A natural, perturbed deep-sea hydrocarbon-plume microbial community that developed during the 2010 Deepwater Horizon blowout in the Gulf of Mexico. The plume selected indigenous hydrocarbon-degrading Gammaproteobacteria, with early enrichment of Oceanospirillales-like petroleum degraders followed by Colwellia, Cycloclasticus, methylotrophic bacteria, and other taxa with non-redundant hydrocarbon degradation capacities.
Taxonomy
| Taxon | Ontology ID | Functional Roles | Abundance |
|---|---|---|---|
| DWH Oceanospirillales-like bacteria — ontology label: Oceanospirillales | NCBITaxon:135619 · TaxonMech · TraitMech |
PRIMARY_DEGRADER
|
DOMINANT |
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| Colwellia | NCBITaxon:28228 · TaxonMech · TraitMech |
PRIMARY_DEGRADER
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ABUNDANT |
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| Cycloclasticus | NCBITaxon:34067 · TaxonMech · TraitMech |
PRIMARY_DEGRADER
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N/A |
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| Methylophaga | NCBITaxon:40222 · TaxonMech · TraitMech |
PRIMARY_DEGRADER
|
N/A |
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| Marinobacter | NCBITaxon:2742 · TaxonMech · TraitMech |
PRIMARY_DEGRADER
|
N/A |
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Ecological Interactions
The graph shows only explicitly linked interaction participants. Community members without an asserted participant link are omitted; membership alone does not imply an interaction.
Cold Hydrocarbon Biodegradation and Bioremediation Potential
Field hydrocarbon patterns and environmental-isolate incubations at 5 C support cold-water biodegradation and the potential for intrinsic plume bioremediation without substantial oxygen drawdown. This is not a distinct oxygen-conservation mechanism or established syntrophy. The named Oceanospirillales group represents a canonical subset, not every degrader or all spill phases.
Participating Taxa: DWH Oceanospirillales-like bacteria
Metabolites: hydrocarbon (CHEBI:24632 · MediaIngredientMech · CMMMech), dioxygen (CHEBI:15379 · MediaIngredientMech · CMMMech)
Biological Processes:
- alkane catabolic process (GO:0043448 · PathwayMech)
Evidence
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PMID:20736401 - SUPPORT (OTHER)"faster-than-expected hydrocarbon biodegradation rates at 5°C"
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PMID:20736401 - PARTIAL (OTHER)"intrinsic bioremediation of the oil plume in the deep-water column without substantial oxygen drawdown"
Colwellia-Dominated Oil-Associated Flocs
In cold oil/COREXIT enrichments from uncontaminated deep Gulf water without added FeCl2, oil-, carbohydrate- and biomass-containing flocs were dominated by Colwellia. Oil degradation by an isolated Colwellia strain is a separate positive result. Aggregation does not by itself demonstrate facilitation of another taxon or quantify a floc-specific contribution to field attenuation.
Participating Taxa: Colwellia
Metabolites: hydrocarbon (CHEBI:24632 · MediaIngredientMech · CMMMech)
HYPOTHESIZED - aggregation with oil droplets could support Colwellia-associated hydrocarbon access and degradation. The enrichment observations and separate isolate assay do not selectively test this route or establish its contribution to in situ plume attenuation.
Evidence
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PMID:22616650 - SUPPORT (IN_VITRO)"flocs were comprised of oil, carbohydrates and biomass"
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PMID:22616650 - SUPPORT (IN_VITRO)"Colwellia were the dominant bacteria in the flocs"
Proposed Community Hydrocarbon Pathway Complementarity
HYPOTHESIZED - SIP enrichment and genome reconstruction suggest complementary hydrocarbon pathways. The study separates deep-water hexadecane from surface-water PAH enrichments, incubated at room temperature without added dispersant. Named taxa are a subset across those enrichments, not a proven five-member deep-plume consortium. Coordinated metabolism is an alternative to unknown enzymes or incomplete assemblies, not resolved metabolite exchange.
Participating Taxa: DWH Oceanospirillales-like bacteria, Colwellia, Cycloclasticus, Marinobacter
Metabolites: hydrocarbon (CHEBI:24632 · MediaIngredientMech · CMMMech), alkane (CHEBI:18310 · MediaIngredientMech · CMMMech)
Biological Processes:
- alkane catabolic process (GO:0043448 · PathwayMech)
HYPOTHESIZED - complementary pathways could expand community hydrocarbon transformation and contribute to bioremediation. SIP and annotated repertoires support this model but do not establish intertaxon flux, necessity or the contribution of this room-temperature enrichment mechanism in the cold field plume.
Evidence
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PMID:27572965 - PARTIAL (COMPUTATIONAL)"combined capabilities of the microbial community exceeded those of its individual components"
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PMID:27572965 - PARTIAL (COMPUTATIONAL)"degradation of complex hydrocarbon mixtures requires the non-redundant capabilities of a complex oil-degrading community"
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PMID:27572965 - SUPPORT (IN_VITRO)"assimilate alkane and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons during stable-isotope probing experiments"
Associated Datasets
| Dataset | Type | Repository | Accession |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Deepwater Horizon hydrocarbon-degrader genome reconstructions
Genome-resolved stable-isotope-probing study reconstructing hydrocarbon-degradation pathways from DWH sea-surface and deep-plume enrichment communities. |
GENOMICS | OTHER | NatMicrobiol-2016-DWH-genome-reconstruction |
Knowledge gaps & discussions (1)
KNOWLEDGE_GAP OPEN How much do floc formation and proposed pathway complementarity contribute to field hydrocarbon attenuation?
Selective aggregation and member/pathway perturbations, direct intermediate tracing and field-resolved measurements would test the two retained hypotheses. Surface and plume enrichments cannot be collapsed into one co-occurring consortium. The duplicate oxygen-conservation node was consolidated without discarding the bounded bioremediation potential. Hazen and Baelum claims remain abstract-bounded; the Dombrowski author proof and Figure 3 were inspected. The partial Colwellia SAG supports predictions, not demonstrated missing enzymes or siderophore exchange. Non-graph follow-up: #1379.
Attaches to: ecological_interactions#Cold Hydrocarbon Biodegradation and Bioremediation Potential, ecological_interactions#Colwellia-Dominated Oil-Associated Flocs, ecological_interactions#Proposed Community Hydrocarbon Pathway Complementarity
External Resources
| Name | Repository | Resource ID |
|---|---|---|
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Exact-system publication - DWH deep-sea oil plume bacteria
Primary field study reporting indigenous deep-sea oil-degrading bacteria enriched in the Deepwater Horizon plume. |
OTHER | PMID:20736401 |
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Exact-system publication - oil and dispersant enrichment
Cold Gulf deep-water enrichment study with MC252 oil and COREXIT showing Colwellia and Oceanospirillales succession. |
OTHER | PMID:22616650 |
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Exact-system publication - methylotroph role in DWH plume
Review and synthesis of Methylophaga and other methylotroph activity in DWH oil plume waters. |
OTHER | PMID:24865772 |
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Exact-system publication - DWH hydrocarbon pathway reconstruction
Genome-resolved reconstruction of DWH hydrocarbon-degradation pathways and community substrate specialization. |
OTHER | PMID:27572965 |
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Environmental Factors
| Factor | Value | Unit |
|---|---|---|
| Deepwater Horizon hydrocarbon plume | Deepwater Horizon blowout, Gulf of Mexico | N/A |
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| Low deep-water temperature | 5 | degrees Celsius |
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| Oil and dispersant exposure | N/A | |
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