Significant silicon accumulation by marine picocyanobacteria

Baines, Stephen B.; Twining, Benjamin S.; Brzezinski, Mark A.; Krause, Jeffrey W.; Vogt, Stefan; Assael, Dylan; McDaniel, H Reginald

doi:10.1038/ngeo1641

Cited by 105 publications

(152 citation statements)

References 27 publications

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“…A third more likely explanation for the presence of EPS-associated Si and Mg is that EPS incorporates the Si from the Synechococcus cells 21 . Recent studies of both field and culture samples demonstrate that living cyanobacteria cells can accumulate significant amounts of Si 22 . As these cells begin to degrade, cell lysis could cause a local elevation of silicic acid concentration near the cells.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Silicate deposition during decomposition of cyanobacteria may promote export of picophytoplankton to the deep ocean

2014

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Marine particles transport organic matter through the water column to the sediment where the organic matter can be buried. This pathway is one of the few natural removal mechanisms of CO 2 from the atmosphere over geological time. Picophytoplankton, major primary producers in the ocean, have until recently been thought unimportant regarding particle transport. Here we provide evidence that silicate is deposited on extracellular polymeric substance (EPS) associated with decomposing picophytoplankton. We also find that Si is enriched in a previously unexplored group of marine particles (called micro-blebs) from the deep-water column. The surprising similarity in morphology and composition between EPS-Si and micro-blebs suggests that EPS-Si may be a precursor of micro-blebs observed in the deep ocean. This previously unexplored source of silicon may be important to silicon cycling and may further enhance export of picophytoplankton to the deep ocean.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Silicate deposition during decomposition of cyanobacteria may promote export of picophytoplankton to the deep ocean

2014

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“…However, some Synechococcus still possess SIT-Ls and accumulate Si suggests an important role for Si within these cells (Baines et al, 2012;Ohnemus et al, 2016). Indeed, the water column inventory of Si in Synechococcus can exceed that of diatoms in some cases, although in today's DSi depleted oceans it is believed that most of the nanoparticles produced by Synechococcus are recycled within surface waters (Baines et al, 2012).…”

Section: Changing Si Biogeochemistry In the Precambrian Oceansmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Synchrotron XRF microscopy of natural and cultured individual cells of the modern marine photosynthetic picocyanobacteria Synechococcus, suggests that they accumulate Si at Si:P levels approaching that of diatoms (Baines et al, 2012). Further, decomposition of Synechococcus has been shown to produce extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) that themselves drive the production of minuscule "microblebs" of silica that, by adding dense ballast to aggregates, may enhance the export of picoplankton-derived material from the euphotic zone (Tang et al, 2014).…”

Section: Changing Si Biogeochemistry In the Precambrian Oceansmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In our analysis here, based on advances from fields ranging from biogeochemistry (Baines et al, 2012;Frings et al, 2016) to geogenomics (Baker et al, 2014;Marron et al, 2016), we assess our state of knowledge of the global Si cycle emphasizing the substantial advances that have emerged in the past quarter of a century. We will explore the possible levels of DSi in the oceans over geologic time based on evidence from the geologic record as well as concerning the evolution of the SIT gene family.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Biosilicification Drives a Decline of Dissolved Si in the Oceans through Geologic Time

et al. 2017

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Biosilicification has driven variation in the global Si cycle over geologic time. The evolution of different eukaryotic lineages that convert dissolved Si (DSi) into mineralized structures (higher plants, siliceous sponges, radiolarians, and diatoms) has driven a secular decrease in DSi in the global ocean leading to the low DSi concentrations seen today. Recent studies, however, have questioned the timing previously proposed for the DSi decreases and the concentration changes through deep time, which would have major implications for the cycling of carbon and other key nutrients in the ocean. Here, we combine relevant genomic data with geological data and present new hypotheses regarding the impact of the evolution of biosilicifying organisms on the DSi inventory of the oceans throughout deep time. Although there is no fossil evidence for true silica biomineralization until the late Precambrian, the timing of the evolution of silica transporter genes suggests that bacterial silicon-related metabolism has been present in the oceans since the Archean with eukaryotic silicon metabolism already occurring in the Neoproterozoic. We hypothesize that biological processes have influenced oceanic DSi concentrations since the beginning of oxygenic photosynthesis.

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“…In strongly P-limited regions of the ocean, cyanobacteria such as Prochlorococcus eschew phospholipids for sulfolipids, dramatically reducing their P requirements and fundamentally altering their cell wall (Van Mooy et al, 2006), and it has been recently suggested that some cyanobacteria may also incorporate Si into their cell walls (Baines et al, 2012). This remarkable degree of cyanobacterial cell wall plasticity reported for the marine realm has remained largely unexplored despite its strong potential importance for biomass surface reactivity and trace metal adsorption from seawater.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Cell surface acid-base properties of the cyanobacterium Synechococcus : Influences of nitrogen source, growth phase and N:P ratios

Liu

Alessi

Owttrim

et al. 2016

Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta

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Cell surface acid-base properties of the cyanobacterium Synechococcus: Influences of nitrogen source, growth phase and N:P ratios, Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta (2016), doi: http://dx.doi.org/10. 1016/j.gca.2016.05.023 This is a PDF file of an unedited manuscript that has been accepted for publication. As a service to our customers we are providing this early version of the manuscript. The manuscript will undergo copyediting, typesetting, and review of the resulting proof before it is published in its final form. Please note that during the production process errors may be discovered which could affect the content, and all legal disclaimers that apply to the journal pertain. AbstractThe distribution of many trace metals in the oceans is controlled by biological uptake.Recently, Liu et al. (2015) demonstrated the propensity for a marine cyanobacterium to adsorb cadmium from seawater, suggesting that cell surface reactivity might also play an important role in the cycling of metals in the oceans. However, it remains unclear how variations in cyanobacterial growth rates and nutrient supply might affect the chemical

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Significant silicon accumulation by marine picocyanobacteria

Cited by 105 publications

References 27 publications

Silicate deposition during decomposition of cyanobacteria may promote export of picophytoplankton to the deep ocean

Silicate deposition during decomposition of cyanobacteria may promote export of picophytoplankton to the deep ocean

Biosilicification Drives a Decline of Dissolved Si in the Oceans through Geologic Time

Cell surface acid-base properties of the cyanobacterium Synechococcus : Influences of nitrogen source, growth phase and N:P ratios

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