Publication Date:
2024-06-26
Description:
Marine sediments host an unexpectedly large microbial biosphere, suggesting unique microbial mechanisms for surviving burial and slow metabolic turnover. Although dormancy is generally considered an important survival strategy, its specific role in subsurface sediments remains unclear. We quantified dormant bacterial endospores in 331 marine sediment samples from diverse depositional types and geographical origins. The abundance of endospores relative to vegetative cells increased with burial depth and endospores became dominant below 25 m, with an estimated population of 2.5 × 1028 to 1.9 × 1029 endospores in the uppermost kilometer of sediment and a corresponding biomass carbon of 4.6 to 35 Pg surpassing that of vegetative cells. Our data further identify distinct endospore subgroups with divergent resistance to burial and aging. Endospores may shape the deep biosphere by providing a core population for colonization of new habitats and/or through low-frequency germination to sustain slow growth in this environment.
Keywords:
201-1226B; 201-1226D; 201-1226E; 201-1227A; 201-1227D; 201-1228A; 201-1228E; 201-1230A; 201-1230B; 201-1231A; 201-1231B; 201-1231E; 301-U1301C; 307-U1317A; 308-U1319A; 308-U1320A; 308-U1322B; 308-U1324B; 315-C0001E; 315-C0001F; 315-C0002D; 316-C0004C; 316-C0006C; 316-C0006D; 316-C0006E; 316-C0007A; 316-C0007B; 316-C0007C; 316-C0008A; 316-C0008C; 329-U1365C; 329-U1365D; 329-U1366F; 329-U1367D; 329-U1368D; 329-U1369E; 329-U1370F; 329-U1371E; 329-U1371F; 346-U1423A; 346-U1424A; 346-U1426A; 346-U1428A; 347-M0059E; 347-M0060B; 347-M0063E; 347-M0065C; 353-U1443A; 353-U1444A; 354-U1450A; Asian Monsoon; Baltic Sea, Bornholm Basin; Baltic Sea, Kattegat; Baltic Sea, Landsort Deep; Baltic Sea, Lille Belt; Baltic Sea Paleoenvironment; Bengal Fan; BSB-1; BSB-3; BSB-7C; BSB-9; CDRILL; Center for Marine Environmental Sciences; Chikyu; CK06-06; Core drilling; DARCSEAS II; DEPTH, sediment/rock; Dipicolinic acid concentration per g dry weight; DRILL; Drilling/drill rig; Elevation of event; Event label; Exp301; Exp307; Exp308; Exp315; Exp316; Exp329; Exp346; Exp347; Exp353; EXP354; GC; GeoB15103-1; GeoB15104-2; GeoB15105-1; GeoB17302-4; GeoB17304-3; GeoB17306-2; GeoB17307-8; GeoB17308-4; Gravity corer; Greatship Manisha; Gulf of Mexico Hydrogeology; Integrated Ocean Drilling Program / International Ocean Discovery Program; IODP; Joides Resolution; Juan de Fuca Hydrogeology; Juan de Fuca Ridge, North Pacific Ocean; KN223; KN223_site12; KN223_site15; KN223_site3; Knorr; Latitude of event; Leg201; Longitude of event; M84/1; M84/1_119-1; M84/1_123-1; M84/1_126-1; MARUM; Meteor (1986); NanTroSEIZE Stage 1: Megasplay Riser Pilot; NanTroSEIZE Stage 1: Shallow Megaslay and Frontal Thrusts; Porcupine Basin Carbonate Mounds; POS450; POS450_576-4; POS450_580-3; POS450_585-3; POS450_586-1; POS450_587-1; Poseidon; Sample code/label; Sea of Japan/East Sea; South Pacific Gyre Microbiology; South Pacific Ocean; Western Mediterranean Sea
Type:
Dataset
Format:
text/tab-separated-values, 551 data points
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