More Ocean Sustainability
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NewsA borrowed bacterial gene allowed some marine diatoms to live on a seaweed diet
A group of diatom species belonging to the Nitzschia genus gave up on photosynthesis and now get their carbon straight from their environment, thanks to a bacterial gene picked up by an ancestor, a new study shows.
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NewsCoral diseases and water quality play a key role for coral restoration and survival efforts
A recent study which examined threatened Staghorn coral species found that while some coral genotypes displayed resistance to either high nutrient levels from run-off or disease, none were resistant to both stressors simultaneously.
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NewsWere our blue oceans once green?
Scientists find evidence that our oceans used to be green, suggesting that this may be a sign of primitive life, including that on alien worlds. The study suggests that cyanobacteria once flourished in green seas.
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FeaturesBiosurfactants for oil spill bioremediation
Oil spills across large areas of seawater disturb oxygen circulation for marine organisms, cause hypothermia in birds, adversely affect navigation routes, and hinder anthropogenic actions like fisheries and tourism. Biological treatments appear to be a promising method and offer a sustainable solution.
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FeaturesThe power of biofilm engineering: one plus one does not always make two
Biofilms are ubiquitous in aquatic systems, where they play essential ecological roles in nutrient cycling, biogeochemical processes, and surface colonisation dynamics.
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NewsOrigin of life: How microbes laid the foundation for complex cells
Researchers examining links between Asgard archaea and eukaryotes have shown that Asgard tubulins form similar microtubules, albeit smaller than those in their eukaryotic relatives. Unlike actin, these tubulin proteins appear in very few species of Asgard archaea.
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FeaturesHarnessing marine microbes for bioremediation: cleaning up ocean pollutants
Ocean pollution is widespread and worsening by the day. From oil spills to garbage accumulation in the Pacific, marine ecosystems are in dire need of a solution.
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NewsAMI leaders join International Microbiome Meeting in San Diego
Leading scientists from around the world recently convened at the Center for Microbiome Innovation’s International Microbiome Meeting (CIMM) at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography in San Diego.
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NewsStudy identifies viruses in red tide blooms for the first time
A new study identifies viruses associated with Karenia brevis, the single-celled organism that causes red tide. By testing water samples collected from red tide blooms, the researchers found several viruses in blooms — including one new viral species.
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NewsRed coral colonies survive a decade after being transplanted in the Medes Islands
The red coral colonies that were transplanted a decade ago on the seabed of the Medes Islands have survived successfully. They are very similar to the original communities and have contributed to the recovery of the functioning of the coral reef.
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FeaturesHow microbes can detoxify heavy metal pollution in the ocean
Researchers have successfully used microbes to reduce the heavy metal toxicity of soils and wastewater through bioremediation. Could they eventually use a similar approach to target heavy metals in the ocean?
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NewsNew method uncovers dynamic microbial community in coastal sediments
Scientists utilises single celll genomics and cell staining approaches to investigate the respiratory rates and metabolic activities of the diverse microbial communities in low biomass aqautic environments, such as Maine’s coastal sediments.
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NewsProfessor investigates how symbiotic groups - like corals and biofilms - can behave like single organisms
UNCG philosopher of biology Dr. Derek Skillings is the lead investigator on a new, three-year, $600,000 grant from the John Templeton Foundation for a study of the emergence and evolution of goal-directed behavior in collective entities.
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NewsClimate affects microbial life around Antarctica
Bacteria and other microbes in the seas around Antarctica are strongly influenced by water temperature and the amount of sea ice. This is shown by coordinated measurements taken off the coast of the west Antarctic Peninsula, scientists say.
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NewsPresence of potentially toxic microalgae confirmed in La Concha Bay
The proliferation of the Ostreopsis ovata algae is no cause for alarm, but it is advisable to continue taking measurements, according to researchers.
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NewsResearch team publishes paradigm-challenging discovery in a Yellowstone thermophile
A graduating PhD student has made an interesting discovery about a common thermophilic bacteria dwelling in hots prings which is able to simultaneously respirate and metabolize via aerobic and anaerobic pathways.
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NewsGreat whale pee funnel carries nutrients thousands of miles, boosting phytoplanktons
A new study shows that whales carry huge quantities of nutrients horizontally, across whole ocean basins, from rich, cold waters where they feed to warm shores near the equator where they mate and give birth.
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NewsSulfur-reducing bacteria team-up to break down organic substances in the seabed
Researchers have decoded the molecular strategies employed by the underappreciated sulfate-reducing bacteria, <i>Desulfobacteraceae</i>, which is capable of breaking down organic carbon in the oxygen-limited seabed.
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CareersMy PhD Experience: Collaborations between academia and industry in the microbial bioremediation of marine oil pollution
Jake A Smallbone reveals how a industry collaboration as part of his PhD led to work on a real world oil spill to uncover the fascinating ways that bacterial communities respond to pollution and can be deployed as biomarkers and in bioremediation.
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OpinionThe problem of microplastics in the oceans: it’s time for effective solutions
Francielly Bruna Neto Francisco and Ricardo Henrique Krüger, from the University of Brasília (UNB), warn that we urgently need technologies that will effectively eliminate partially or nonbiodegradable polymers from the marine environment.