Who’s Who in the Microbe World?

Remember the Six Key Concepts of Marine Microbes Microbes are everywhere, they are extremely abundant and diverse Most marine microbes are beneficial. Life on earth could not exist without microbes. Microbes significantly impact our global climate. New discoveries everyday in the field of microbial oceanography Marine microbes are very small and have been around for a long time.

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cyanobacteria

photosynthetic

Estimated that in one out of five breaths the oxygen is coming from this

Abundant number in trillion trillions

Discovered about 20 years ago It’s 20 th year discovery was celebrated with a two day event!

Click HERE to HEAR ABOUT THE DISOVERY….. Runs about 5 minutes ediaPlayer.html?action=1&t=1&islist=f alse&id= &m= Sallie (Penny) Chisholm Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Biology; Lee and Geraldine Martin Professor of Environmental Studies Director, MIT Earth System Initiative technology-to-count-and-sort-cells/

You’ve just met Prochlorococcus

2 10/images/nrmicro1752-f4.jpg

Has about 1,300 genes (as compared to our 30,000) Genome contains no viral DNA and no junk DNA

Archae

Feeds off dead organic matter in ocean (heterotrophic)

Estimated to be 25% of life in the ocean (by number of organisms)

Environmental Sample Processor (ESP) data Key words: ESP and microbes

You’ve just met Peligabacter

3

Algae dinoflagellate

Chemical reaction between luciferan and luciferase

You’ve just met Pyrodinium bahamense

4

photosynthetic

Symbiotic relationship with coral Coral bleaching Key words: symbiotic with coral

You’ve just met zooanthellae

5

Fish and zooplankton can graze on it

Too small to see with a school microscope

Sediments responsible for the white cliffs of Dover

Sometimes visible from space in as an algal bloom coliths/bering_sea.html Key words: ocean color blooms

You’ve just met Coccolithophore

6

cyanobacteria

Fixes atmospheric nitrogen

Sometimes called sea sawdust

Brown algal bloom can look like foamy pollution. Keyword: sea sawdust

You’ve just met Trichodesmium

7

diatom

Some species produce toxin domoic acid

California blooms responsible for sea lion deaths in 1999 and recurrent shell-fish contamination.

Can cause Amnesic Shellfish poisoning in humans

ESP data for related species Key words: esp and mbari check out the 2007 harmful algal data

You’ve just met Pseudonitzschia australis

8

Eukaryote dinoflagellate

Can cause Harmful Algal Bloom (HAB)

It fluoreses green if enzyme alkaline phosphatase is present Its chloroplasts fluorese red.

ESP DATA GO to /field_data/2007/HAB_20 07.htm

You’ve just met Alexandrium tamarense

ASSESSMENT classification (flips to information) Each group of students will choose a different microbe, research and construct a poster flip-board with the following information:  picture or drawing of organism  classification (algae {diatom, dinoflagellate, etc}, bacteria)  role in environment  how are they identified in environment  miscellaneous information  More “flips” may be included PICTURE OF ORGANISM (flips to key word) Role in environment (flips to information) How are they identified (ESP, remote sensing, other method) (flips to information) Miscellaneous information (flips to information) The answer should be taped on a piece of 8.5X 11 inch paper to the back of the poster (for display later)

Having trouble picking a microbe?  Help clean up industrial and environmental problems (oil spills, heavy metals)  Microbes are used in PCR  Are found in extreme environments (hydrothermal vents)  Can be bioluminescent  Are found in our digestive tracts (and the tracts of animals too)  Are important in the production of bread, cheese, yogurt, beer and wine)  Are found deep in the ocean around whale falls  Cause disease  Cause harmful and not so harmful algal blooms  NASA is searching for microbes on other planets

The following two slides have information that may need to be printed out for those classes without internet access

ESP bacteria data that would need to be provided if students didn’t have access to internet

ESP algae data that would need to be provided if students didn’t have access to internet control Alexandrium tamarense/catenella Pseudo-nitzschia multiseries P. multiseries/ pseudodelicatissima P. australis Heterosigma akashiwo