Microcosm experiments to assess bacterioplankton response to phytoplankton-derived organic matter obtained under current and future-ocean CO2 levels were performed. Surface seawater enriched with inorganic nutrients was bubbled for 8 days with air (current CO2 scenario) or with a 1000 ppm CO2–air mixture (future CO2 scenario) under solar radiation. The organic matter produced under the current and future CO2 scenarios was subsequently used as inoculum. Triplicate 12 L flasks filled with 1.2 µm-filtered natural seawater enriched with the organic matter inocula were incubated in the dark for 8 days under CO2 conditions simulating current and future CO2 scenarios to study the bacterial response. The acidification of the media increased bacterial respiration at the beginning of the experiment while the addition of the organic matter produced under future levels of CO2 was related to changes in bacterial production and abundance. The balance between both, respiration and production, made that the bacteria grown under future CO2 levels with an addition of non-acidified matter showed the best growth efficiency at the end of the incubation. However cells grown under future scenarios with high CO2 levels and acidified organic matter additions did not perform differently than those grown under present CO2 conditions, independently of the addition of acidified or non-acidified organic matter. This study demonstrates that the increase in atmospheric CO2 concentrations can affect bacterioplankton directly by changes in the respiration rate and indirectly by changes on the organic matter with concomitant effects on bacterial production and abundance.
Fuentes-Lema A., Sanleón-Bartolomé Lubián L. M. & Sobrino C., 2017. Interaction between elevated CO2 and phytoplankton-derived organic matter under solar radiation on bacterial metabolism from coastal waters. Biogeosciences Discussions. doi:10.5194/bg-2017-555. Article.
