Marine proteorhodopsins rival photosynthesis in solar energy capture

Gomez-Consarnau, L.; Levine, N. M.; Cutter, L. S.; Wang, D.; Seegers, B.; Aristegui, J.; Fuhrman, J. A.; Gasol, J. M.; Sanudo-Wilhelmy, S. A.

doi:10.1101/231167

bioRxiv · 10.1101/231167

Marine proteorhodopsins rival photosynthesis in solar energy capture

Gomez-Consarnau, L.·Levine, N. M.·Cutter, L. S.·Wang, D.·Seegers, B.·Aristegui, J.·Fuhrman, J. A.·Gasol, J. M.·Sanudo-Wilhelmy, S. A.

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Abstract

All known phototrophic metabolisms on Earth are based on one of three energy-converting pigments: chlorophyll-a, bacteriochlorophyll-a, and retinal, which is the chromophore in rhodopsins [1]. While the contribution of chlorophylls to global energy flows and marine carbon cycling has been studied for decades, the role of retinal-based phototrophy remains largely unexplored [1,2]. We report the first vertical distributions of the three energy-converting pigments measured along a contrasting nutrient gradient through the Mediterranean Sea and the Eastern Atlantic Ocean. The highest proteorhodopsin concentrations were observed above the deep chlorophyll-a maxima, and their geographical distribution tended to be inversely related to that of chlorophyll-a. We further show that proteorhodopsins potentially absorb as much or more light energy than chlorophyll-a -based phototrophy and this energy is sufficient to sustain bacterial basal metabolism. Our results suggest that ubiquitous proteorhodopsin-containing heterotrophs are important contributors to the light energy captured in the sea.

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Gomez-Consarnau, L., Levine, N. M., Cutter, L. S., Wang, D., Seegers, B., Aristegui, J., Fuhrman, J. A., Gasol, J. M., Sanudo-Wilhelmy, S. A.. 2017-12-08. Marine proteorhodopsins rival photosynthesis in solar energy capture. https://doi.org/10.1101/231167

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