title: Filamentous bacteria transport electrons over centimetre distances.
abstract: Oxygen consumption in marine sediments is often coupled to the oxidation of sulphide generated by degradation of organic matter in deeper, oxygen-free layers. Geochemical observations have shown that this coupling can be mediated by electric currents carried by unidentified electron transporters across centimetre-wide zones. Here we present evidence that the native conductors are long, filamentous bacteria. They abounded in sediment zones with electric currents and along their length they contained strings with distinct properties in accordance with a function as electron transporters. Living, electrical cables add a new dimension to the understanding of interactions in nature and may find use in technology development.
authors.affiliation: Center for Geomicrobiology, Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, 8000 Aarhus C, Denmark.
authors.forename: Christian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Pfeffer
authors.forename: Steffen
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Larsen
authors.forename: Jie
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Song
authors.forename: Mingdong
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Dong
authors.forename: Flemming
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Besenbacher
authors.forename: Rikke Louise
authors.initials: RL
authors.lastname: Meyer
authors.forename: Kasper Urup
authors.initials: KU
authors.lastname: Kjeldsen
authors.forename: Lars
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Schreiber
authors.forename: Yuri A
authors.initials: YA
authors.lastname: Gorby
authors.forename: Mohamed Y
authors.initials: MY
authors.lastname: El-Naggar
authors.forename: Kar Man
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: Leung
authors.forename: Andreas
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Schramm
authors.forename: Nils
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Risgaard-Petersen
authors.forename: Lars Peter
authors.initials: LP
authors.lastname: Nielsen
mesh_terms: D059001:Aquatic Organisms / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism / Q000648:ultrastructure; D020564:Deltaproteobacteria / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D003718:Denmark; D004553:Electric Conductivity; D004579:Electron Transport; D019015:Geologic Sediments / Q000382:microbiology; D005898:Glass; D008863:Microspheres; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D058889:Molecular Typing; D009792:Oceans and Seas; D010100:Oxygen / Q000378:metabolism; D016062:Porosity; D012336:RNA, Ribosomal, 16S / Q000032:analysis / Q000235:genetics; D013440:Sulfides / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D012336:RNA, Ribosomal, 16S; D013440:Sulfides; D010100:Oxygen