WEBVTT - How Do Nutrients Get into the World's Oceans?

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to brain Stuff from how Stuff Works, Hey, brain Stuff,

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<v Speaker 1>Lauren vocal bomb here. The Sahara Desert is a long

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<v Speaker 1>way from the Caribbean, but that doesn't matter. What happens

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<v Speaker 1>in Africa doesn't necessarily stay in Africa. Take dust, for instance.

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<v Speaker 1>The dirt on the ground in North Africa is dry

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<v Speaker 1>and the desert is windy. Every summer, dust from the

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<v Speaker 1>dunes of the world's largest desert pours into the atmosphere

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<v Speaker 1>over the North Atlantic to see the world's oceans with

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<v Speaker 1>nutrients that are sorely limited in many marine ecosystems, most

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<v Speaker 1>notably iron, which is essential to the growth of plants.

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<v Speaker 1>What happens to that dust after it leaves home can

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<v Speaker 1>be very good or very bad. It's sort of a

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<v Speaker 1>crap shoot. Nothing is stationary or permanent or simple on

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<v Speaker 1>this wild planet of oars. The major dust related pro

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<v Speaker 1>the iron that gives Saharan dust its rich red color,

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<v Speaker 1>feeds the phytoplankton in the Caribbean and along the coast

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<v Speaker 1>of the southeastern United States, which is important because you

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<v Speaker 1>want to know a big reason why you're breathing air

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<v Speaker 1>right now phytoplankton. We spoke with Jason west Rich, a

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<v Speaker 1>postdoctoral research scientist in the University of George's Department of Microbiology.

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<v Speaker 1>He said, for a long time it's been assumed the

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<v Speaker 1>tropical forests of the world or the primary source of

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<v Speaker 1>oxygen in the atmosphere, but now it's more appreciated that

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<v Speaker 1>the production in the ocean acts as a second lung

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<v Speaker 1>for the planet. Phytoplankton photosynthesis is responsible for half of

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<v Speaker 1>the oxygen and also a substantial uptake of carbon dioxide

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<v Speaker 1>on this planet. Now for the dust related khan In

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<v Speaker 1>a ten study, a research team led by Westritch found

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<v Speaker 1>that phytoplankton isn't the only organism in the Caribbean using

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<v Speaker 1>the magic desert dust bacteria. Notably, twelve different species of

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<v Speaker 1>pathogenic bacteria from the genus Fibrio use these nutrient infusions

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<v Speaker 1>to create blooms of their own. Vibrio bacteria are pretty

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<v Speaker 1>ubiquitous in the world's oceans, but there are freshwater species too.

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<v Speaker 1>You've probably of cholera, the disease brought to you by

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<v Speaker 1>the freshwater Vibrio colare, which infects millions of people worldwide

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<v Speaker 1>each year, especially in developing countries. A color outbreak after

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<v Speaker 1>the earthquake in Haiti killed an estimated ten thousand people,

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<v Speaker 1>and in Yemen, an ongoing cholera epidemic has infected over

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<v Speaker 1>a million people and killed two thousand and counting. Another fibrio,

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<v Speaker 1>the flesh eating marine Vibrio vulnificus, is also deadly to humans.

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<v Speaker 1>It can gain entry through an abrasion or puncture wound,

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<v Speaker 1>such as a fish hook, leading to severe infection, especially

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<v Speaker 1>for immunocompromised individuals. Marine Fibrio species also play a role

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<v Speaker 1>in many diseases of ocean organisms. You know how you're

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<v Speaker 1>not supposed to eat shellfish from some places during the summer.

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<v Speaker 1>That's because there are more Vibrio in the water when

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<v Speaker 1>it's warmer, and filter feeding shellfish accumulate two species of

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<v Speaker 1>Vibrio in their meat, which caused the majority of seafood

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<v Speaker 1>related sickness and death in the United States. Other Vibrio

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<v Speaker 1>species are known to be associated with diseased coral that

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<v Speaker 1>are already facing so many environmental stressors. Vibrio disease and

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<v Speaker 1>mortality has even placed economic strain on the fishing and

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<v Speaker 1>shrimp farming industries. West Ritch said, Understanding what drives fluctuation

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<v Speaker 1>of Vibrio in the environment can help to inform our

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<v Speaker 1>predictive potential of when to expect increased disease risk in

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<v Speaker 1>humans and other marine organisms. For example, we can track

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<v Speaker 1>sahir and dust by satellite over the typical five day

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<v Speaker 1>transit across the Atlantic before it arrives in US coastal waters,

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<v Speaker 1>allowing us to warn a swimmer, scuba diver, or fisherman

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<v Speaker 1>that there might be a peak and potentially harmful Vibrio

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<v Speaker 1>in surface water in the Keys. Because Vibrio are one

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<v Speaker 1>of the most researched marine bacterial genuses, researchers already know

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<v Speaker 1>a lot about their biology, ecology, physiology, and genetics. And

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<v Speaker 1>because they can reproduce so quickly under the right nutrient conditions,

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<v Speaker 1>one of its species has a population doubling time of

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<v Speaker 1>just ten minutes. Vibrio make a great adele to probe

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<v Speaker 1>the lifestyle strategy of an organism capable of quickly blooming

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<v Speaker 1>when the nutrient circumstances are right. Next Westritch and his

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<v Speaker 1>colleagues will be working to better understand the role of

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<v Speaker 1>Vibrio blooms on marine iron availability to see if they're

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<v Speaker 1>competing with phytoplankton for that sweet, sweet iron dust. Today's

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<v Speaker 1>episode was written by Jesselyn Shields and produced by Tyler Clang.

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