(Press-News.org)
The ocean is a critical life-support system for our planet through its role in global climate regulation. It absorbs most of the carbon emissions and heat trapped in the atmosphere which are a result of human activities. Over the years, this has led to ocean warming (OW), ocean acidification (OA), and ocean deoxygenation (OD). Moreover, increased anthropogenic‑nitrogen-deposition (AND) has largely influenced marine environments. As part of these consequences, the gases nitrous oxide (N2O) and methane (CH4) are largely controlled by 'prokaryotes’ or microbial organisms living in the ocean. While several studies have analyzed these processes in detail, their concurrent impact on ocean ecosystems has not been investigated.
In a recent study, a team of researchers led by Prof. Il-Nam Kim, Associate Professor of Marine Science at Incheon National University, evaluated the prokaryotic population changes and metabolic modifications due to the concurrent impact of OW, OA, OD, and AND across the Western North Pacific Ocean. Their findings were published online in Volume 196 of in Marine Pollution Bulletin on November 1, 2023.
“Climate change leads to marine environmental changes and this study can enhance our understanding of their impact on human life,” Prof. Kim says.
The authors simultaneously studied the effects of climate change across the surface layer (SL), intermediate layer (IL), and deep layer (DL) of the ocean. The microbial community and their functional potential in regulating the N2O and CH4 cycles were evaluated using biogeochemical analysis and microbial genome-sequencing.
The results indicated that prokaryotes from SL to DL are closely associated with climate change drivers. During the long-term, the sensitive marine ecosystem in WNPO can be adversely affected by an increase in N2O production with subsequent pH alteration, ultimately increasing CH4 emissions. These findings deviate from the currently assumed potential of prokaryotes and biogeochemical processes related to climate change. It also realigns the focus on how climate change impacts the open ocean ecosystem. Dr. Kim concludes, “This research will contribute to raising the awareness about the severity of climate change and the importance of the ocean resources.”
This pioneer study has the potential to shape future marine ecosystem research. Policies aimed at reducing ocean acidification and warming can help in the stabilization of these vital microbial communities and greenhouse gas cycles.
***
Reference
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2023.115569
Authors: Satheeswaran Thangaraj1,2,3,4, Hyo-Ryeon Kim1, Jang-Mu Heo1, Seunghyun Son5, Jongseong Ryu6, Jong-Woo Park7, Ju-Hyoung Kim8, Seo-Young Kim1, Hae-Kun Jung9, and Il-Nam Kim1*
Affiliations:
1Department of Marine Science, Incheon National University
2Freddy and Nadine Herrmann Institute of Earth Sciences, Hebrew University of Jerusalem
3Interuniversity Institute for Marine Sciences
4Department of Physiology, Saveetha Dental College and Hospital, Saveetha Institute of Medical and Technical Sciences, Saveetha University
5Cooperative Institute for Satellite Earth System Studies (CISESS) / Earth System Science Interdisciplinary Center (ESSIC), University of Maryland
6Department of Marine Biotechnology, Anyang University
7Tidal Flat Research Center, National Institute of Fisheries Science
8Department of Aquaculture and Aquatic Science, Kunsan National University
9Environment and Fisheries Resources Research Division, East Sea Fisheries Institute, National Institute of Fisheries Science
About Incheon National University
Incheon National University (INU) is a comprehensive, student-focused university. It was founded in 1979 and given university status in 1988. One of the largest universities in South Korea, it houses nearly 14,000 students and 500 faculty members. In 2010, INU merged with Incheon City College to expand capacity and open more curricula. With its commitment to academic excellence and an unrelenting devotion to innovative research, INU offers its students real-world internship experiences. INU not only focuses on studying and learning but also strives to provide a supportive environment for students to follow their passion, grow, and, as their slogan says, be INspired.
Website: http://www.inu.ac.kr/mbshome/mbs/inuengl/index.html
About the author
Prof. Il-Nam Kim is an Associate Professor of Marine Science at Incheon National University. His research group primarily focuses on investigating marine environmental changes associated with biogeochemical cycles resulting from climate change. In 2012, he received a Ph.D. in Marine Science from the University of Texas at Austin.
END
Research Highlights:
A study of married or partnered, middle-aged and older heterosexual couples in the U.S., England, China and India found that in 20% to 47% of the couples, both spouses/partners had high blood pressure.
The prevalence of both spouses/partners having high blood pressure was highest in England and the U.S., however, spouses/partners whose spouses/partners had high blood pressure were more likely to also have high blood pressure in China and India.
Researchers suggest couple-based interventions to improve high blood pressure diagnosis and management, such as couple-based screening, skills training or joint ...
LA JOLLA (December 6, 2023)—Pancreatic cancer is one of the deadliest cancers—only about one in eight patients survives five years after diagnosis. Those dismal statistics are in part due to the thick, nearly impenetrable wall of fibrosis, or scar tissue, that surrounds most pancreatic tumors and makes it hard for drugs to access and destroy the cancer cells.
Now, researchers at the Salk Institute have discovered how a class of anti-cancer drugs called HDAC inhibitors can help treat pancreatic cancer by modulating ...
New research has shown that fire-ice - frozen methane which is trapped as a solid under our oceans - is vulnerable to melting due to climate change and could be released into the sea.
An international team of researchers led by Newcastle University found that as frozen methane and ice melts, methane - a potent greenhouse gas - is released and moves from the deepest parts of the continental slope to the edge of the underwater shelf. They even discovered a pocket which had moved 25 miles (40 kilometres).
Publishing in the journal Nature Geoscience, the researchers say this means that much more methane could potentially be vulnerable and released into the atmosphere ...
Francis Crick Institute press release
Under strict embargo: 10:00hrs GMT Wednesday 6 December 2023
Peer reviewed
Experimental study
Animals
Influx of water and salts propel immune cells through the body
Researchers at the Francis Crick Institute, working with Imperial College London, King’s College London and University of Cambridge, have shown that an influx of water and ions into immune cells allows them to migrate to where they’re needed in the body.
Our bodies respond to illness by sending out ...
Coral reefs are the most biodiverse systems in the sea and central to the life of many coastal human communities. Half a billion people rely on coral reefs for protection from storms, provision of seafood as well as promotion of tourism and recreation.
But climate change is compromising the health of coral reefs globally. Increasing sea temperatures are driving coral bleaching and death. So, the resilience of reefs in the face of climatic challenges is crucial to our collective future, and new research led by Arizona State University has delivered greater understanding of a key aspect of reef health.
In a paper published on December 6, 2023, by the London, UK-based journal Proceedings of ...
Most people with schizophrenia have extensive impairment of memory, including prospective memory, which is the ability to remember to perform future activities. Results from a randomized clinical trial published in Neuropsychopharmacology Reports indicate that repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS), a non-invasive method that uses alternating magnetic fields to induce an electric current in the underlying brain tissue, may help ameliorate certain aspects of prospective memory in individuals with schizophrenia.
The trial included 50 patients with schizophrenia and 18 healthy controls. Of the 50 patients, 26 completed ...
In a recent study published in Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, Veterans with housing instability were 53% more likely to receive a diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease or a related dementia (ADRD) than those with stable housing.
The study included 44,194 Veterans experiencing homelessness or housing instability and 44,194 with secure housing who were followed from 2011 to 2019. None of the Veterans had a diagnosis of ADRD prior to 2011.
By 2015, the midpoint of the study, 7.23% and 3.66% of housing ...
New research published in JCCP Advances indicates that experiencing negative life events (NLE) during childhood is linked with a higher risk of developing symptoms of depression during young adulthood. Thinning of the orbitofrontal cortex, a region in the brain that affects emotion, during adolescence was also associated with increased depressive symptoms later in life.
The study involved brain imaging tests conducted in 321 participants across four time points from ages 14 to 22 years. Investigators also used a questionnaire at the first time point to measure NLE, and they tested for depressive symptoms at the fourth time point.
A higher ...
New research published in Arthritis & Rheumatology suggests that for people overweight or with obesity who also have knee or hip osteoarthritis, a slow-to-moderate—but not fast—rate of weight loss caused by anti-obesity medications may lower their risk of premature death.
Among 6,524 participants with knee or hip osteoarthritis who were taking orlistat, sibutramine, or rimonabant, the 5-year death rate was 5.3%, 4.0%, and 5.4% for the “weight gain/stable”, “slow-to-moderate weight loss,” and “fast weight loss” groups, respectively. ...
The world has reached a pivotal moment as threats from Earth system tipping points – and progress towards positive tipping points – accelerate, a new report shows.
The Global Tipping Points Report – the most comprehensive assessment of tipping points ever conducted – says humanity is currently on a disastrous trajectory.
The speed of fossil fuel phase out and growth of zero-carbon solutions will now determine the future of billions of people.
The report says current global governance is inadequate for the scale of the challenge and makes six key ...
