Limnology and Oceanography · 2002 · 218 citations · 12 references
Life SciencesMicrobiologyOceanographyMarine EcologyMarine MicrobiologyMicrobial EcologyMarine Microbial PhysiologyMicrobial OceanographyMicrobial Plankton EcologyNutrient LimitationOpen Ocean MicrobiologyPlankton BloomsAlgal BloomsBacterial-phytoplankton InteractionsBloom-forming CyanobacteriaDinoflagellate BloomsMicrobial Phosphorus CyclingPhosphate DepletionPolyphosphate-accumulating OrganismsSynechococcus Ecology
Experimental work during a cruise along a W‐E transect in the Mediterranean Sea suggests that (1) orthophosphate concentrations in the upper photic zone show a decreasing trend from the west to the east reaching levels well below 1 nM and (2) microorganisms in the 0.6–2ߝµm size fraction, probably Synechococcus , have, in addition to high affinity for orthophosphate, significantly higher maximum uptake rates than heterotrophic bacteria or eukaryotic algae. These specific advantages concerning orthophosphate uptake at low (<5 nM) as well as at relatively high (5–25 nM) concentrations could explain both general Synechococcus abundance in P‐depleted environments and transient blooms of this species in the open ocean where episodic orthophosphate nanopulse events are likely to occur.
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Phosphate Depletion in the Western North Atlantic Ocean
Jingfeng Wu, William G. Sunda, Edward A. Boyle et al. · Science · 2000 · 808 citations