2023 Early Hearing Detection & Intervention Conference
March 5-7, 2023 • Cincinnati, OH
5/25/2021 | 2:00 PM - 3:30 PM | ARE MICRONUTRIENTS GATEKEEPERS TO ORGANIC NUTRIENT RECYCLING IN STREAM BIOFILMS? | Virtual Platform
ARE MICRONUTRIENTS GATEKEEPERS TO ORGANIC NUTRIENT RECYCLING IN STREAM BIOFILMS?
The macronutrients nitrogen and phosphorus are necessary for stream biofilm metabolism and growth, and their availability can limit biofilm processes. When the preferred inorganic forms of these nutrients (i.e., NH4 and PO4) are at low concentrations, biofilms may become dependent on organic pools of macronutrients to grow and maintain metabolic function. To access organic nutrients, specialized acquisition enzymes are required to breakdown organic molecules and release the macronutrients within, and these enzymes (urease for NH4; alkaline phosphatase for PO4) require micronutrient cofactors (nickel and zinc, respectively). To assess the importance of these micronutrient cofactors, we conducted a series of in situ nutrient enrichment experiments using nutrient diffusing substrate to elevate concentrations of macronutrients and micronutrient cofactors. We measured biofilm biomass (chlorophyll-a and ash free dry mass), urease and alkaline phosphatase activity, and biofilm nickel and zinc concentrations. Preliminary results indicate that biofilm growth is limited by nitrogen, therefore organic nitrogen pools are likely an important source of nutrients to biofilms. We expect that biofilms enriched with nickel will have greater urease activity and reach higher biomass than controls, representing nutrient co-limitation by a macro and micronutrient.
- Nutrient cycling
- Biogeochemistry
- Stream
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Presenters/Authors
Jordyn Stoll
(), Kent State University, jstoll7@kent.edu;
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David Costello
(), Kent State University, dcostel3@kent.edu;
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