Marine bacteria team up to break down one of the ocean's toughest carbon-storing molecules

by Stephanie Martinovich, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

edited by Sadie Harley , reviewed by Robert Egan

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Add as preferred source No single microbe can break down fucoidan, a tough carbohydrate molecule produced by ocean algae. A team of researchers shows that communities of marine bacteria divide the work instead, offering new insight into how the ocean stores carbon over long periods of time. Credits: Silas Baisch/Unsplash Deep in the ocean, brown algae and diatoms produce a complex carbohydrate molecule called fucoidan, which helps form their protective outer layers. The fucoidan molecule is very difficult for microbes to break down because its chemical structure may include dozens of different linkages and branching patterns that vary from one algal species to another.