title: Oceanographic basis of the global surface distribution of Prochlorococcus ecotypes.
abstract: By using data collected during a continuous circumnavigation of the Southern Hemisphere, we observed clear patterns in the population-genetic structure of Prochlorococcus, the most abundant photosynthetic organism on Earth, between and within the three Southern Subtropical Gyres. The same mechanisms that were previously invoked to account for the vertical distribution of ecotypes at local scales accounted for the global (horizontal) patterns we observed. Basin-scale and seasonal variations in the structure and strength of vertical stratification provide a basis for understanding large-scale horizontal distribution in genetic and physiological traits of Prochlorococcus, and perhaps of marine microbial communities in general.
authors.affiliation: Laboratorio de Procesos Oceanográficos y Clima, Departamento de Oceanografía, and Centro de Investigación Oceanográfica en el Pacífico Sur-Oriental, Universidad de Concepción, Casilla 160-C, Concepción, Chile. heather@profc.udec.cl
authors.forename: Heather A
authors.initials: HA
authors.lastname: Bouman
authors.forename: Osvaldo
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Ulloa
authors.forename: David J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Scanlan
authors.forename: Katrin
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Zwirglmaier
authors.forename: William K W
authors.initials: WK
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Trevor
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Platt
authors.forename: Venetia
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Stuart
authors.forename: Ray
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Barlow
authors.forename: Ole
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Leth
authors.forename: Lesley
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Clementson
authors.forename: Vivian
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Lutz
authors.forename: Masao
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Fukasawa
authors.forename: Shuichi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Watanabe
authors.forename: Shubha
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Sathyendranath
mesh_terms: D001267:Atlantic Ocean; D018533:Biomass; D002734:Chlorophyll / Q000032:analysis; D002980:Climate; D015169:Colony Count, Microbial; D017753:Ecosystem; D005434:Flow Cytometry; D019156:Indian Ocean; D008027:Light; D009791:Oceanography; D010140:Pacific Ocean; D010839:Phytoplankton / Q000235:genetics* / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000502:physiology; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D048929:Prochlorococcus / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics* / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000502:physiology; D012621:Seasons; D012623:Seawater / Q000382:microbiology*; D013696:Temperature; D014753:Vinyl Compounds / Q000032:analysis
chemical_list: D014753:Vinyl Compounds; C510432:divinyl chlorophyll a; D002734:Chlorophyll