Discover the 'tiny workers' who are diligently cleaning up methane gas in the deep sea

Scientists at Caltech and Occidental College, USA, have recently discovered an extremely interesting symbiotic activity between sea worms and bacteria in some deep-seabed areas, which 'catalysts' Here is methane methane (CH4).

In particular, the team found that the bacterium of the Methylococcaceae family invaded silently and 'dwelt' on tiny hairs that act as the respiratory organs of Laminatubus and Bispira - two species of marine worms. Small ones live on the bottom and are widely distributed in most oceans on earth.

Methylococcaceae is a species of bacteria that absorbs carbon and energy from methane (methane is composed of carbon and hydrogen), thereby contributing to the resolution of methane that exists in the ocean floor. Similarly, the Laminatubus and Bispira worms are often found in large quantities near areas where methane is concentrated, vents on the ocean floor, where large quantities of liquid hydrocarbons flow from the Earth's core into the ocean. So why do Methylococcaceae bacteria exist in the hairs of Laminatubus and Bispira worms?

Quite simply, because Laminatubus and Bispira are both sensitive to methane, they tend to move to a concentration of these gases. Methylococcaceae also like 'methane', but they obviously can't move to the bottom of the sea. As a result, the bacterium sought to cling to the sea worms' feathers and begged to hitchhike to areas rich in methane.

However, no meals are free and the 'ticket price' that Methylococcaceae pays for this journey is also very expensive. Once you reach the methane gas fields, the bacteria Methylococcaceae will absorb this gas freely. Such comforts will not last long. The sea worms will slowly digest the 'hitch-bacteria' and absorb the carbon and energy that the bacteria have previously obtained.

To investigate the nature of the symbiotic relationship between marine worms and the bacterium Methylococcaceae, scientists must first use robotic submarines to sample from undersea methane vents, in this case at 1,800 meters deep off the coast of Southern California and Costa Rica. In the lab the scientists analyzed their tissues, cataloging the carbon isotopes they consumed. Carbon exists in two types of stable isotopes, which can be said to be different "flavors" of carbon. About 99% of this is carbon-12, with 6 neutrons and 6 protons in each atomic nucleus. And about 1% is carbon-13 with 6 neutrons and 7 protons in each atomic nucleus.

All organisms require carbon in some form to survive and they absorb it through metabolic processes. Studying the carbon-13 to carbon-12 ratio in the tissues of an organism can give clues about where carbon comes from and the conditions under which it forms. In the case of sea worms, their tissues have an unusually low carbon-13 to carbon-12 ratio, which means that the carbon in the worm's body may come from methane. In addition, because sea worms do not have the ability to handle methane directly, they must get carbon from Methylococcaceae.

The results of this study have brought us new insights into the symbiosis of the seabed, as well as great significance in managing the marine environment with the context of increasing methane gas and hydrothermal vents. due to human and energy mining activities.