Predominant growth of Alcanivorax strains in oil‐contaminated and nutrient‐supplemented sea water

Abstract

We found that bacteria closely related to Alcanivorax became a dominant bacterial population in petroleum-contaminated sea water when nitrogen and phosphorus nutrients were supplied in adequate quantity. The predominance of Alcanivorax bacteria was demonstrated under three experimental conditions: (i) in batch cultures of sea water containing heavy oil; (ii) in columns packed with oil-coated gravel undergoing a continuous sea water flow; and (iii) in a large-scale tidal flux reactor that mimics a beach undergoing tidal cycles with fresh sea water. These results suggest that bacteria related to Alcanivorax are major players in the bioremediation of oil-contaminated marine environments.

Hydrocarbon-degrading bacteria enriched by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill identified by cultivation and DNA-SIP

“…This is interesting from the point of view that members of this group are often strongly selected for in oil-impacted environments where they can increase in numbers from near undetectable levels to constituting up to 70-90% of the total bacterial community (Harayama et al, 2004;Head et al, 2006;Yakimov et al, 2007). Based on the knowledge that Alcanivorax preferentially degrade branched-and/or straight-chain saturated hydrocarbons (Kasai et al, 2002a;Head et al, 2003) that constitute a large fraction of light crude oils, such as the one that entered into the Gulf of Mexico from the leaky Macondo MC 252 well (Reddy et al, 2012), members of this genus could be expected to have bloomed during the DWH spill. Using SIP and cultivation-based methods, we identified a number of Alcanivorax phylotypes in both surface slick and plume water samples, hence, revealing that members of this genus were present in the water column during the spill.…”

“…5 1C) were distinctive features of the plume (Camilli et al, 2010), these factors may have arrested the potential for Alcanivorax to bloom. Alternatively, their suppressed growth may be attributed to a limit in the availability of nitrogen and phosphorous (Harayama et al, 1999;Kasai et al, 2001Kasai et al, , 2002aSyutsubo et al, 2001). Alcanivorax, however, was the dominant hydrocarbon-degrading bacterial group enriched by oil contamination of Gulf beach sands from the DWH spill (Kostka et al, 2011).…”

Contribution of cyanobacterial alkane production to the ocean hydrocarbon cycle

“…Obligate hydrocarbon-degrading bacteria, including Cycloclasticus, Thalassolituus, Oleiphilus, Oleispira, and Alcanivorax species, have been isolated from geographically diverse coastal and open-ocean regions in all seas, in sediments and both surface and deep waters, including areas with minimal oil pollution (9)(10)(11)35). Alcanivorax species are typically among the dominant bacteria found metabolizing crude oil during large spill events (34)(35)(36)(37)(38). Other bacteria, including Marinobacter, Pseudomonas, and Acinetobacter species, which can use hydrocarbons in addition to a broader range of carbon sources, have also been detected in oilpolluted ocean samples (10,34).…”

Comparison of archaeal and bacterial community structures in heavily oil-contaminated and pristine soils

“…The bacteria have been assigned to a number of genera, including Pseudomonas, Alcanivorax, and Marinobacter etc. Some of them have been widely used for bioremediation of oil-contaminated environments (2,3). Consequently, much research has focused on the characteristics of bacterial community structures in oil-contaminated sites, as well as changes in these community structures associated with oil contamination (4,5).…”