SUBHADEEP CHOWDHURY
Aix Marseille Université, CNRS, Université de Toulon, IRD, OSU Pythéas, Mediterranean Institute of Oceanography (MIO), UM 110, 13288, Marseille, France
Corresponding Author:[email protected]
Author ProfileSophie Bonnet
Aix Marseille Université, CNRS, Université de Toulon, IRD, OSU Pythéas, Mediterranean Institute of Oceanography (MIO), UM 110, 13288, Marseille, France
Author ProfileMar Benavides
Aix Marseille Université, CNRS, Université de Toulon, IRD, OSU Pythéas, Mediterranean Institute of Oceanography (MIO), UM 110, 13288, Marseille, France
Author ProfileAbstract
Dinitrogen (N2) fixers (diazotrophs) fuel primary productivity by
providing reactive nitrogen into the ocean ecosystem and promoting CO2
sequestration. N2 fixation has been extensively studied in the low
latitudes of the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. By comparison, the Indian
Ocean remains the least explored and most enigmatic ocean basin. This is
particularly the case for the Southern Indian Ocean (SIO). Here we
explore N2 fixation activity and diazotroph community composition,
diversity, and abundance from 20 to 60ºS in the SIO. While this region
plays a key biogeochemical role serving as a link between the Atlantic
and South Pacific Ocean waters, its N2 fixation potential remains
unknown. Our results provide new insights into diazotrophy in a poorly
studied region and expand the range of biomes where diazotrophy may be
observed.