MS 70A-3317, One Cyclotron Road, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA.
Science. 2010 Oct 8;330(6001):204-8. doi: 10.1126/science.1195979. Epub 2010 Aug 24.
The biological effects and expected fate of the vast amount of oil in the Gulf of Mexico from the Deepwater Horizon blowout are unknown owing to the depth and magnitude of this event. Here, we report that the dispersed hydrocarbon plume stimulated deep-sea indigenous γ-Proteobacteria that are closely related to known petroleum degraders. Hydrocarbon-degrading genes coincided with the concentration of various oil contaminants. Changes in hydrocarbon composition with distance from the source and incubation experiments with environmental isolates demonstrated faster-than-expected hydrocarbon biodegradation rates at 5°C. Based on these results, the potential exists for intrinsic bioremediation of the oil plume in the deep-water column without substantial oxygen drawdown.
由于深海地平线井喷事件的深度和规模，墨西哥湾大量石油的生物效应和预期命运尚不清楚。在这里，我们报告说，分散的碳氢化合物羽流刺激了与已知石油降解菌密切相关的深海土著γ-变形菌。碳氢化合物降解基因与各种石油污染物的浓度一致。从源头到距离的碳氢化合物组成的变化以及环境分离物的培养实验表明，在 5°C 下，碳氢化合物的生物降解速度快于预期。基于这些结果，在不大量消耗氧气的情况下，深海水柱中石油羽流的内在生物修复具有潜力。
