Hydrocarbon metabolism and petroleum seepage as ecological and evolutionary drivers for Cycloclasticus.

Aqueous-soluble hydrocarbons dissolve into the ocean's interior and structure deep-sea microbial populations influenced by natural oil seeps and spills. n-Pentane is a seawater-soluble, volatile compound abundant in petroleum products and reservoirs and will partially partition to the deep-water column following release from the seafloor. In this study, we explore the ecology and niche partitioning of two free-living Cycloclasticus strains recovered from seawater incubations with n-pentane and distinguish them as an open ocean variant and a seep-proximal variant, each with distinct capabilities for hydrocarbon catabolism.

Surface soil-dust contamination of Phalaris arundinacea grown on former lead mine sites: Implications for biomass use, phytoremediation and phytomanagement.

This study evaluated the contribution of soil dust deposited on the surface of reed canary grass (Phalaris arundinacea) grown on historic lead (Pb) mine sites to the overall contamination of the biomass, with implications for phytoremediation, valorization and utilization. By applying a novel combination of imaging of plant material using X-ray computed tomography (XCT) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM), with washing experiments and bulk analysis, the research aimed to distinguish between (a) Pb uptake through biological processes (phyto-extraction), and (b) surficial dust and physical entrapment of Pb-rich dust on plants cultivated in contaminated soils (surface-contamination). The study established the presence and distribution of Pb-rich particles, which were difficult to remove even by means of sequential washing in 1 M hydrochloric acid and surfactant.

Microbial Metagenomes Across a Complete Phytoplankton Bloom Cycle: High-Resolution Sampling Every 4 Hours Over 22 Days.

In May and June of 2021, marine microbial samples were collected for DNA sequencing in East Sound, WA, USA every 4 hours for 22 days. This high temporal resolution sampling effort captured the last 3 days of a Rhizosolenia sp. bloom, the initiation and complete bloom cycle of Chaetoceros socialis (8 days), and the following bacterial bloom (2 days).