This episode: Microbes in low-oxygen zones in the ocean consume significant amounts of methane anaerobically!
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Show notes:
Microbe of the episode: Mojiang henipavirus
News item
Takeaways
Methane is a much more potent greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide. Fortunately there's not as much of it in the atmosphere, but even smaller amounts can have significant effects on the climate.
One source of methane is low-oxygen zones in the ocean, where certain kinds of archaea make methane as part of their energy metabolism. This study found that other anaerobic microbes in the same areas consume much of this methane, preventing it from reaching the atmosphere.
Journal Paper:
Thamdrup B, Steinsdóttir HGR, Bertagnolli AD, Padilla CC, Patin NV, Garcia‐Robledo E, Bristow LA, Stewart FJ. 2019. Anaerobic methane oxidation is an important sink for methane in the ocean’s largest oxygen minimum zone. Limnol Oceanogr 64:2569–2585.
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