Award: OCE-1657639

Award Title: Iron uptake by marine bacteria: regulation and function of weak and strong siderophores
Funding Source: NSF Division of Ocean Sciences (NSF OCE)
Program Manager: Henrietta N. Edmonds

Outcomes Report

Project title: Iron Uptake by Marine Bacteria: Regulation and Function of Weak and Strong Siderophores. P.I. Francois M. M. MOREL Princeton University A variety of small molecules produced by microorganisms are exported into their external medium. These extracellular metabolites are used for various purposes such as taking up chemicals from the environment, sharing information (chemical talk), warfare, and cooperation between organisms. This project dealt with two classes of such compounds: 1) siderophores, which are used to take up essential iron from the environment, and 2) quorum sensing molecules, which are used to share information about the surrounding concentration of similar organisms (a sort of census for microbes). Highlights of the project include: 1) The identification of several siderophores produced by important soil microbes including one with a chemical structure never previously reported; 2) The demonstration that some siderophores are used for taking up metals other than iron, in particular molybdenum and vanadium which are used in the biological fixation of nitrogen from the atmosphere; 3) The design of a new culture medium that allows the study of marine bacteria at the very low iron concentrations present in natural ocean water; 4) The demonstration that, when they are present in large numbers, marine bacteria use quorum sensing to avoid overproducing siderophores in their surroundings. This project partly supported 4 undergraduate student, 1 graduate student and 2 postdoctoral associates. Last Modified: 02/21/2020 Submitted by: Francois M Morel

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Principal Investigator: Francois M. Morel (Princeton University)