Files
Abstract
Marine dissolved organic matter (DOM) is a mixture of thousands of molecules that impact ocean life. Characterization of the most rapidly-cycling DOM, consisting of metabolites produced by marine microbes, has lagged behind that of other chemical compounds of this marine organic matter reservoir. However, identification of these compounds is important for understanding the flux of recently-fixed carbon and revealing interactions occurring between members of the ocean microbiome. Previous research identified transporter operons in the bacterium Ruegeria pomeroyi that had enriched expression levels when co-cultured with the diatom Thalassiosira pseudonana. The research presented here aims to identify the substrates that trigger expression of these operons and to quantify the abundance of these genes in the global ocean. Two of the targeted transporter operons increased in expression following the addition of acetate and taurine. Further, several of the operons could be associated with diverse groups of bacterial families in the surface ocean.