Biological interactions between microorganisms in the sea

Marine ecosystems, like terrestrial biological communities, are generally considered to depend, regarding their structure and functioning, upon the trophic and sexual relationships between organisms, either “horizontally”, between individuals at the same level, or “vertically”, all the way down the various levels of the food chains. Nevertheless, the functioning of biosystems is mostly governed by their structure, i.e., the qualitative and quantitative distribution of individuals within biocenoses, as well as the relationships with one another and with the environment. Therefore, it is vital to get to know how these connections work in order to outline the main causes of microbiological equilibrium in the sea. Actually, the major problem remains that of communication between individuals in biocenoses. This is a general problem as far as life is concerned, but it proves especially acute when it comes to microbial life because of its importance in the oceanic cycles.Data available in the literature, together with the results of our own studies in this field, led us to the assumption that some of the dissolved organic substances present in seawater might well be responsible for the control of the relationships between species. These substances would be active at various degrees of concentration, after they have been released into the medium by certain species. This theory, already adumbrated by Lucas (1938, 1947, 1955), Nigrelli (1958) and Fontaine (1970) concerning direct relationships between marine species or groups of organisms, was resumed and generalized by M. Aubert (1971) who called these substances “telemediators”.Such chemical communication plays a major role in a variety of fields including sexual behaviour, nutrition and predation, as well as defense mechanisms, mobility and migration.Remote connection of two organisms through a chemical mediation involves a sequence of actions and reactions which raises a number of problems of biochemical microecology. The organism that produces the telemediator must synthesize it — either spontaneously or in an induced way — and release it into the medium, during its active growth or after cell lysis. Next, the mediator is conveyed to the remote receiving organism, which it should reach without being degraded or chemically modified (or after such a modification. Its concentration must remain equal to or higher than its activity threshold. The receptor detects it, with or without absorption, and reacts by modifying its own metabolism or behaviour. This may go as far as causing the receptor the receptor to die. In even more complex situations, another mediator will be synthesized and released into the medium.Theoretical as it may be, such a pattern is a useful guide to explain the microbial interactions in a marine environment. It involves a number of complex microecological phenomena, some phases of which begin to be known. One specific problem is chemoreception in microorganisms, hence chemotaxis. Telemediator activity threshold and turnover in the natural environment must also be investigated.One should also take account of the physical context in which the phenomena take place. For instance, it is a known fact that an important fraction of the bacterial flora in the sea is adsorbed on solid or particulate substrates. Thus, the relationships with which they are concerned are much more probable in a sphere of a few fractions of a millimeter: this emphasizes the significance of the biochemical processes which cause the microorganisms to colonize substrates and to compete with one another in so doing. Another point of interest is how they modify the substrate until they are replaced by higher organisms.In the microbial field, communication between species has been described at various levels. Horizontally, it can take place between different bacteria or between various species of algae. Vertically, it may involve bacteria and planktonic algae, bacteria and protozoa, or algae and zooplanktonic organisms.Besides, the communication may be “positive”, if the mediator enhances the growth of the receiving organism — then, it is used as a source of carbon or nitrogen, or as a growth factor — or “negative” whenever the mediator is toxic (antibiotic, antiseptic or toxin) or induces a lethal metabolic modification in the receiver.In fact, there are various telemediation mechanisms, which correspond to increasing degrees of complexity in the biological systems: a primary mechanism, in which the mediator is synthetized by a species and controls (or modifies) the metabolism of another species in one step, and a secondary mechanism, where the mediator is synthetized by a species, and modifies the metabolism of another species; the latter, in turn, releases a primary mediator which controls the functions of a third species. This might be a longer sequence, involving a higher number of species.If the mechanism becomes cyclic, feedback may occur: as far as we know, such feedback may be either positive or negative ecologically, depending on whether it speeds up or slows down a biological process.A conception of a marine universe whose equilibrium would be controlled by the interaction of organisms within a more or less dense biotic network, with meshes made up of the relationship functions as a whole, is highly suggestive of an homology with cybernetic structures. Then, each marine organism can be considered as a separate functional unit characterized by some particular properties, its functions, which govern its activity. These units are involved in the functioning of complex and varying systems in which they intervene locally to channel up the flow of energy and matter to a given extent and in a given direction.The analogy is still more pronounced as there are feedbacks, which can control various sectors of the system. In a series of studies based on biological systems regulated by various chemical mediators, authors were able to demonstrate that the introduction of varied chemical pollutants into the marine environment entails modifications in the structure of the biological components of seawater and results in either the modification or the destruction of the mediating metabolites or “signals”. The result could be a more or less pronounced ecological drift, that varies according to the activity of the pollutant.     

Pele's hairs and tears: Natural probe of volcanic plume

We present a detailed petrographic study of Pele's hairs and tears sampled from Masaya volcano (Nicaragua). This study provides new observations of these little-known pyroclastic objects using both secondary electron images (SEI) and back scattering electron images (BSEI). Our work shows that Pele's tears can be associated with Pele's hairs after their formation: tears can be trapped on the walls and/or in the cavities of Pele's hairs. Moreover, chemical investigations of the Pele's hairs and tears highlight the presence of a chemical zonation. The edge of these tears and hairs show a siliceous enrichment, allowing us to quantify the interaction time of the silicate glass with acid gases in the volcanic plume. This study confirms the syneruptive and post eruptive volatile exsolution from Pele's hairs and tears.     

Phase de Laves dans la première opale CT bidisperse

A Mexican opal from the state of Jalisco has a bidisperse, perfectly ordered structure with framboid silica lepispheres of two different diameters. Its structure has been determined by the observation of a vicinal section, close to a dense plane. Fresh breaks along a vicinal plane emphasized regular steps, which were studied by means of SEM. We have been able to propose unit cell models, theoretical positions of the two sets of spheres, and probable space group, P6₃/mmc. This structure arranges similarly to that of a diatomic compound having an AB₂ stoichiometry and corresponds to a cubic (MgCu₂-type) or hexagonal (MgZn₂-type) Laves phase. This last variety seems to be the most probable structure. To cite this article: J.-P. Gauthier et al., C. R. Geoscience 336 (2004).     

40Ar/39Ar temporal framework for the Alleret maar lacustrine sequence (French Massif-Central): Volcanological and paleoclimatic implications

The Alleret maar (Massif Central, France) is part of the few Western European early middle Pleistocene lacustrine sequences. In the AL3 core several new ash layers were recovered in the 10 first meters of the sedimentary filling. We obtained three ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar ages, which range from 683 ± 5 ka (MSWD: 1.2, n = 17) to 722 ± 6 ka (MSWD: 3.2, n = 18). All the studied ash layers belong to the Super-Besse eruptive cycle of the Sancy volcano. Based on the chronostratigraphy that we have derived we estimate that the age of the main eruption could correspond to the Sancy volcano caldera formation at 725 ka close to the end of MIS 18 and that the Super-Besse explosive episode duration lasted only about 40 ka. The time framework we build evidences that the Alleret lacustrine sequence represents a time interval of probably 180 ka spanning from MIS 18 to MIS 14. This sequence offers the first well constrained comparison between terrestrial environmental history and that preserved in marine sediments during the Mid-Pleistocene Revolution.     

Poynting Robertson effects due to a logarithmic correction to the Newtonian potential

Astrophysics and Space Science - We performed a detailed timing study of the Atoll source 4U 1705-44 in order to understand the accretion disk geometry. Cross correlation function (CCF) studies...     

Habitat heterogeneity influences cold‐seep macrofaunal communities within and among seeps along the Norwegian margin. Part 1: macrofaunal community structure

Håkon Mosby mud volcano (HMMV) is one of the most active and most studied seep sites in European waters. Many authors have described its thermal activity, dynamic of mud flows, and geochemical and microbial processes. It is characterised by a concentric zonation of successive biogenic habitats related to an activity and geochemical gradient from its centre to its periphery. Around the central area covered by mud flows, white and grey microbial mats occur among areas of bare sediment, whereas siboglinid tubeworm fields of Sclerolinum contortum and/or Oligobrachia haakonmosbiensis colonise the peripheral areas. The meiofaunal community is known to be structured among habitats, but the macrofauna has rarely been investigated and has never been sampled in situ. As part of the European project HERMES, using the ROVs Victor 6000 and Quest 4000, we sampled quantitatively the different habitats of the volcano for macrofauna sensus lato, retained on a 250‐ or 500‐μm sieve. We also sampled a newly discovered pockmark on Storegga slide (cne 5.6) and two pockmarks (G11, G12) in the Nyegga area. Macrofauna was identified and counted from phylum to family level. Our results on HMMV showed a gradient of increasing density and diversity from the volcano centre (1–3 taxa; 260 ind·m^?2) to the peripheral siboglinid fields (8–14 taxa, 93,000 ind·m^?2), with an intermediate situation for microbial mats. For macrofauna ≥500 μm, non‐siboglinid polychaetes dominated the communities of the central mud volcano area, white mats and S. contortum fields (83, 89 and 37% of the total, respectively), whereas gastropods dominated grey mats and O. haakonmosbiensis fields (89 and 44% of the total, respectively). Polychaete families followed the same pattern of diversity according to habitats within HMMV. Of 23 polychaete families identified, only one occurred in the centre, and three in the microbial mats. Capitellidae and Dorvilleidae (typical of organically and sulphide‐enriched areas) occurred at remarkably high densities in white microbial mats and in O. haakonmosbiensis fields. The S. contortum fields were the most diverse habitat with 12 polychaete families. The 250‐μm fraction showed similar taxa dominating the habitats, but taking meiofauna into account, nematodes became the major taxon in white mats and in S. contortum fields, where they were particularly large in size, whereas copepods dominated in other habitats. Meiofauna and macrofauna did not show the same patterns of density according to habitats. Using principal components analysis the habitats at HMMV were clearly distinct, and clustered according to dominant species of siboglinids and type of microbial mats. Pockmarks at Nyegga showed a similar concentric pattern of habitats around fluid sources as on the volcano, which seemed similarly to influence macrofauna composition, but at a much smaller scale. Total taxa and polychaete diversity are high in the S. contortum fields in these pockmarks as well. Regional‐scale comparisons including HMMV and Storegga suggested a higher influence of habitat‐type than seep‐site on the community structure.     

Trophic coupling between two adjacent benthic food webs within a man-made intertidal area: A stable isotopes evidence

This study aimed at establishing the effects of human-made physical modifications on the trophic structure and functioning of an intertidal benthic food web in Arcachon Bay (France). The main food sources and the most representative consumers were sampled on an artificial rocky dyke and its adjacent seagrass meadow. The food sources of consumers were inferred through the use of carbon and nitrogen stable isotopes. The contributions of the different food sources to the diets of the consumers were established using the Isosource mixing model. In order to reduce the range of feasible contributions, additional non-isotopic constraints were added when necessary to the outputs of this model.     

Distribution, abundance, and growth of larval tautog, Tautoga onitis, in Buzzards Bay, Massachusetts, USA

Tautog, Tautoga onitis, is an abundant species of fish in estuaries of the northeastern United States. Planktonic tautog larvae are abundant in summer in these estuaries, but there is little information on rates of growth of tautog larvae feeding on natural assemblages of food in the plankton. We examined abundance and growth of larval tautog and environmental factors during weekly sampling at three sites along a nearshore‐to‐offshore transect in Buzzards Bay, Massachusetts, USA during summer 1994. This is the first study of a robust sample size (336 larvae) to estimate growth rates of field‐caught planktonic tautog larvae feeding on natural diets, using the otolith daily‐growth‐increment method. The study was over the entire summer period when tautog larvae were in the plankton. The sampling sites contrasted in several environmental variables including temperature, dissolved oxygen (DO), and chlorophyll a concentration. There was a temporal progression in the abundance of tautog larvae over the summer, in relation to location and temperature. Tautog larvae were first present nearshore, with a pronounced peak in abundance occurring at the nearshore sites during the last 2 weeks in June. Larvae were absent at this time further offshore. From late June through August, larval abundance progressively decreased nearshore, but increased offshore although never approaching the abundance levels observed at the nearshore sites. The distribution and abundance of tautog larvae appeared to be related to a nearshore‐to‐offshore seasonal warming trend and a nearshore decrease in DO. Otoliths from 336 larvae ranging from 2.3 to 7.7 mm standard length had otolith increment counts ranging from 0 to 19 increments. Growth of larval tautog was estimated at 0.23 mm·day^?1, and length of larvae prior to first increment formation was estimated at 2.8 mm indicating that first increment formation occurs 3–4 days after hatching at 2.2 mm. Despite spatial and temporal differences in environmental factors, there were no significant differences in growth rates at any of three given sites over time, or between sites. Because larval presence only occurred at a narrow range of temperature (17–23.5 °C) and DO (6.5–9.3 mg·l^?1), in situ differences in growth did not appear to be because of differences in larval distribution and abundance patterns relative to these parameters.     

Ages of Detrital Zircon from Siliciclastic Successions South of the São Francisco Craton, Brazil: Implications for the Evolution of Proterozoic Basins

In this work we report ²⁰⁷Pb/²⁰⁶Pb LA-ICPMS ages of 152 detrital zircons from lower greenschist facies quartzites from Proterozoic basin successions of the southern border of the São Francisco Craton, southern Minas Gerais State, Brazil. These are the intracratonic São João del Rei basin, the intraplate continental margin Andrelândia basin, and the Serra do Ouro Grosso sequence, developed on a crystalline basement older than 1.8 Ga, and deformed and metamorphosed during the Brasiliano Orogeny, ca. 0.59–0.50 Ga. The data constrain both the ages of the sources and the interval of sedimentation. The detrital zircons of the Serra do Ouro Grosso sequence were derived predominantly from the erosion of a Neoarchean crust, 2.5–2.8 Ga old, with only one grain showing a Paleoproterozoic age (2, 245±83 Ma) older than the Transamazonian event. Zircons extracted from a shelf quartzite of the lowermost sequence of the São João del Rei basin indicate derivation from the 1.8–2.2 Ga Transamazonian crust, with subordinate contribution from the 2.5–2.9 Ga Archean crust. The 1, 809±41 Ma age is interpreted as the maximum limit for sedimentation in this basin. The results confirm the regional correlation with the Espinhaço Rift successions. The zircons extracted from an autochthonous quartzite of the Andrelândia sequence yielded ages in the 1.0–2.2 Ga range, with a modal class at 1.2–1.3 Ga. Only two of the forty analyzed zircons yield Archean ages. The youngest zircon yields 1, 086±85 Ma. The zircons from the allochthonous quartzite yield ages between 1.0–2.7 Ga, with a modal class at 2.1–2.2 Ga. Only five of 45 analyzed grains yield Archean ages. The youngest zircon has an age of 1, 047±77 Ma. The results indicate that the detrital sediments deposited during the second marine flooding event of the Andrelândia sedimentation were mainly derived from the erosion of Mesoproterozoic and Paleoproterozic rocks. The 1, 047±77 Ma age is interpreted as the maximum depositional age for the described association.