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Gittins DA, Desiage PA, Morrison N, Rattray JE, Bhatnagar S, Chakraborty A, Zorz J, Li C, Horanszky O, Cramm MA, Bisiach F, Bennett R, Webb J, MacDonald A, Fowler M, Campbell DC, Hubert CRJ. Geological processes mediate a microbial dispersal loop in the deep biosphere. Sci Adv 2022; 8:eabn3485. [PMID: 36026445 PMCID: PMC9417182 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abn3485] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/11/2023]
Abstract
The deep biosphere is the largest microbial habitat on Earth and features abundant bacterial endospores. Whereas dormancy and survival at theoretical energy minima are hallmarks of microbial physiology in the subsurface, ecological processes such as dispersal and selection in the deep biosphere remain poorly understood. We investigated the biogeography of dispersing bacteria in the deep sea where upward hydrocarbon seepage was confirmed by acoustic imagery and geochemistry. Thermophilic endospores in the permanently cold seabed correlated with underlying seep conduits reveal geofluid-facilitated cell migration pathways originating in deep petroleum-bearing sediments. Endospore genomes highlight adaptations to life in anoxic petroleum systems and bear close resemblance to oil reservoir microbiomes globally. Upon transport out of the subsurface, viable thermophilic endospores reenter the geosphere by sediment burial, enabling germination and environmental selection at depth where new petroleum systems establish. This microbial dispersal loop circulates living biomass in and out of the deep biosphere.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel A. Gittins
- Geomicrobiology Group, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada
- Corresponding author.
| | | | - Natasha Morrison
- Department of Natural Resources and Renewables, Government of Nova Scotia, Halifax, Canada
| | - Jayne E. Rattray
- Geomicrobiology Group, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada
| | - Srijak Bhatnagar
- Geomicrobiology Group, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada
| | | | - Jackie Zorz
- Geomicrobiology Group, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada
| | - Carmen Li
- Geomicrobiology Group, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada
| | - Oliver Horanszky
- Geomicrobiology Group, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada
| | - Margaret A. Cramm
- Geomicrobiology Group, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada
| | - Francesco Bisiach
- Geomicrobiology Group, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada
| | - Robbie Bennett
- Natural Resources Canada, Geological Survey of Canada-Atlantic, Dartmouth, Canada
| | - Jamie Webb
- Applied Petroleum Technology, Calgary, Canada
| | - Adam MacDonald
- Department of Natural Resources and Renewables, Government of Nova Scotia, Halifax, Canada
| | | | - D. Calvin Campbell
- Natural Resources Canada, Geological Survey of Canada-Atlantic, Dartmouth, Canada
| | - Casey R. J. Hubert
- Geomicrobiology Group, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada
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