1. Distributions of microbial activities in deep subseafloor sediments.
- Author
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D'Hondt S, Jørgensen BB, Miller DJ, Batzke A, Blake R, Cragg BA, Cypionka H, Dickens GR, Ferdelman T, Hinrichs KU, Holm NG, Mitterer R, Spivack A, Wang G, Bekins B, Engelen B, Ford K, Gettemy G, Rutherford SD, Sass H, Skilbeck CG, Aiello IW, Guèrin G, House CH, Inagaki F, Meister P, Naehr T, Niitsuma S, Parkes RJ, Schippers A, Smith DC, Teske A, Wiegel J, Padilla CN, and Acosta JL
- Subjects
- Bacteria growth & development, Bacteria isolation & purification, Carbon metabolism, Colony Count, Microbial, Electron Transport, Iron metabolism, Manganese metabolism, Methane metabolism, Nitrates metabolism, Oxidants metabolism, Oxidation-Reduction, Pacific Ocean, Peru, Photosynthesis, Seawater chemistry, Sulfates metabolism, Thermodynamics, Bacteria metabolism, Ecosystem, Geologic Sediments microbiology
- Abstract
Diverse microbial communities and numerous energy-yielding activities occur in deeply buried sediments of the eastern Pacific Ocean. Distributions of metabolic activities often deviate from the standard model. Rates of activities, cell concentrations, and populations of cultured bacteria vary consistently from one subseafloor environment to another. Net rates of major activities principally rely on electron acceptors and electron donors from the photosynthetic surface world. At open-ocean sites, nitrate and oxygen are supplied to the deepest sedimentary communities through the underlying basaltic aquifer. In turn, these sedimentary communities may supply dissolved electron donors and nutrients to the underlying crustal biosphere.
- Published
- 2004
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