The English Channel is one of only a few places worldwide where extensive long-term data of different parameters exist (e.g. nutrients, phytoplankton, zooplankton, bacteria). Within a cooperation with the Plymouth Marine Laboratory, the group of Prof. Ferdi Hellweger aims to unravel fundamental questions of phytoplankton/bacteria interactions in the English Channel (which phytoplankton interacts with which bacterium and why?) by application of the mechanistic model FluxNet.
mehr zu: Consequences of taxonomic resolution of bacterial gen-sequences on phytoplankton-bacteria interactions
Phytoplankton release dissolved organic matter (DOM), a process traditionally viewed as unintentional and a disadvantage (i.e. loss of biomass). Recent observations suggest that phytoplankton purposefully produce/release DOM to support bacteria growing around them. Further, different phytoplankton species produce different DOM compounds that may attract specific bacteria that can perform a beneficial function (e.g. fix nitrogen). This mechanism is a missing link in our understanding of phytoplankton ecology and models, and limits our ability to manage harmful cyanobacteria blooms.
mehr zu: Masters Thesis: Modeling phototroph – heterotroph cross feeding
