Abstract
The amount of carbon stored in the oceans is far greater than what is present in the atmosphere. Understanding the mechanism of absorption of carbon dioxide by oceans is crucial in deciphering the role of CO2 in the context of climate change on micro- and macroclimatic level. Transformation and sequestration of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) involves the production of refractory dissolved organic carbon (RDOC) from labile dissolved organic carbon (LDOC) and this process is mediated primarily by microorganisms. Microbial carbon pump mechanism excludes the carbon from atmosphere by producing a pool of carbon that is recalcitrant to remineralization and thus cannot be reverted to CO2. The microbial carbon pump (MCP) is a biological phenomenon driven by microbes that involves transformation and sequestration of carbon in the ocean. The major carbon sequestration mechanism is provided by MCP, as this is the only pump that leads to the production of refractory DOC fractions. The MCP thus possesses a profound impact on global carbon cycle and global climate.
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Ahmad, S.N., Mir, T.A., Shareef, T., Pattnaik, S., Lone, S.A. (2021). Carbon Sequestration in Aquatic System Using Microbial Pump. In: Lone, S.A., Malik, A. (eds) Microbiomes and the Global Climate Change. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-33-4508-9_2
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