RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Nitrogen-fixing populations of Planctomycetes and Proteobacteria are abundant in the surface ocean
JF bioRxiv
FD Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
SP 129791
DO 10.1101/129791
A1 Tom O. Delmont
A1 Christopher Quince
A1 Alon Shaiber
A1 Özcan C. Esen
A1 Sonny TM Lee
A1 Sebastian Lücker
A1 A. Murat Eren
YR 2017
UL http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2017/04/23/129791.abstract
AB Nitrogen fixation in the surface ocean impacts the global climate by regulating the microbial primary productivity and the sequestration of carbon through the biological pump. Cyanobacterial populations have long been thought to represent the main suppliers of the bio-available nitrogen in this habitat. However, recent molecular surveys of nitrogenase reductase gene revealed the existence of rare non-cyanobacterial populations that can also fix nitrogen. Here, we characterize for the first time the genomic content of some of these heterotrophic bacterial diazotrophs (HBDs) inhabiting the open surface ocean waters. They represent new lineages within Planctomycetes and Proteobacteria, a phylum never linked to nitrogen fixation prior to this study. HBDs were surprisingly abundant in the Pacific Ocean and the Atlantic Ocean northwest, conflicting with decades of PCR surveys. The abundance and widespread occurrence of non-cyanobacterial diazotrophs in the surface ocean emphasizes the need to re-evaluate their role in the nitrogen cycle and primary productivity.