Carbonate Accumulation in the Bark of Terminalia bellirica: A New Habitat for the Oxalate-Carbonate Pathway |
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| Authors: | Vincent Hervé Martin Clerc Guillaume Cailleau Matthieu Bueche Thomas Junier Eric Verrecchia |
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| Institution: | 1. Laboratory of Microbiology, Institute of Biology, University of Neuchatel, Neuchatel, Switzerland;2. Laboratory of Biogeosciences, Institute of Earth Surface Dynamics, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland;3. Laboratory of Biogeosciences, Institute of Earth Surface Dynamics, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland;4. Vital-IT, Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics, Lausanne, Switzerland |
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| Abstract: | Oxalate oxidation and carbonate precipitation associated with the oxalogenic tree Terminalia bellirica were investigated. Calcium oxalate crystals, oxalotrophic bacteria (dominated by genera Methylobacterium and Burkholderia), and carbonate accumulation (82% dry weight), were detected in the bark. In contrast, only a slight accumulation of carbonate was observed in soil (1.5%). The combined geochemical and microbiological analyses suggest that bark of an Indian living tree represents a novel habitat for the accumulation of carbonate associated with bacterial oxalate oxidation. The importance of these types of habitats needs to be quantified when considering the biogeochemical cycling of carbon and calcium in tropical ecosystems. |
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| Keywords: | Burkholderia carbon cycle dermosphere Methylobacterium Terminalia bellirica |
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