Honu. Green sea turtle. Hawai'i. Photo©CLCase

Subsurface Bacteria Project Christine L. Case My home page BIOL 230

Savannah River bacteria Hanford bacteria References Student project ideas

The subsurface microbial community constitutes a large fraction of the Earth's biomass, yet only a small fraction of it has been characterized. The microbiology above 50m depth has been examined in various environments by many groups, but similar students of deeper strata have been few and far between despite the interesting findings they have generated. The U.S. Department of Energy established the Deep Microbiology Program in 1986 to promote basic research on the microbiology of terrestrial subsurface environments. Over the next decade, microorganisms were successfully cultured and studies from many sites across the United States and scientists began to realize that these isolates might be a unique and valuable resource. The cultures are preserved in the Subsurface Microbial Culture Collection (SMCC)Skyline College students have been characterizing isolates from the SMCC.

Savannah River Borehole 24 (Aiken, South Carolina)
Culture #	Stratum	Depth	Gram rxn	Morphology	Lipase	Metabolism*	Oxidase	Catalase
B258	Congaree Aquifer	299'	+	coccus	+	F	+	+
B450	PeeDee Aquifer	592'	-	rod	+	O	-	+
B451	PeeDee Aquifer	592'	+	coccus	+	N	-	+
B528	Black Creek	668'	-	rod	+	F	+	+
B623	Middendorf Aquifer	802'	-	rod	+	F	+	+	Pseudomonas
B666	Middendorf Aquifer	851'	-	rod	+	N	-	-	Comamonas
+F=fermentative; O=oxidative; N=neither oxidative nor fermentative

Hanford Borehole YB-02 (Richland, Washington
Culture #	Stratum	Depth	Gram rnx	Morphology	Lipase	Metabolism	Oxidase	Catalase
G884	Lacustrine sediments	598.1'	+	coccus	+
G886	Lacustrine sediments	600.6'	+	coccus					Staphylococcus aureus
G929	Fluvial sand	643.9'	-	coccus	[Grew on 7.5% NaCl, mannitol -, coagulase-]
G946	Fluvial sand	643.9'	-	coccus	-
G085	Fluvial sand	648.3'	-	rod	+	O	-	+
G990	Fluvial sand	643.9'	-	rod	[anaerobe}
G994	Fluvial sand	648.3'	+	rod
+F=fermentative; O=oxidative; N=neither oxidative nor fermentative

References

Fliermans, C. B. and D. L. Balkwill. "Microbial life in deep terrestrial subsurfaces." BioScience 39 (6):370-377, 1989. Fredrickson, J. K., D. L. Balkwill, G. R. Drake, M. F. Romine, D. B. Ringelberg, and D. C. White. "Aromatic-Degrading Sphingomonas isolates from the deep subsurface." Applied and Environmental Microbiology 61:1917-1922, May 1995. Fredrickson, J. K. and T. C. Onstott. "Microbes deep inside the Earth." Scientific American Oct. 1996. Krumholz, L. R. "Microbial Ecosystemsin the Earth's Subsurface." ASM News 64(4):197-202, 1998. Phelps, T. J., E. G. Raione, D. C. White, and C. B. Fliermans. Microbial activities in deep subsurface environments. Geomicrobiology Journal 7:79-91, 1989. Earth in Space Subsurface Microbial Culture Collection

Student Project Ideas

Look for degradative abilities in one or more isolate. E.g., can any degrade specific hydrocarbon pollutants including pesticides and benzene, toluene, and xylene. Will hydrolytic enzymes work at ambient or cold temperatures for industrial processes. E.g., lipase for laundry detergents. Look for antimicrobics made by subsurface bacteria.