Summary
Several bacterial isolates enriched from seawater using complex media were able to accumulate dimethylsulfoniopropionate (DMSP) from media into cells over several hours without degrading it. Uptake only occurred in metabolically active cells, and was repressed in some strains by the presence of additional carbon sources. Accumulation was also more rapid in osmotically-stressed cells, suggesting DMSP is used as an osmotic solute. Uptake could be blocked by inhibitors of active transport systems (2,4-dinitrophenol, azide, arsenate) and of protein synthesis (chloramphenicol). Some structural analogs such as glycine betaine and S-methyl methionine also blocked DMSP uptake, suggesting that the availability of alternate organic osmolytes may influence DMSP uptake. Stresses such as freezing, heating, or osmotic down shock resulted in partial release of DMSP back to the medium. One strain which contained a DMSP-lyase was also able to accumulate DMSP, and DMS was only produced in the absence of alternate carbon sources. Bacteria containing DMSP were prepared as prey for bacterivorous ciliates and flagellates, to examine the fate of the DMSP during grazing. In all cases, predators metabolized the DMSP in bacteria. In some cases, DMS was produced, but it is not clear if this was due to the predators or to associated bacteria in the non-axenic grazer cultures. Bacterivores may influence DMSP cycling by either modulating populations of DMSP-metabolizing bacteria, or by metabolizing DMSP accumulated by bacterial prey.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
References
Abdel-Ghany, Y. S., M. A. Ihnat, D. D. Miller, C. M. Kunin and H. H. Tong. 1993. Structure-activity relationship of glycine betaine analogs on osmotolerance of enteric bacteria. J. Med. Chem. 36: 784–489.
Boch, J., B. Kempf and E. Bremer. 1994. Osmoregulation in Bacillus subtilis: synthesis of the osmoprotectant glycine betaine from exogenously provided choline. J. Bact. 176: 5364–5371.
Byerrum, R. IL, C. S. Sato and C. D. Ball. 1956. Utilization of betaine as a methyl group donor in tobacco. Plant Physiol. 31:374–377.
Chambers, S. and C. M. Kunin. 1985. The osmoprotective properties of urine for bacteria: the protective effect of betaine and human urine against low pH and high concentrations of electrolytes, sugars, and urea. J. Infect. Dis. 152: 1308–1316.
Chambers, S. T., C. M. Kunin, D. Miller and A. Hamada. 1987. Dimethylthetin can substitute for glycine betaine as an osmoprotectant molecule for Escherichia coli. J. Bact. 169: 4845–4847.
Dacey, J. W. H., G. M. King and P. S. Lobel. 1994. Herbivory by reef fishes and the production of dimethylsulfidê and acrylic acid. Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser. 112: 67–74.
de Souza, M. P. and D. C. Yoch. 1995. Purification and characterization of dimethylsulfoniopropionate lyase from an Alcaligenes-like dimethyl sulfide producing marine isolate. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 61: 21–26.
Diaz, M. R., P. T. Visscher and B. F. Taylor. 1992. Metabolism of dimethylsulfoniopropionate and glycine betaine by a marine bacterium. FEMS Micro. Lett. 96: 61–66.
du Vigneaud, V, A. W. Moyer and J. P. Chandler. 1948. Dimethylthetin as a biological methyl donor. J. Biol. Chem. 174:477–480.
González, J. M., E. B. Sherr and B. F. Sherr. 1993. Differential feeding by marine flagellates on growing versus starving, and on motile versus nonmotile, bacterial prey. Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser. 102: 257–267.
Iida, H., K. Nakamura and T. Tokunaga. 1985. Dimethyl sulfide and dimethyl-ß-propiothetin in shellfish. Bull. Jap. Soc. Sei. Fish. 51: 1145–1150.
Imhoff, J. F. 1986. Osmoregulation and compatible solutes in eubacteria. FEMS Micro. Rev. 39: 57–66.
Imhoff, J. F. and F. Rodriguez-Valera. 1984. Betaine is the main compatible solute of halophilic eubacteria. J. Bact. 160: 478–479.
Ishida, Y. and H. Kadota. 1967. Isolation and identification of dimethyl-ß-propiothetin from Gyrodinium cohnii. Agr. Biol. Chem. 31: 765–767.
Ishida, Y. and H. Kadota. 1968. Participation of dimethyl-ß-propiothetin in transmethylation reaction in Gyrodinium cohnii. Bull. Jap. Soc. Sei. Fish. 34: 699–705.
Kiene, R. P. 1990. Dimethyl sulfide production from dimethylsulfoniopropionate in coastal seawater and bacterial cultures. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 56: 3292–3297.
Kiene, R. P. 1992. Dynamics of dimethyl sulfide and dimethylsulfoniopropionate in oceanic water samples. Mar. Chem. 37: 29–52.
Kiene, R. P. and T. S. Bates. 1990. Biological removal of dimethyl sulfide from seawater. Nature 345: 702–705.
Kiene, R. P. and G. Gerard. 1995. Evaluation of glycine betaine as an inhibitor of dissolved dimethylsulfoniopropionate degradation in marine waters. Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser. 128: 121–131.
Kondo, H. and M. Ishimoto. 1987. Thetin. Meth. Enzymol. 143: 227.
Koo, S.-P, C. F. Higgins and I. R. Booth. 1991. Regulation of compatible solute accumulation in Salmonella typhimurium: evidence for a glycine betaine efflux system. J. Gen. Micro. 137: 2617–2625.
Lamark, T., O. B. Styrvold and A. R. Strom. 1992. Efflux of choline and glycine betaine from osmoregu-lating cells of Escherichia coli. FEMS Micro. Lett. 96: 149–154.
Le Rudulier, D. and B. Perroud. 1983. Glycine betaine, an osmotic effector in Klebsiella pneumoniae and other members of the Enterobacteriaceae. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 46: 152–159.
Ledyard, K. M. and J. W. H. Dacey. 1994. Dimethylsulfide production from dimethylsulfoniopropionate by a marine bacterium. Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser. 110: 95–103.
Ledyard, K. M., E. F. DeLong and J. W. H. Dacey. 1993. Characterization of a DMSP-degrading bacterial isolate from the Sargasso Sea. Arch. Microbiol. 160: 312–318.
Levasseur, M., M. D. Keller, E. Bonneau, D. D’Amours and W. K. Bellows. 1994. Oceanographic basis of a DMS-related Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua) fishery problem: blackberry feed. Can. J. Fish. Aquat. Sei. 57: 881–889.
Maw, G. A. and V. du Vigneaud. 1948. Dimethyl-ß-propiothetin, a new methyl donor. J. Biol. Chem. 174: 381–382.
Nakajima, K. 1993. Dimethylthetin- and betaine-homocysteine methyltransferase activities from livers of fish, chicken, and mammals. Nippon Suisan Gakkaishi 59: 1389–1393.
Paquet, L., B. Rathinasabapathi, H. Saini, L. Zamir, D. A. Gage, Z.-H. Huang and A. D. Hanson. 1994. Accumulation of the compatible solute 3-dimethylsulfoniopropionate in sugarcane and its relatives, but not other gramineous crops. Aust. J. Plant Physiol. 21: 37–48.
Patchett, R. A., A. F. Kelly and R. G. Kroll. 1994. Transport of glycine-betaine by Listeria monocytogenes. Arch. Microbiol. 162: 205–210.
Peddie, B. A., M. Lever, C. M. Hayman, K. Randall and S. T. Chambers. 1994. Relationship between osmoprotection and the structure and intracellular accumulation of betaines by Escherichia coli. FEMS Micro. Lett. 120: 125–132.
Perroud, B. and D. Le Rudulier. 1985. Glycine betaine transport in Escherichia coli: osmotic modulation. J. Bact. 161: 393–401.
Pocard, J.-A., T. Bernard, L. T. Smith and D. Le Rudulier. 1989. Characterization of three choline transport activities in Rhizobium meliloti: modulation by choline and osmotic stress. J. Bact. 171: 531–537.
Roulier, M. A., B. Palenik and F. M. M. Morel. 1990. A method for the measurement of choline and hydrogen peroxide in seawater. Mar. Chem. 30: 409–421.
Sherr, E. B. and B. F. Sherr. 1993. Preservation and storage of samples for enumeration of heterotrophic protists. In P. F. Kemp, B. F. Sherr, E. B. Sherr and J. J. Cole (ed.), Handbook of Methods in Aquatic Microbial Ecology. Pp. 207–212. Lewis Publishers, Boca Raton.
Smith, L. T., J.-A. Pocard, T. Bernard and D. Le Rudulier. 1988. Osmotic control of glycine betaine biosynthesis and degradation in Rhizobium meliloti. J. Bact. 170: 3142–3149.
Snipes, W., A. Keith and P. Wanda. 1974. Active transport of choline by a marine pseudomonad. J. Bact. 120: 197–202.
Taylor, B. F. and D. C. Gilchrist. 1991. New routes for aerobic biodegradation of dimethylsulfoniopropionate. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 57: 3581–3584.
Visscher, P. T., M. R. Diaz and B. F. Taylor. 1993. Enumeration of bacteria which cleave or demethylate dimethylsulfoniopropionate in the Caribbean Sea. Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser. 89: 293–296.
Visscher, P. T. and B. F. Taylor. 1994. Demethylation of dimethylsulfoniopropionate to 3-mercapto-propionate by an aerobic marine bacterium. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 60: 4617–4619.
Welsh, D. T. and R. A. Herbert. 1993. Identification of organic solutes accumulated by purple and green sulphur bacteria during osmotic stress using natural abundance l3C nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. FEMS Micro. Ecol. 13: 145–150.
Wolfe, G. V. and R. P. Kiene. 1993. Radioisotope and chemical inhibitor measurements of dimethyl sulfide consumption rates and kinetics in estuarine waters. Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser. 99: 261–269.
Wolfe, G. V., E. B. Sherr and B. S. Sherr. 1994. Release and consumption of DMSP from Emiliania huxleyi during grazing by Oxyrrhis marina. Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser. 111: 111–119.
Zimmermann, R., R. Iturriaga and J. Becker-Birck. 1978. Simulataneous determination of the total number of aquatic bacteria and the number thereof involved in respiration. Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 36: 925–935.
Zweifel, U. L. and C. Hagstrom. 1995. Total counts of marine bacteria include a large fraction of non-nucleoid-containing bacteria (ghosts). Appl. Environ. Microbiol. 61: 2180–2185.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 1996 Plenum Press, New York
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Wolfe, G.V. (1996). Accumulation of Dissolved DMSP by Marine Bacteria and its Degradation via Bacterivory. In: Kiene, R.P., Visscher, P.T., Keller, M.D., Kirst, G.O. (eds) Biological and Environmental Chemistry of DMSP and Related Sulfonium Compounds. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4613-0377-0_24
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4613-0377-0_24
Publisher Name: Springer, Boston, MA
Print ISBN: 978-0-306-45306-9
Online ISBN: 978-1-4613-0377-0
eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive