Ocean Sustainability
Over 70% of the earth is covered in water, which serves as a vital resource human subsistence. Contamination and acidification pose major threats to aquatic health and biodiversity. Microbes offer a promising solution in their ability to breakdown contamination from oil spills and plastics. Applied microbiologists can play a significant part in understanding biodiversity, contributing to solutions, and encouraging stewardship.
An enzyme with potential: New type of plastic-degrading enzyme discovered in bacteria
Researchers have identified a new enzyme that can not only degrade certain polyesters and bioplastics, but also might provide bacteria with resistance to antibiotics. The discovery raises hopes that microorganisms can adapt to plastic degradation more rapidly than previously thought.
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Where do dissimilatory iodate-reducing microorganisms live in the ocean?
Scientists have discovered that dissimilatory iodate-producing microorganisms do not live above marine oxygen minimum zones (OMZs) as long predicted - instead thriving within the OMZs, converting iodate into iodide and promoting the release of marine iodine into the atmosphere.
Anti-fouling materials protect against slimy incursions
Researchershave received a $750,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Defense to develop materials that incorporate soft robotics and nontoxic polymers to fight biofouling, or the buildup of aquatic organisms in wet environments.
Loss of kelp forests reverberates down to microbial level
As one moves north, Maine’s kelp forests are being overtaken by dense mats of carpet-like turf algae. The steady decline of kelp, and transition into this new state, is altering the ecosystem all the way down to the microbial level, according to a new study.
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Heat-tolerant corals may be more vulnerable to disease, study finds
Corals that partner with heat-tolerant algae may be better equipped to survive warming oceans but that resilience comes with an unexpected trade-off. Such corals keep their stress response system in a heightened state - and that can backfire.
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Tiny ocean plankton holds clues to the future of Maine lobster
Researchers have discovered that planktonic baby lobsters, or larvae, preferentially feed on Calanus finmarchicus, a tiny, calorie-rich zooplankton species, during one of the most vulnerable stages of their lives.
Adding iron to the ocean can remove CO2 – but at what cost to nature?
Adding iron to the ocean can cause plankton to absorb more CO2 from the atmosphere. However, the effect depends on where in the world the method is used, and it can have far-reaching consequences for marine ecosystems and food chains.
Scientists reconstruct past ocean temperatures from red algae
Researchers have found a new way to reconstruct daily seawater temperatures over a four-month period. The key lies in rhodoliths: nodule-like calcareous structures formed by red algae that occur in oceans worldwide.
Tolkien-inspired coral among the stars: New species discovered on Costa Rica’s deep-sea seamounts
Scientists exploring seamounts off the coast of Costa Rica have discovered a new coral so genetically and morphologically distinct that it required the creation of an entirely new family for its classification.
Marine heatwaves pose hidden threat to human health
Prolonged periods of unusually high ocean temperatures can trigger a cascade of effects that ultimately affect human health, from worsening extreme weather events and reducing seafood supplies to increasing mental health challenges.
Biologist wins NSF CAREER Award to study the ocean’s most abundant microbe
Anne Thompson, an associate professor of biology, won a nearly $1.2 million NSF CAREER Award to answer a basic question about the ocean that science has largely left open: who eats the most abundant photosynthetic life form on Earth?
Geology: Antarctica’s Blood Falls reveals an ancient marine community
Salty water flowing through Antarctica’s Blood Falls contains a distinct community of marine-specific microorganisms, providing evidence that the brine system beneath the glacier has a marine origin.
Microorganisms actively shape the ocean floor
At a newly discovered hydrothermal system in the Mediterranean, researchers were able to demonstrate how different intensities of hydrothermal fluid flow shape microbial communities and control mineral formation on the ocean floor.
Study shows seawater may offer early clues to changing reef health
Researchers have shown that the water surrounding coral reefs contains chemical and microbial signals that could reveal changes in ecosystem health long before those changes are visible.
The Great Barrier Reef has a microbiome too
A study documents over 800,000 microbial genomes, identifying over 500 new bacterial species and over 300,000 distinct viruses in the waters of the Great Barrier Reef.
New open-access database maps pathogens and antibiotic resistance risks in coastal waters
A new global database brings together information on disease-causing microorganisms, antibiotic resistance genes, and virulence factors in coastal waters, offering a practical tool for assessing biological risks in estuaries and other nearshore environments.
Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution launches the Schiller Center for Reef Solutions
The Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) has announced a transformative philanthropic commitment to advance global coral reef research and solutions. The gift will establish the WHOI Schiller Center for Reef Solutions.
Human activities compromise coral health and resilience
Researchers discovered that 25 contaminants from agricultural, industrial, and pharmaceutical sources accumulated in the soft tissues of coral around Maui, Hawai‘i.
Scientists find hidden individuality in viral infections
An international team of researchers developed a new way to uncover hidden differences in how viruses infect and destroy individual microbial cells—solving a biological puzzle that has persisted for more than 80 years.
Bacteria form ‘herds’ to survive predators, offering fresh insight into Earth’s carbon cycle
Researchers have discovered that tiny photosynthetic bacteria band together into protective ‘herds’ when attacked by predators – a survival strategy that could also influence how carbon is stored in the world’s waters.
Phytoplankton apply the onion skin principle
The phycosphere, which surrounds ocean microalgae, is one of the most important marketplaces for organic carbon in the oceans. A new study of chemical signals in this region suggests that the phycosphere consists of multiple layers.
Climate oscillations shape nature’s coral refuges in a warming ocean
A new study reveals that the natural cooling of coral reefs in the Andaman Sea by oceanographic processes is not constant – but depends on major tropical climate patterns that shape conditions across the tropical Indo-Pacific.
Arctic microplastics: A ticking time bomb for climate feedback loops
A new study systematically maps the major transport pathways—atmospheric, oceanic, and local—and details how microplastics infiltrate Arctic food webs and interact with physical and biogeochemical processes that govern regional climate.