Comparison of the effect of salinity on the D/H ratio of fatty acids of heterotrophic and photoautotrophic microorganisms.

The core metabolism of microorganisms has a major influence on the hydrogen isotopic composition of their fatty acids. Heterotrophic microorganisms produce fatty acids with a deuterium to hydrogen (D/H) ratio either slightly depleted or enriched in D compared to the growth water, while photo- and chemoautotrophic microorganisms produce fatty acids which are heavily depleted in D. However, besides metabolism other biochemical and environmental factors (i.