The sea-surface microlayer is a gelatinous biofilm

Cunliffe, Michael; Murrell, J. Colin

doi:10.1038/ismej.2009.69

Cited by 90 publications

(79 citation statements)

References 9 publications

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“…The accumulation of organic matter, distinct physical and chemical properties and a specific organismal community (neuston) distinguish the SML as a unique biogeochemical and ecological system. It has been suggested that the SML has a gel-like nature (Cunliffe and Murrell, 2009;Sieburth, 1983) of varying thickness (20-150 µm, Cunliffe et al, 2013) with dissolved polymeric carbohydrates and amino acids present as well as gel particles, such as transparent exopolymer particles (TEP) of polysaccharidic composition, and Coomassie stainable particles (CSPs) of proteinaceous composition. These gelatinous compounds originate from high molecular weight polymers that are released form phytoplankton and bacterial cells by exudation and cell break up (Chin et al, 1998;Engel et al, 2004;Verdugo et al, 2004).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The organic sea-surface microlayer in the upwelling region off the coast of Peru and potential implications for air–sea exchange processes

2016

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Abstract. The sea-surface microlayer (SML) is at the uppermost surface of the ocean, linking the hydrosphere with the atmosphere. The presence and enrichment of organic compounds in the SML have been suggested to influence airsea gas exchange processes as well as the emission of primary organic aerosols. Here, we report on organic matter components collected from an approximately 50 µm thick SML and from the underlying water (ULW), ∼ 20 cm below the SML, in December 2012 during the SOPRAN ME-TEOR 91 cruise to the highly productive, coastal upwelling regime off the coast of Peru. Samples were collected at 37 stations including coastal upwelling sites and off-shore stations with less organic matter and were analyzed for total and dissolved high molecular weight (> 1 kDa) combined carbohydrates (TCCHO, DCCHO), free amino acids (FAA), total and dissolved hydrolyzable amino acids (THAA, DHAA), transparent exopolymer particles (TEP), Coomassie stainable particles (CSPs), total and dissolved organic carbon (TOC, DOC), total and dissolved nitrogen (TN, TDN), as well as bacterial and phytoplankton abundance. Our results showed a close coupling between organic matter concentrations in the water column and in the SML for almost all components except for FAA and DHAA that showed highest enrichment in the SML on average. Accumulation of gel particles (i.e., TEP and CSP) in the SML differed spatially. While CSP abundance in the SML was not related to wind speed, TEP abundance decreased with wind speed, leading to a depletion of TEP in the SML at about 5 m s −1 . Our study provides insight to the physical and biological control of organic matter enrichment in the SML, and discusses the potential role of organic matter in the SML for air-sea exchange processes.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The organic sea-surface microlayer in the upwelling region off the coast of Peru and potential implications for air–sea exchange processes

2016

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“…The air-water interface is the surface microlayer (SML) found at the interface of two environments: the hydrosphere and the atmosphere (Norkrans 1980;Cunliffe and Murrell 2009). The SML covers the surface of all water bodies, which accounts for 71% Earth's surface area.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…It is a habitat for neustonic organisms. It exhibits specific physical, chemical and biological properties (Hillbricht-Ilkowska and Kostrzewska-Szlakowska 2004;Cunliffe and Murrell 2009;Antonowicz et al 2015). The presence of the surface film and surface tension properties means that the seasurface microlayer is a unique habitat that is often referred to as the neuston (Liss and Duce 2005).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Macroelements in the surface microlayer of water of urban ponds

Antonowicz

Kubiak

Machula

2016

Limnological Review

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Analyses were conducted concerning the accumulation of four metals representing the group of macroelements, i.e. sodium, potassium, calcium and magnesium in two ponds located in the city of Słupsk. Water samples for chemical analyses were collected from the surface microlayer using a Garrett net. At the same time subsurface water samples were collected. Concentrations of metals were determined using a mass spectrometer. Generally, amounts of sodium, potassium, calcium and magnesium were similar in surface microlayer and subsurface water. Only in the case of potassium and calcium was low enrichment observed in the surface microlayer in one pond, while the greatest extent for magnesium enrichment was observed in the spring period.

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“…The sea-surface microlayer is the thin biogenic film at the air-sea interface (Cunliffe and Murrell, 2009). The bacterial community present in the surface microlayer is known as the bacterioneuston and has a different community structure compared with that of subsurface water below (Cunliffe et al, 2008, 2009a, Franklin et al, 2005.…”

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confidence: 99%

“…The surface microlayers of the fjord mesocosms were enriched with transparent exopolymer particles and other aggregates, giving the microlayer a gelatinous film structure (Cunliffe et al, 2009b). This contributes to the physical environment of the surface microlayer being different to subsurface water, particularly the enrichment of solid surfaces for cells to attach to (Cunliffe and Murrell, 2009). This could therefore create different protist niches than those in subsurface waters that would support the surface microlayer-specific protist communities observed (Figure 1).…”

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confidence: 99%

Eukarya 18S rRNA gene diversity in the sea surface microlayer: implications for the structure of the neustonic microbial loop

Cunliffe

Murrell

2009

The ISME Journal

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We have previously shown that there is a consistent and reproducible bacterioneuston community in the surface microlayer during a fjord mesocosm experiment. One possible cause of the surface microlayer-specific bacterial community is a surface microlayer-specific protist community selectively grazing on the bacterioneuston. We determined protist community structures using Eukarya 18S rRNA gene denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) and subsequent DGGE band sequencing using DNA samples that were collected from the surface microlayer and subsurface water of the mesocosms. As with bacterial communities, protist community structure was consistently different in the surface microlayer when compared with subsurface water. In particular, the protist community in the surface microlayer was dominated by Cercozoa, which were not detected in the subsurface water, and Ciliophora.

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The sea-surface microlayer is a gelatinous biofilm

Cited by 90 publications

References 9 publications

The organic sea-surface microlayer in the upwelling region off the coast of Peru and potential implications for air–sea exchange processes

The organic sea-surface microlayer in the upwelling region off the coast of Peru and potential implications for air–sea exchange processes

Macroelements in the surface microlayer of water of urban ponds

Eukarya 18S rRNA gene diversity in the sea surface microlayer: implications for the structure of the neustonic microbial loop

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