在《通讯-生物学》发表的一篇名为Genomic evidence for the degradation of terrestrial organic matter by pelagic Arctic Ocean Chloroflexi bacteria的文章里，加拿大康考迪亚大学生物系的 David Walsh带领的团队针对这个问题对SAR202（绿弯菌门分枝细菌）进行了研究。SAR202占暗海中所有的浮游生物的10%，也同时存在于北冰洋的上层海水，学界广泛推测其有分解难降解有机物的能力。所以 David Walsh 的团队设想SAR202有降解tDOM的功能。
摘要：The Arctic Ocean currently receives a large supply of global river discharge and terrestrial dissolved organic matter. Moreover, an increase in freshwater runoff and riverine transport of organic matter to the Arctic Ocean is a predicted consequence of thawing permafrost and increased precipitation. The fate of the terrestrial humic-rich organic material and its impact on the marine carbon cycle are largely unknown. Here, a metagenomic survey of the Canada Basin in the Western Arctic Ocean showed that pelagic Chloroflexi from the Arctic Ocean are replete with aromatic compound degradation genes, acquired in part by lateral transfer from terrestrial bacteria. Our results imply marine Chloroflexi have the capacity to use terrestrial organic matter and that their role in the carbon cycle may increase with the changing hydrological cycle.
期刊介绍：Communications Biology is an open access journal from Nature Research publishing high-quality research, reviews and commentary in all areas of the biological sciences. Research papers published by the journal represent significant advances bringing new biological insight to a specialized area of research.
