Articles | Volume 22, issue 7
https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-22-1853-2025
© Author(s) 2025. 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-22-1853-2025
© Author(s) 2025. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
The energy-efficient reductive tricarboxylic acid cycle drives carbon uptake and transfer to higher trophic levels within the Kueishantao shallow-water hydrothermal system
MARUM – Center for Marine Environmental Sciences, University of Bremen, 28359 Bremen, Germany
Yu-Shih Lin
Department of Oceanography, National Sun Yat-sen University, Kaohsiung, 80424, Taiwan
Enno Schefuß
MARUM – Center for Marine Environmental Sciences, University of Bremen, 28359 Bremen, Germany
Rebecca F. Aepfler
MARUM – Center for Marine Environmental Sciences, University of Bremen, 28359 Bremen, Germany
now at: Logistics and research platforms, Alfred Wegener Institute (AWI), 27568 Bremerhaven, Germany
Li-Lian Liu
Department of Oceanography, National Sun Yat-sen University, Kaohsiung, 80424, Taiwan
Marcus Elvert
MARUM – Center for Marine Environmental Sciences, University of Bremen, 28359 Bremen, Germany
Faculty of Geosciences, University of Bremen, 28359 Bremen, Germany
MARUM – Center for Marine Environmental Sciences, University of Bremen, 28359 Bremen, Germany
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Co-editor-in-chief
This study presents new insights into autotrophic carbon fixation in shallow-water hydrothermal systems, emphasizing the dominance of reductive tricarboxylic acid (rTCA) cycle-utilizing Campylobacteria. Low isotopic fractionation values in vent fluids, possibly due to very acidic pH levels, extend the isotopic fractionation range of rTCA. The study also highlights the ecological significance of chemosynthetically fixed carbon, observed in higher trophic levels like the vent endemic crab Xenograpsus testudinatus, improving our understanding of carbon cycling in extreme environments and the interplay between microbial chemosynthesis and higher organisms.
This study presents new insights into autotrophic carbon fixation in shallow-water hydrothermal...
Short summary
In acidic hot springs off Kueishantao, Campylobacteria fix CO2 by using the reductive tricarboxylic acid (rTCA) cycle, causing them to have an isotopically heavier biomass. Here, we report extremely low isotopic fractionation (of almost 0 ‰), which has never been reported in environmental samples. Moreover, the crab Xenograpsus testudinatus relies up to 34 % on campylobacterial biomass, highlighting the dependency of complex life on microscopic Bacteria in harsh environments.
In acidic hot springs off Kueishantao, Campylobacteria fix CO2 by using the reductive...
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