Table of Contents

• Coverage
• Dataset Description
  • Methods & Sampling
  • Data Processing Description
• Data Files
• Related Publications
• Parameters
• Instruments
• Deployments
• Project Information
• Funding

This dataset includes polysaccharide hydrolysis rates measured in bulk (not filter-fractionated) seawater. Samples were collected on RV/Sonne cruise SO248 in May 2016. Links to archived CTD data are also provided.

Water was collected via Niskin bottles mounted on a rosette, equipped with a CTD.

The potential of the seawater microbial community to hydrolyze six high-molecular-weight polysaccharides (arabinogalactan, chondroitin sulfate, fucoidan, laminarin, pullulan, and xylan) was investigated in surface and bottom water. For each substrate, three 50 mL falcon tubes were filled with seawater and one 50 mL falcon tube was filled with autoclaved seawater to serve as a killed control. Substrate was added at 3.5 uM monomer-equivalent concentrations, except for fucoidan, which was added at 5 uM concentrations (a higher concentration was necessary for sufficient fluorescence signal). Two 50 mL falcon tubes – one with seawater and one with autoclaved seawater – with no added substrate served as blank controls. Incubations were stored in the dark at as close to in situ temperature as possible. Subsamples of the incubations were collected at time zero, and at six subsequent timepoints (t1-t6): 2 days, 5 days, 10 days, 17 days, 30 days, and 42 days. At each timepoint, 2 mL of seawater was collected from the 50 mL falcon tube using a sterile syringe, filtered through a 0.2 um pore size syringe filter, and stored frozen until processing.

The hydrolysis of high molecular weight substrate to lower molecular weight hydrolysis products was measured using gel permeation chromatography with fluorescence detection, after the method of Arnosti [1996, 2003]. In short, the subsample was injected onto a series of columns consisting of a 21 cm column of G50 and a 19 cm column of G75 Sephadex gel. The fluorescence of the column effluent was measured at excitation and emission wavelengths of 490 and 530 nm, respectively. Hydrolysis rates were calculated from the change in molecular weight distribution of the substrate over time, as described in detail in Arnosti [2003].

ara = arabinogalactan
chn = chondroitin sulfate
fuc = fucoidan
lam = laminarin 
pul = pullulan
xyl = xylan

BCO-DMO Processing Notes:
- added conventional header with dataset name, PI name, version date
- reduced decimal precision of rate columns from 9 to 6 places; time_elapsed from 7 to 0 places

NSF Award Abstract:
Heterotrophic microbial communities are key players in the marine carbon cycle, transforming and respiring organic carbon, regenerating nutrients, and acting as the final filter in sediments through which organic matter passes before long-term burial. Microbially-driven carbon cycling in the ocean profoundly affects the global carbon cycle, but key factors determining rates and locations of organic matter remineralization are unclear. In this study, researchers from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill will investigate the ability of pelagic microbial communities to initiate the remineralization of polysaccharides and proteins, which together constitute a major pool of organic matter in the ocean. Results from this study will be predictive on a large scale regarding the nature of the microbial response to organic matter input, and will provide a mechanistic framework for interpreting organic matter reactivity in the ocean.

Broader Impacts: This study will provide scientific training for undergraduate and graduate students from underrepresented groups. The project will also involve German colleagues, thus strengthening international scientific collaboration.