AI Article Synopsis
- Marine viruses prevalent in seawater have been less studied regarding their movement from ocean surfaces to the atmosphere.
- A study found that 6.2% of viruses could be found in both the air-sea interface and rainwater, indicating selective enrichment and transfer of viruses, particularly from the surface microlayer and sea foams to the atmosphere.
- The presence of specific CRISPR matches suggests frequent interactions between marine prokaryotes and foreign viruses, supporting the idea that viruses can spread through the natural water cycle.
Article Abstract
Marine viruses in seawater have frequently been studied, yet their dispersal from neuston ecosystems at the air-sea interface towards the atmosphere remains a knowledge gap. Here, we show that 6.2% of the studied virus population were shared between air-sea interface ecosystems and rainwater. Virus enrichment in the 1-mm thin surface microlayer and sea foams happened selectively, and variant analysis proved virus transfer to aerosols collected at ~2 m height above sea level and rain. Viruses detected in rain and these aerosols showed a significantly higher percent G/C base content compared to marine viruses. CRISPR spacer matches of marine prokaryotes to foreign viruses from rainwater prove regular virus-host encounters at the air-sea interface. Our findings on aerosolization, adaptations, and dispersal support transmission of viruses along the natural water cycle.
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Source |
|---|---|
| http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10564846 | PMC |
| http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41467-023-42125-5 | DOI Listing |
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