Viral abundance and distribution in mesopelagic and bathypelagic waters of the Mediterranean Sea
- 標題
- Viral abundance and distribution in mesopelagic and bathypelagic waters of the Mediterranean Sea
- 作者
- Mirko Magagnini, Cinzia Corinaldesi, Luis S. Monticelli, Emilio De Domenico, Roberto Danovaro
- 文件屬性
- 國外期刊
- 知識分類
- 醫療保健
- 出版年
- 2007
- 刊名
- Deep Sea Research Part I: Oceanographic Research Papers
- 關鍵字
- Viruses; Prokaryotes; Mesopelagic and bathypelagic waters
- 點閱數
- 2728
摘要
Despite the fact that marine viruses have been increasingly investigated in the last decade, knowledge on virus abundance, biomass and distribution in mesopelagic and bathypelagic waters is limited. We report here the results of a large-spatial-scale study (covering more than 3000 km) on the virioplankton distribution in epi-, meso- and bathypelagic waters in 19 areas of the Mediterranean Sea, from the Alboran Sea and Western Mediterranean, to the Tyrrhenian Sea, Sicily Channel and Ionian Sea. Integrated viral abundance in epipelagic waters was significantly higher than in deep-sea waters (on average, 2.4 vs. 0.5×1012 viruses m−3). However, abundance of viruses in the deep-Mediterranean waters was the highest reported so far for deep seas worldwide (7.0 and 3.1×1011 viruses m−3 in mesopelagic and bathypelagic waters, respectively) and their biomass accounted for 13–18% of total prokaryotic C biomass. The significant relationship between viral abundance and prokaryotic abundance and production in deep waters suggests that also deep-sea viruses are closely dependent on the abundance and metabolism of their hosts. Moreover, virus to prokaryote (and nucleoid-containing cell (NuCC)) abundance ratio increased with increasing depths suggesting that deep waters may represent optimal environments for viral survival or proliferation. Overall, our results indicate that deep waters may represent a significant reservoir of viruses and open new perspectives for future investigations of viral impact on the functioning of meso-bathypelagic ecosystems.