Dominance of Sulfur-Oxidizing Bacteria, <i>Thiomicrorhabdus</i>, in the Waters Affected by a Shallow-Sea Hydrothermal Plume

The shallow-sea hydrothermal vent at Guishan Islet, located off the coast of Taiwan, serves as a remarkable natural site for studying microbial ecology in extreme environments. In April 2019, we investigated the composition of prokaryotic picoplankton communities, their gene expression profiles, and...

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Main Authors: Chih-Ching Chung, Gwo-Ching Gong, Hsiao-Chun Tseng, Wen-Chen Chou, Chuan-Hsin Ho
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2025-01-01
Series:Biology
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Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2079-7737/14/1/28
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author Chih-Ching Chung
Gwo-Ching Gong
Hsiao-Chun Tseng
Wen-Chen Chou
Chuan-Hsin Ho
author_facet Chih-Ching Chung
Gwo-Ching Gong
Hsiao-Chun Tseng
Wen-Chen Chou
Chuan-Hsin Ho
author_sort Chih-Ching Chung
collection DOAJ
description The shallow-sea hydrothermal vent at Guishan Islet, located off the coast of Taiwan, serves as a remarkable natural site for studying microbial ecology in extreme environments. In April 2019, we investigated the composition of prokaryotic picoplankton communities, their gene expression profiles, and the dissolved inorganic carbon uptake efficiency. Our results revealed that the chemolithotrophs <i>Thiomicrorhabdus</i> spp. contributed to the majority of primary production in the waters affected by the hydrothermal vent plume. The metatranscriptomic analysis aligned with the primary productivity measurements, indicating the significant gene upregulations associated with carboxysome-mediated carbon fixation in <i>Thiomicrorhabdus</i>. <i>Synechococcus</i> and <i>Prochlorococcus</i> served as the prokaryotic photoautotrophs for primary productivity in the waters with lower influence from hydrothermal vent emissions. <i>Thiomicrorhabdus</i> and picocyanobacteria jointly provided organic carbon for sustaining the shallow-sea hydrothermal vent ecosystem. In addition to the carbon fixation, the upregulation of genes involved in the SOX (sulfur-oxidizing) pathway, and the dissimilatory sulfate reduction indicated that energy generation and detoxification co-occurred in <i>Thiomicrorhabdus</i>. This study improved our understanding of the impacts of shallow-sea hydrothermal vents on the operation of marine ecosystems and biogeochemical cycles.
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spelling doaj-art-70e1480c7ae544ad866dc5c726a9704c2025-01-24T13:23:21ZengMDPI AGBiology2079-77372025-01-011412810.3390/biology14010028Dominance of Sulfur-Oxidizing Bacteria, <i>Thiomicrorhabdus</i>, in the Waters Affected by a Shallow-Sea Hydrothermal PlumeChih-Ching Chung0Gwo-Ching Gong1Hsiao-Chun Tseng2Wen-Chen Chou3Chuan-Hsin Ho4Institute of Marine Environment and Ecology, National Taiwan Ocean University, 2 Pei-Ning Road, Keelung 202, TaiwanInstitute of Marine Environment and Ecology, National Taiwan Ocean University, 2 Pei-Ning Road, Keelung 202, TaiwanInstitute of Marine Environment and Ecology, National Taiwan Ocean University, 2 Pei-Ning Road, Keelung 202, TaiwanInstitute of Marine Environment and Ecology, National Taiwan Ocean University, 2 Pei-Ning Road, Keelung 202, TaiwanDepartment of Science Education, National Taipei University of Education, 134 Section 2, Heping East Road, Taipei City 106, TaiwanThe shallow-sea hydrothermal vent at Guishan Islet, located off the coast of Taiwan, serves as a remarkable natural site for studying microbial ecology in extreme environments. In April 2019, we investigated the composition of prokaryotic picoplankton communities, their gene expression profiles, and the dissolved inorganic carbon uptake efficiency. Our results revealed that the chemolithotrophs <i>Thiomicrorhabdus</i> spp. contributed to the majority of primary production in the waters affected by the hydrothermal vent plume. The metatranscriptomic analysis aligned with the primary productivity measurements, indicating the significant gene upregulations associated with carboxysome-mediated carbon fixation in <i>Thiomicrorhabdus</i>. <i>Synechococcus</i> and <i>Prochlorococcus</i> served as the prokaryotic photoautotrophs for primary productivity in the waters with lower influence from hydrothermal vent emissions. <i>Thiomicrorhabdus</i> and picocyanobacteria jointly provided organic carbon for sustaining the shallow-sea hydrothermal vent ecosystem. In addition to the carbon fixation, the upregulation of genes involved in the SOX (sulfur-oxidizing) pathway, and the dissimilatory sulfate reduction indicated that energy generation and detoxification co-occurred in <i>Thiomicrorhabdus</i>. This study improved our understanding of the impacts of shallow-sea hydrothermal vents on the operation of marine ecosystems and biogeochemical cycles.https://www.mdpi.com/2079-7737/14/1/28hydrothermal ventchemolithotrophpicoplankton
spellingShingle Chih-Ching Chung
Gwo-Ching Gong
Hsiao-Chun Tseng
Wen-Chen Chou
Chuan-Hsin Ho
Dominance of Sulfur-Oxidizing Bacteria, <i>Thiomicrorhabdus</i>, in the Waters Affected by a Shallow-Sea Hydrothermal Plume
Biology
hydrothermal vent
chemolithotroph
picoplankton
title Dominance of Sulfur-Oxidizing Bacteria, <i>Thiomicrorhabdus</i>, in the Waters Affected by a Shallow-Sea Hydrothermal Plume
title_full Dominance of Sulfur-Oxidizing Bacteria, <i>Thiomicrorhabdus</i>, in the Waters Affected by a Shallow-Sea Hydrothermal Plume
title_fullStr Dominance of Sulfur-Oxidizing Bacteria, <i>Thiomicrorhabdus</i>, in the Waters Affected by a Shallow-Sea Hydrothermal Plume
title_full_unstemmed Dominance of Sulfur-Oxidizing Bacteria, <i>Thiomicrorhabdus</i>, in the Waters Affected by a Shallow-Sea Hydrothermal Plume
title_short Dominance of Sulfur-Oxidizing Bacteria, <i>Thiomicrorhabdus</i>, in the Waters Affected by a Shallow-Sea Hydrothermal Plume
title_sort dominance of sulfur oxidizing bacteria i thiomicrorhabdus i in the waters affected by a shallow sea hydrothermal plume
topic hydrothermal vent
chemolithotroph
picoplankton
url https://www.mdpi.com/2079-7737/14/1/28
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