Methylphosphonate-driven methane formation and its link to primary production in the oligotrophic North Atlantic

Jan N. Arx (), Abiel T. Kidane, Miriam Philippi, Wiebke Mohr, Gaute Lavik, Sina Schorn, Marcel M. M. Kuypers and Jana Milucka
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Jan N. Arx: Max Planck Institute for Marine Microbiology
Abiel T. Kidane: Max Planck Institute for Marine Microbiology
Miriam Philippi: Max Planck Institute for Marine Microbiology
Wiebke Mohr: Max Planck Institute for Marine Microbiology
Gaute Lavik: Max Planck Institute for Marine Microbiology
Sina Schorn: Max Planck Institute for Marine Microbiology
Marcel M. M. Kuypers: Max Planck Institute for Marine Microbiology
Jana Milucka: Max Planck Institute for Marine Microbiology

Nature Communications, 2023, vol. 14, issue 1, 1-11

Abstract: Abstract Methylphosphonate is an organic phosphorus compound used by microorganisms when phosphate, a key nutrient limiting growth in most marine surface waters, becomes unavailable. Microbial methylphosphonate use can result in the formation of methane, a potent greenhouse gas, in oxic waters where methane production is traditionally unexpected. The extent and controlling factors of such aerobic methane formation remain underexplored. Here, we show high potential net rates of methylphosphonate-driven methane formation (median 0.4 nmol methane L−1 d−1) in the upper water column of the western tropical North Atlantic. The rates are repressed but still quantifiable in the presence of in-situ or added phosphate, suggesting that some methylphosphonate-driven methane formation persists in phosphate-replete waters. The genetic potential for methylphosphonate utilisation is present in and transcribed by key photo- and heterotrophic microbial taxa, such as Pelagibacterales, SAR116, and Trichodesmium. While the large cyanobacterial nitrogen-fixers dominate in the surface layer, phosphonate utilisation by Alphaproteobacteria appears to become more important in deeper depths. We estimate that at our study site, a substantial part (median 11%) of the measured surface carbon fixation can be sustained by phosphorus liberated from phosphonate utilisation, highlighting the ecological importance of phosphonates in the carbon cycle of the oligotrophic ocean.

Date: 2023
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-42304-4

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