Variations of antioxidant efficiency and presence of endosymbiotic diatoms in the Antarctic porifera Haliclona dancoi

The role of endosymbiotic diatoms as pro-oxidant stressors in porifera has been investigated in the Antarctic sponge Haliclona dancoi in which the presence of diatoms is influenced by marked seasonal variations during the austral summer. Both chlorophaeopigments and frustules were absent in sponge tissues sampled in early November at the beginning of the summer and increased from the mid of December with slightly shifted temporal trends. The efficiency of antioxidant defenses in the sponge showed a marked response to symbionts with clearly enhanced values corresponding to the peak of diatoms.     

Bacterioplankton growth and production at the Louisiana hydrocarbon seeps

The growth rate and potential production of bacterioplankton in cold hydrocarbon seeps located along the Louisiana coast were determined using a pulse-labeling technique. Surprisingly, community doubling times are on the order of 1.1 h, which compares to laboratory-grown cultures. We also found that there are differences in growth rates on relatively small geographic scales, suggesting the influence of site-specific geological features (e.g., gas hydrate mounds). Proceeding downslope to deeper waters, methane-oxidizing bacteria appeared to play a more significant role in community productivity. These preliminary experiments indicated, quite unexpectedly, that water column microbes are growing at a more rapid rate than in any other marine system so far studied and that methane may serve as a primary nutrient (carbon) source in these seep-associated microbial assemblages.     

Harpacticoida taxocen diversity in the silty-sandy littoral zone of Kandalaksha Bay of the White Sea

The fauna composition, ecological groups, and life forms of Harpacticoids of soft littoral grounds from 15 sites off the Karelian coast in Kandalaksha Bay of the White Sea were studied. Six types of harpacticoid taxocens with different sets of dominating species are described. On silty sands with clear signs of desalination, the Stenchelia palustris taxocen is common; medium-grained sands are characterized by the Heterolaophonte minuta, Paraleptastacus kliei — Huntemannia jadensis, and Amphiascoides nanus — Scottopsyllus minor taxocens; while on coarse sands, the Ameira parvula and Ameira scotti — Mesochra lilljeborgi taxocens have developed. The diversity of the taxocens is partly explained by the differences in the grain-size composition and salinity at different sites. In addition, groups of various taxocens dwelling on the same type of the sediments were found in different minor bights of the coastline.     

Interstitial water chemistry of villefranche bay sediments: Trace metal diagenesis

Pore water aliquots were taken with an in situ close interval sampler: the “Peeper”.We report here the pore water concentration profiles of TCO₂, SO₄, TH₂S, Ca and the trace metals Mn, Cu, Pb, Cd and Cr from sediments of a relatively polluted area, the Villefranche Bay, on the French Riviera (close to Nice).We investigated the major ion concentrations in order to establish geochemical mass balances of organic matter oxidation. ΔTCO₂/ΔSO₄ was <−2.0, reflecting the precipitation of calcite as confirmed by the calcium profile. Reduction of sulfate led to increasing sulfide concentrations with depth.Trace metal interstitial water concentrations decreased from 63 to 5 nM, 18 to 4 nM and 6.6 to less than 2 nM for Cu, Pb and Cr, respectively. Cd showed a different pattern with top and deep values of 0.7 nM and a minimum of 0.27 nM.Thermodynamic calculations were performed which suggest the potential formation of mineral phases such as sulfides.