Sulphide tolerance of the marine nematode Oncholaimus campylocercoides—a result of internal sulphur formation?

The free-living, marine nematode Oncholaimus campylocercoides occurs in high abundance (up to 600 ind. 10 cm–2) at the fringe area of shallow-water hydrothermal vents off the Greek island of Milos in the Aegean Sea. It was found to have a sulphide tolerance (LT50) of 4.5 d at 500 μM sulphide concent...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Marine ecology. Progress series (Halstenbek) 2000-02, Vol.193, p.251-259
Main Authors: Thiermann, Frank, Vismann, Bent, Giere, Olav
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Aegean Sea
Animal and plant ecology
Animal, plant and microbial ecology
Animals
Autoecology
Biological and medical sciences
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
Hydrogen
Hypoxia
Marine
Marine nematodes
Nematodes
Oncholaimus campylocercoides
Oxidation
Oxygen
Particular ecosystems
Protozoa. Invertebrata
Seas
Sediments
Sulfides
Sulfur
Synecology
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Summary:The free-living, marine nematode Oncholaimus campylocercoides occurs in high abundance (up to 600 ind. 10 cm–2) at the fringe area of shallow-water hydrothermal vents off the Greek island of Milos in the Aegean Sea. It was found to have a sulphide tolerance (LT50) of 4.5 d at 500 μM sulphide concentration and of 4 d at 1 mM sulphide. Light- and electron-microscopical inspections showed that the non-symbiotic O. campylocercoides, when exposed to sulphidic conditions, develops oily to viscous inclusions in the epidermis consisting of elemental sulphur in the form of S8-rings and polysulphur chains. The longer the exposure to sulphidic conditions, the more sulphur was formed, which disappeared after re-introduction of the nematodes in normoxic conditions for 12 h. Based on these results and on tolerance experiments with hydrogen sulphide, we suggest a model of sulphide metabolism in O. campylocercoides which could relate to its occurrence in sulphidic, hydrothermal sediments.
ISSN:0171-8630
1616-1599
DOI:10.3354/meps193251