All Max Planck Institute for Marine Microbiology articles
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NewsCaught in the act: A gene jumps into the void
Self-splicing introns are a special group of jumping genes. It is more difficult for a gene to jump into another cell or another species. Until now, it had been assumed that, for this to happen, the jumping genes travelled as ‘hitchhiker’ in the genomes of plasmids or viruses, but researchers have made a surprising observation.
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NewsFrom ocean to gut: The bacteria that shape both human health and marine carbon cycling
A group of researchers has discovered that Akkermansia bacteria are not unique to our guts, but can also be found in the ocean. In both habitats they use similar skills to ensure their survival and success. They seem to carry an old and widespread survival toolkit.
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NewsStudy unravels Black Sea nitrous oxide conundrum
A new study unravels the ’Black Sea nitrous oxide conundrum’, investigating why large amounts of nitrous oxide are mainly produced in ocean areas that lack oxygen, yet the Black Sea - the world’s largest anoxic basin - appears to emit only little N2O.
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NewsIlluminated sugars show how microbes eat the ocean’s carbon
A team of scientists have designed a molecular probe that lights up when a sugar is consumed. They described how the probe helps to study the microscopic tug-of-war between algae and microbial degraders in the ocean.
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NewsNitrogen loss on sandy shores: The big impact of tiny anoxic pockets
Denitrification in tiny anoxic pockets on sand grains could account for up to one-third of total nitrogen loss in silicate shelf sands, a new study reveals.
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NewsResilient algae may speed up Greenland ice melt
Microscopic algae darken glacier surfaces and can accelerate melting. A new study investigating where the small algae get the necessary nutrients to survive in this hostile environment reveals how they absorb and store nutrients.
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NewsUnusual endosymbionts crop up all over the world
Scientists have discovered peculiar mitochondria-like symbionts all over the world, and unveiled their surprising metabolic capacities in a new study.
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NewsDeep-sea corals are home to previously unknown bacteria with extremely small genomes
Scientists have discovered two highly unusual bacterial species in the tissue of deep-sea corals from the Gulf of Mexico. The previously unknown coral symbionts have an extremely reduced genome and lack the ability to obtain energy from carbohydrates.
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NewsA metabolic secret of ethane-consuming archaea unraveled
Scientists have presented a study on the degradation of ethane, the second most abundant alkane in seeps on the deep seafloor. They characterized enzymes involved in the process and found that their reaction breaks an established dogma in the field of anaerobic biochemistry.
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NewsHijacking the command center of the cell: nuclear parasites in deep-sea mussels
Researchers have revealed how a bacterial parasite thrives inside the nuclei of deep-sea mussels, a remarkable feat given that the nucleus is the control center of the cell.
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NewsScientists reveal how bacteria in lakes fight climate change
Methane is a potent greenhouse gas frequently produced in the sea and in fresh water. Lakes in particular release large quantities of this climate-killer. Fortunately, however, there are microorganisms that counteract this: They are able to utilize methane to grow and generate energy, thus preventing it from being released into ...
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NewsLong-standing marine mystery solved: How algae get nitrogen to grow
In a new study, scientists have shed light on an unexpected partnership: a marine diatom and a bacterium that can account for a large share of nitrogen fixation in vast regions of the ocean.
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NewsSea zombies: Viruses keep the most common marine bacteria in check
The ocean waters surrounding the German island of Helgoland provide an ideal setting to study spring algae blooms, a focus of research at the Max Planck Institute for Marine Microbiology since 2009. Source: Jan Brüwer/Max Planck Institute for Marine Microbiology Sunset over the island of Helgoland in ...
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NewsNew Rhizobia-diatom symbiosis discovery solves long-standing marine mystery
Scientists solve a longstanding marine mystery by uncovering a partnership between a diatom and a bacterium that can account for a large share of nitrogen fixation in vast regions of the ocean, with exciting implications also for agriculture.
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NewsRNA as a common language, presented in extracellular speech-bubbles
Decoding the conversations between microbes of hypersaline environments reveals insights into the origins of complex life.
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NewsBacteria in the Arctic seabed are active all year round
Despite the pronounced seasonality in their habitat, the bacterial community in Arctic sediments is taxonomically and functionally very stable, a new study finds.
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NewsResearchers reveal how archaea toggle the nitrogen-uptake switch
By tightly regulating nitrogen uptake, microorganisms avoid overeating nitrogen and thus wasting energy. Scientists now reveal how some methanogenic archaea manage to do so.
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NewsTiny vesicles exchange genetic information between cells in the sea
Extracellular vesicles play a much greater role in horizontal gene transfer in the ocean than previously assumed.
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NewsBacteria use organic phosphorus and release methane in the process
Researchers have investigated how bacteria inadvertently release methane in order to obtain phosphorus – with significant effects on atmospheric greenhouse gases.
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NewsNew microscopy method reveals host-microbe interactions
Researchers are developing a method that reveals the chemical communication between microbes and their host.