Blooms of #Cyanobacteria pose a significant threat to #freshwater systems including rivers driving both #eutrophication and its dire implications for freshwater species as oxygen availability plummets and also the additional threat posed by #cyanotoxins produced by some Cyanobacteria.

This new research in Scientific Reports takes a #metagenomics and Q-PCR approach to explore the composition of the Cyanobacterial populations and their cyanotoxin production gene in major rivers across the United States (in 2019) and identifies Microcystis as the key toxin producing genus across this study.

Find out more on:

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-023-29037-6

#microbiology #ecology #MicrobialEcology

As we (humans) get to grips with how to scale up #hydrogen as an energy source (and for energy storage) and as part replacement for #fossilfuels, this new research (once again) shows that #microbes have beaten us to it and evolved their own solutions for energy - in this case using hydrogen power.

This new research in Nature Microbiology explores how hydrogen in seawater supports growth of multiple and diverse #bacterial species.

Fof those (like me) in #Melbourne , you may be interested that the research also includes study of this process within #PortPhillipBay sediments.

Learn more on:

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41564-023-01322-0

#microbiology #bacteria #ecology #MicrobialEcology

#Virus control

This exciting new research explores the influence of #virus #infection in changing the balance of organic matter degradation between #bacteria and #eukaryotes in #marine #carboncycling during #phytoplankton blooms.

Based on #mesocosm studies, this research demonstrates how #viruses infecting different #microorganisms change community dynamics and the release and potential fate of marine carbon from primary production.

Learn more in this new research in Nature Communications on:

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-023-36049-3

#microbiology #ecology #MicrobialEcology