Department of Marine Sciences, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602-3636, USA.
ISME J. 2011 Mar;5(3):565-7. doi: 10.1038/ismej.2010.134. Epub 2010 Oct 14.
We measured denitrification and nitrate removal rates in cold seep sediments from the Gulf of Mexico. Heterotrophic potential denitrification rates were assayed in time-series incubations. Surficial sediments inhabited by Beggiatoa exhibited higher heterotrophic potential denitrification rates (32 μM N reduced day(-1)) than did deeper sediments (11 μM N reduced day(-1)). Nitrate removal rates were high in both sediment horizons. These nitrate removal rates translate into rapid turnover times (<1 day) for the nitrate pool, resulting in a faster turnover for the nitrate pool than for the sulfate pool. Together, these data underscore the rigorous nature of internal nitrogen cycling at cold seeps and the requirement for novel mechanisms to provide nitrate to the sediment microbial community.
我们测量了来自墨西哥湾冷渗沉积物中的反硝化和硝酸盐去除速率。在时间序列培养中测定了异养潜在反硝化速率。由贝氏硫菌属(Beggiatoa)栖息的表层沉积物的异养潜在反硝化速率(32 μM N 还原天(-1))高于深部沉积物(11 μM N 还原天(-1))。两个沉积物层的硝酸盐去除速率都很高。这些硝酸盐去除速率使得硝酸盐库的周转率非常快(<1 天),导致硝酸盐库的周转率比硫酸盐库快。这些数据共同强调了冷渗流内部氮循环的严格性质,以及需要新的机制向沉积物微生物群落提供硝酸盐。