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Microbial D-amino acids and marine carbon storage

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Abstract

In nature, there are two conformational types of amino acids: L- and D-isomers. The L-amino acids are the predominant form and are used mainly for protein synthesis, while the D-amino acids are few in quantity but more diverse in terms of their biological functions. D-amino acids are produced by many marine microbes, which are important players in carbon and energy cycles in the ocean. As the major constituent of the marine organic carbon pool, D-amino acids can persist in the water column for a long time before being further transformed by chemical or biological processes or transported through physical processes (such as absorption and aggregation). This article reviews the microbial synthesis of D-amino acids, their physiological function and metabolism in microbes, and the contribution of D-amino acids as a carbon source to the oceanic carbon reservoir.

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  1. State Key Laboratory of Marine Environmental Science, Institute of Marine Microbes and Ecospheres, Xiamen University, Xiamen, 361005, China

    ZiLian Zhang, Qiang Zheng & NianZhi Jiao

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  1. ZiLian Zhang
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  2. Qiang Zheng
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Correspondence to ZiLian Zhang.

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Zhang, Z., Zheng, Q. & Jiao, N. Microbial D-amino acids and marine carbon storage. Sci. China Earth Sci. 59, 17–24 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11430-015-5155-x

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