which were grown under different P concentrations and exposed to solutions slightly oversaturated with respect to calcium carbonate. We observed the changes induced by different P conditions in the macromolecular composition of the cyanobacteria cell envelope and its consequences for biomineralization. The modified properties of cell surfaces were linked to carbonate precipitation rates and mineral morphology from biomineralization experiments. Our analysis shows that the increase of phosphoryl groups and surface charge, as well as the relative proportion of polysaccharides and proteins, can impact carbonate precipitation by picocyanobacteria.

Elucidating the picocyanobacteria salinity divide through ecogenomics of new freshwater isolates

“…Curiously, this low affinity phosphate transporter was present in SC 5.2 isolates originating from lakes (Atexcac, La Cruz, Aljojuca) undergoing calcium carbonate precipitation phenomena where P concentration drastically drops below the limit of detection [ 58 , 70 , 71 ]. On the other hand, biomineralization experiments have shown that P can strongly affect the molecular composition of the Synechococcus cell surface, which in turn impacts CaCO 3 precipitation [ 72 ]. Hence, a role for inorganic phosphate transporters in this process of carbon precipitation is conceivable.…”

Study on Corrosion Characteristics of Aluminum Alloy Al3102 in Sulfate-reducing Bacteria Environment and Investigating the Use of Azadirachta indica Leaves Extract in its Control

“…The peaks at 123.6 eV and 126 eV in the Al2s plot of the MBI sample (Fig.10 (d)) could be due to the adsorbed halogen-containing compounds from NLE[27]. The C1s spectra for the MB samples (Fig.11 (a)) show a peak at 284.8 eV related to the C-C group which was observed in many studies related to DD biofilm and has been attributed to the presence of amino acids[28,29]. The carbon spectra for the MBI sample (Fig.11 (b)) show a prominent signal at 288.9 eV due to the carboxylic or ester groups.…”

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“…Traditionally, anionic functionalities are thought to increase interfacial energy (relative to neutral macromolecules) due to their hydrophilicity [14,27]. However, few nucleation studies have been conducted involving phosphorylated macromolecules despite their biological significance [79,80]. To resolve these findings, Akkineni et al applied molecular dynamics (MD).…”