A sensitive crude oil bioassay indicates that oil spills potentially induce a change of major nitrifying prokaryotes from the archaea to the bacteria.
The sensitivity of nitrifiers to crude oil released by the BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill in Gulf of Mexico was examined using characterized ammonia-oxidizing bacteria and archaea to develop a bioassay and to gain further insight into the ecological response of these two groups of microorganisms to marine oil spills. Inhibition of nitrite production was observed among all the tested ammonia-oxidizing organisms at 100 ppb crude oil. Nitrosopumilus maritimus, a cultured representative of the abundant Marine Group I Archaea, showed 20% inhibition at 1 ppb, a much greater degree of sensitivity to petroleum than the tested ammonia-oxidizing and heterotrophic bacteria. The differing susceptibility may have ecological significance since a shift to bacterial dominance in response to an oil spill could potentially persist and alter trophic interactions influenced by availability of different nitrogen species.
Department of Marine and Ecological Sciences, Florida Gulf Coast University, 10501 FGCU Boulevard S. Fort Myers, FL 33965-6565, USA. hurakawa@fgcu.edu
Hidetoshi
H
Urakawa
Juan C
JC
Garcia
Patricia D
PD
Barreto
Gabriela A
GA
Molina
Jose C
JC
Barreto
D001105:Archaea / Q000254:growth & development / Q000378:metabolism*; D001419:Bacteria / Q000254:growth & development / Q000378:metabolism*; D001681:Biological Assay; D004784:Environmental Monitoring / Q000379:methods*; D009584:Nitrogen / Q000032:analysis / Q000378:metabolism*; D059392:Petroleum Pollution / Q000032:analysis* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012623:Seawater / Q000737:chemistry / Q000382:microbiology*; D014871:Water Microbiology; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000032:analysis
D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical; D009584:Nitrogen