The Plymouth Student Scientist
Document Type
Literature Review
Abstract
Seagrasses are an important feature of coastal systems worldwide, capable of fixing significant amounts of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere into cellular material, potentially helping to alleviate rising carbon dioxide levels. However, the capacity of seagrass beds to act as carbon sinks is largely dependent on the amount of organic matter accumulated within the sediments following transformations by the microbial community. The microbial role in carbon cycling within seagrass sediments has been poorly researched, most likely because the importance of marine microbes in ocean cycling processes was only recently recognized, due to key advancements in molecular biology. This review examines carbon sources within seagrass sediments, their utilization by the microbial community, and their ultimate fates, in order to elucidate current understanding of carbon cycling in seagrass sediments. Future research should incorporate molecular techniques to further establish the microbial role in carbon cycling within seagrass sediments, and ultimately ascertain the capacity of seagrass beds to act as sinks of organic matter.
Publication Date
2010-07-01
Publication Title
The Plymouth Student Scientist
Volume
3
Issue
1
First Page
234
Last Page
244
ISSN
1754-2383
Deposit Date
May 2019
Embargo Period
2024-07-03
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Recommended Citation
Guy, Heather
(2010)
"The microbial role in carbon cycling within seagrass sediments,"
The Plymouth Student Scientist: Vol. 3:
Iss.
1, Article 7.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.24382/sjed-fb11
Available at:
https://pearl.plymouth.ac.uk/tpss/vol3/iss1/7