Articles | Volume 20, issue 12
https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-2499-2023
© Author(s) 2023. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-20-2499-2023
© Author(s) 2023. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Research article
| Highlight paper
| 
30 Jun 2023
Research article | Highlight paper |
| 30 Jun 2023
| 30 Jun 2023
All about nitrite: exploring nitrite sources and sinks in the eastern tropical North Pacific oxygen minimum zone
Department of Geosciences, Princeton University, Guyot Hall, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
Department of Biology and Paleo Environment, Lamont–Doherty Earth Observatory, Columbia University, Palisades, NY 10964, USA
Andrew R. Babbin
Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
Elizabeth Wallace
Department of Geosciences, Princeton University, Guyot Hall, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
Department of Geosciences, Princeton University, Guyot Hall, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
Department of Global Ecology, Carnegie Institution for Science, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
Katherine L. DuRussel
Department of Geosciences, Princeton University, Guyot Hall, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL 60208, USA
Claudia Frey
Department of Geosciences, Princeton University, Guyot Hall, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
Department of Environmental Sciences, University of Basel, Bernoullistrasse 30, 4056 Basel, Switzerland
Donald E. Martocello III
Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
Tyler Tamasi
Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
Sergey Oleynik
Department of Geosciences, Princeton University, Guyot Hall, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
Bess B. Ward
Department of Geosciences, Princeton University, Guyot Hall, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
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Cited
13 citations as recorded by crossref.
- Ecological dynamics explain modular denitrification in the ocean X. Sun et al. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2417421121
- Dependency–competition tradeoffs structure microbial niches and nitrogen cycling L. Xu et al. https://doi.org/10.1093/ismeco/ycag134
- Unexpected heroes: invasive macrophytes boost performance of faltering waste stabilization ponds L. Mpaka et al. https://doi.org/10.2166/wpt.2026.311
- Nitrite accumulation in marine oxygen minimum zones induced by microbial nitrite consumers X. Sun et al. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41561-025-01849-3
- Database of nitrification and nitrifiers in the global ocean W. Tang et al. https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-15-5039-2023
- Nitrite-oxidizing bacteria adapted to low-oxygen conditions dominate nitrite oxidation in marine oxygen minimum zones S. Fortin et al. https://doi.org/10.1093/ismejo/wrae160
- Age, metabolisms, and potential origin of dominant anammox bacteria in the global oxygen-deficient zones R. Zhao et al. https://doi.org/10.1093/ismeco/ycae060
- Effects of Nitrate on Hydrogenogenic Carbon Monoxide Oxidation in Parageobacillus thermoglucosidasius Y. Katayama et al. https://doi.org/10.1111/1758-2229.70133
- Accurate isotopic analysis of nitrate and nitrite in freshwater: integration of ion exchange and bacterial denitrification methods J. Hu et al. https://doi.org/10.1039/D5JA00363F
- Spatial heterogeneity of nitrogen transformation in karst groundwater: Influences of porosity types and land use X. Mo et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jece.2025.118176
- Redox-constrained microbial ecology dictates nitrogen loss versus retention J. Fadum et al. https://doi.org/10.1093/ismeco/ycaf219
- Nitrification in the oxygen-deficient uppermost mesopelagic layer of a marginal basin in the southeastern Gulf of California C. Hakspiel-Segura et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rsma.2025.104610
- Determination of site‐specific nitrogen cycle reaction kinetics allows accurate simulation of in situ nitrogen transformation rates in a large North American estuary W. Tang et al. https://doi.org/10.1002/lno.12628
13 citations as recorded by crossref.
- Ecological dynamics explain modular denitrification in the ocean X. Sun et al. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2417421121
- Dependency–competition tradeoffs structure microbial niches and nitrogen cycling L. Xu et al. https://doi.org/10.1093/ismeco/ycag134
- Unexpected heroes: invasive macrophytes boost performance of faltering waste stabilization ponds L. Mpaka et al. https://doi.org/10.2166/wpt.2026.311
- Nitrite accumulation in marine oxygen minimum zones induced by microbial nitrite consumers X. Sun et al. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41561-025-01849-3
- Database of nitrification and nitrifiers in the global ocean W. Tang et al. https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-15-5039-2023
- Nitrite-oxidizing bacteria adapted to low-oxygen conditions dominate nitrite oxidation in marine oxygen minimum zones S. Fortin et al. https://doi.org/10.1093/ismejo/wrae160
- Age, metabolisms, and potential origin of dominant anammox bacteria in the global oxygen-deficient zones R. Zhao et al. https://doi.org/10.1093/ismeco/ycae060
- Effects of Nitrate on Hydrogenogenic Carbon Monoxide Oxidation in Parageobacillus thermoglucosidasius Y. Katayama et al. https://doi.org/10.1111/1758-2229.70133
- Accurate isotopic analysis of nitrate and nitrite in freshwater: integration of ion exchange and bacterial denitrification methods J. Hu et al. https://doi.org/10.1039/D5JA00363F
- Spatial heterogeneity of nitrogen transformation in karst groundwater: Influences of porosity types and land use X. Mo et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jece.2025.118176
- Redox-constrained microbial ecology dictates nitrogen loss versus retention J. Fadum et al. https://doi.org/10.1093/ismeco/ycaf219
- Nitrification in the oxygen-deficient uppermost mesopelagic layer of a marginal basin in the southeastern Gulf of California C. Hakspiel-Segura et al. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rsma.2025.104610
- Determination of site‐specific nitrogen cycle reaction kinetics allows accurate simulation of in situ nitrogen transformation rates in a large North American estuary W. Tang et al. https://doi.org/10.1002/lno.12628
Saved (final revised paper)
Latest update: 13 Jun 2026
Editorial statement
Nitrite is a nexus in nitrogen turnover, especially in oxygen minimum zones. This study works out new details of its specific role and adds new evidence for anaerobic nitrite oxidation. Furthermore, it shows that nitrogen recycling (nitrate reduction and nitrite oxidation) is quantitatively more important than loss processes.
Nitrite is a nexus in nitrogen turnover, especially in oxygen minimum zones. This study works...
Short summary
Nitrogen (N) is essential for life; thus, its availability plays a key role in determining marine productivity. Using incubations of seawater spiked with a rare form of N measurable on a mass spectrometer, we quantified microbial pathways that determine marine N availability. The results show that pathways that recycle N have higher rates than those that result in its loss from biomass and present new evidence for anaerobic nitrite oxidation, a process long thought to be strictly aerobic.
Nitrogen (N) is essential for life; thus, its availability plays a key role in determining marine...
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