| Title | Algae-Killing Viruses Spur Nutrient Recycling In Oceans | |
| Date | Monday July 22 2019, @08:48PM | |
| Author | chromas | |
| Topic | ||
| from the little-bugs-have-lesser-bugs-upon-their-backs-to-bite-'em dept. | ||
Scientists have confirmed that viruses can kill marine algae called diatoms and that diatom die-offs near the ocean surface may provide nutrients and organic matter for recycling by other algae, according to a Rutgers-led study.
The study in the journal Nature Microbiology[$] also revealed that environmental conditions can accelerate diatom mortality from viral infection, which is important for understanding how diatoms influence carbon cycling and respond to changes in the oceans, including warming waters from climate change.
Diatoms, which are single-celled algae that generate about 20 percent of the Earth's oxygen, help store carbon dioxide, a key greenhouse gas, in the oceans.
[...] Diatoms take up dissolved silicon from the environment and turn it into glass for their cell walls. But most of the surface waters where diatoms live have low silicon levels, so these findings suggest viral infection may play an important role in controlling diatom populations globally.
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