Submarine Basaltic Glass Colonization by the Heterotrophic Fe(II)-Oxidizing and Siderophore-Producing Deep-Sea BacteriumPseudomonas stutzeriVS-10: The Potential Role of Basalt in Enhancing Growth.
Phylogenetically and metabolically diverse bacterial communities have been found in association with submarine basaltic glass surfaces. The driving forces behind basalt colonization are for the most part unknown. It remains ambiguous if basalt provides ecological advantages beyond representing a substrate for surface colonization, such as supplying nutrients and/or energy.Pseudomonas stutzeriVS-10, a metabolically versatile bacterium isolated from Vailulu'u Seamount, was used as a model organism to investigate the physiological responses observed when biofilms are established on basaltic glasses. In Fe-limited heterotrophic media,P. stutzeriVS-10 exhibited elevated growth in the presence of basaltic glass. Diffusion chamber experiments demonstrated that physical attachment or contact of soluble metabolites such as siderophores with the basaltic glass plays a pivotal role in this process. Electrochemical data indicated thatP. stutzeriVS-10 is able to use solid substrates (electrodes) as terminal electron donors and acceptors. Siderophore production and heterotrophic Fe(II) oxidation are discussed as potential mechanisms enhancing growth ofP. stutzeriVS-10 on glass surfaces. In correlation with that we discuss the possibility that metabolic versatility could represent a common and beneficial physiological trait in marine microbial communities being subject to oligotrophic and rapidly changing deep-sea conditions.
Marine Biology Research Division, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla CA, USA.
Lisa A
LA
Sudek
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, University of Southern California, Pasadena CA, USA.
Greg
G
Wanger
Department of Geological Sciences, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder CO, USA.
Alexis S
AS
Templeton
Institute of Geophysics and Planetary Physics, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla CA, USA.
Hubert
H
Staudigel
Marine Biology Research Division, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla CA, USA.
Bradley M
BM
Tebo
Fe(II) oxidation; basalt; biofilm; diffusion chamber; microbial fuel cell; siderophores