Metabolically diverse microorganisms mediating hydrocarbon cycling in the subseafloor sediment of the Challenger Deep.
He X, Liu J, Cheng H, Zhu X, Lin H
Soil Health
PubMedThe same types of hydrocarbon-degrading microbes found here have close relatives in garden and agricultural soils, meaning understanding how they survive in extreme conditions could unlock new ways to bioremediate contaminated land and improve soil carbon cycling right in your backyard.
Deep beneath the ocean floor in the Mariana Trench — the deepest place on Earth — researchers found thriving communities of bacteria that eat hydrocarbons (think oil-like compounds). These tiny organisms are busy breaking down complex carbon molecules even under crushing pressure and total darkness. This tells us that life finds a way to recycle carbon in even the most extreme places, which changes how we think about the global carbon cycle.
Key Findings
Hydrocarbon-degrading bacteria were found active throughout a sediment core extending ~750 cm below the seafloor at a depth of 10,816 meters
The sediment contained high concentrations of mid- and long-chain hydrocarbons, suggesting significant in-situ carbon storage and turnover
Both culture-dependent and culture-independent methods confirmed diverse microbial metabolism, indicating multiple independent hydrocarbon degradation pathways coexist in hadal sediments
chevron_right Technical Summary
Scientists discovered a surprisingly rich community of hydrocarbon-eating bacteria living deep beneath the ocean floor in the world's deepest trench. These microbes are actively breaking down complex carbon compounds miles below the surface, revealing unknown pathways of carbon cycling in extreme environments.
Abstract Preview
Hadal subseafloor sediments host abundant and active microbial biosphere with considerable heterotrophic activity. However, carbon and nutrient cycling processes and mechanisms driven by hadal subs...
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