Silicon and zinc biogeochemical cycles coupled through the Southern Ocean
Zinc is vital for the physiology of oceanic phytoplankton. The striking similarity of the depth profiles of zinc to those of silicate suggests that the uptake of both elements into the opaline frustules of diatoms, and their regeneration from these frustules, should be coupled. However, the zinc con...
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ftucl:oai:eprints.ucl.ac.uk.OAI2:10077573 2023-12-24T10:25:02+01:00 Silicon and zinc biogeochemical cycles coupled through the Southern Ocean Vance, D Little, SH De Souza, GF Khatiwala, S Lohan, MC Middag, R 2017-02-06 text https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10077573/1/Vance2017NatureGeoscienceFinal.pdf https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10077573/ eng eng https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10077573/1/Vance2017NatureGeoscienceFinal.pdf https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10077573/ open Nature Geoscience , 10 (3) pp. 202-206. (2017) Article 2017 ftucl 2023-11-27T13:07:30Z Zinc is vital for the physiology of oceanic phytoplankton. The striking similarity of the depth profiles of zinc to those of silicate suggests that the uptake of both elements into the opaline frustules of diatoms, and their regeneration from these frustules, should be coupled. However, the zinc content of diatom opal is negligible, and zinc is taken up into and regenerated from the organic parts of diatom cells. Thus, since opaline frustules dissolve deep in the water column while organic material is regenerated in the shallow subsurface ocean, there is little reason to expect the observed close similarity between zinc and silicate, and the dissimilarity between zinc and phosphate. Here we combine observations with simulations using a three-dimensional model of ocean circulation and biogeochemistry to show that the coupled distribution of zinc and silicate, as well as the decoupling of zinc and phosphate, can arise in the absence of mechanistic links between the uptake of zinc and silicate, and despite contrasting regeneration length scales. Our simulations indicate that the oceanic zinc distribution is, in fact, a natural result of the interaction between ocean biogeochemistry and the physical circulation through the Southern Ocean hub. Our analysis demonstrates the importance of uptake stoichiometry in controlling ocean biogeochemistry, and the utility of global-scale elemental covariation in the ocean in understanding these controls. Article in Journal/Newspaper Southern Ocean University College London: UCL Discovery Southern Ocean |
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University College London: UCL Discovery |
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language |
English |
description |
Zinc is vital for the physiology of oceanic phytoplankton. The striking similarity of the depth profiles of zinc to those of silicate suggests that the uptake of both elements into the opaline frustules of diatoms, and their regeneration from these frustules, should be coupled. However, the zinc content of diatom opal is negligible, and zinc is taken up into and regenerated from the organic parts of diatom cells. Thus, since opaline frustules dissolve deep in the water column while organic material is regenerated in the shallow subsurface ocean, there is little reason to expect the observed close similarity between zinc and silicate, and the dissimilarity between zinc and phosphate. Here we combine observations with simulations using a three-dimensional model of ocean circulation and biogeochemistry to show that the coupled distribution of zinc and silicate, as well as the decoupling of zinc and phosphate, can arise in the absence of mechanistic links between the uptake of zinc and silicate, and despite contrasting regeneration length scales. Our simulations indicate that the oceanic zinc distribution is, in fact, a natural result of the interaction between ocean biogeochemistry and the physical circulation through the Southern Ocean hub. Our analysis demonstrates the importance of uptake stoichiometry in controlling ocean biogeochemistry, and the utility of global-scale elemental covariation in the ocean in understanding these controls. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Vance, D Little, SH De Souza, GF Khatiwala, S Lohan, MC Middag, R |
spellingShingle |
Vance, D Little, SH De Souza, GF Khatiwala, S Lohan, MC Middag, R Silicon and zinc biogeochemical cycles coupled through the Southern Ocean |
author_facet |
Vance, D Little, SH De Souza, GF Khatiwala, S Lohan, MC Middag, R |
author_sort |
Vance, D |
title |
Silicon and zinc biogeochemical cycles coupled through the Southern Ocean |
title_short |
Silicon and zinc biogeochemical cycles coupled through the Southern Ocean |
title_full |
Silicon and zinc biogeochemical cycles coupled through the Southern Ocean |
title_fullStr |
Silicon and zinc biogeochemical cycles coupled through the Southern Ocean |
title_full_unstemmed |
Silicon and zinc biogeochemical cycles coupled through the Southern Ocean |
title_sort |
silicon and zinc biogeochemical cycles coupled through the southern ocean |
publishDate |
2017 |
url |
https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10077573/1/Vance2017NatureGeoscienceFinal.pdf https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10077573/ |
geographic |
Southern Ocean |
geographic_facet |
Southern Ocean |
genre |
Southern Ocean |
genre_facet |
Southern Ocean |
op_source |
Nature Geoscience , 10 (3) pp. 202-206. (2017) |
op_relation |
https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10077573/1/Vance2017NatureGeoscienceFinal.pdf https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10077573/ |
op_rights |
open |
_version_ |
1786200411009449984 |