Exploring deep microbial life in coal-bearing sediment down to ~2.5 km below the ocean floor

F. Inagaki; K.-U. Hinrichs; Y. Kubo; M. W. Bowles; V. B. Heuer; W.-L. Hong; T. Hoshino; A. Ijiri; H. Imachi; M. Ito; M. Kaneko; M. A. Lever; Y.-S. Lin; B. A. Methé; S. Morita; Y. Morono; W. Tanikawa; M. Bihan; S. A. Bowden; M. Elvert; C. Glombitza; D. Gross; G. J. Harrington; T. Hori; K. Li; D. Limmer; C.-H. Liu; M. Murayama; N. Ohkouchi; S. Ono; Y.-S. Park; S. C. Phillips; X. Prieto-Mollar; M. Purkey; N. Riedinger; Y. Sanada; J. Sauvage; G. Snyder; R. Susilawati; Y. Takano; E. Tasumi; T. Terada; H. Tomaru; E. Trembath-Reichert; D. T. Wang; Y. Yamada

doi:10.1126/science.aaa6882

Report

Exploring deep microbial life in coal-bearing sediment down to ~2.5 km below the ocean floor

F. Inagaki¹,²,*,
K.-U. Hinrichs³,*,
Y. Kubo⁴,⁵,
M. W. Bowles³,
V. B. Heuer³,
W.-L. Hong⁶,†,
T. Hoshino¹,²,
A. Ijiri¹,²,
H. Imachi²,⁷,
M. Ito¹,²,
M. Kaneko²,⁸,
M. A. Lever⁹,‡,
Y.-S. Lin³,§,
B. A. Methé¹⁰,
S. Morita¹¹,
Y. Morono¹,²,
W. Tanikawa¹,²,
M. Bihan¹⁰,
S. A. Bowden¹²,
M. Elvert³,
C. Glombitza⁹,
D. Gross¹³,
G. J. Harrington¹⁴,
T. Hori¹⁵,
K. Li¹⁰,
D. Limmer¹²,||,
C.-H. Liu¹⁶,
M. Murayama¹⁷,
N. Ohkouchi²,⁸,
S. Ono¹⁸,
Y.-S. Park¹⁹,¶,
S. C. Phillips²⁰,
X. Prieto-Mollar³,
M. Purkey²¹,#,
N. Riedinger²²,**,
Y. Sanada⁴,⁵,
J. Sauvage²³,
G. Snyder²⁴,††,
R. Susilawati²⁵,
Y. Takano²,⁸,
E. Tasumi⁷,
T. Terada²⁶,
H. Tomaru²⁷,
E. Trembath-Reichert²⁸,
D. T. Wang¹⁸,
Y. Yamada⁵,²⁹

¹Kochi Institute for Core Sample Research, Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC), Nankoku, Kochi 783-8502, Japan.
²Research and Development Center for Marine Resources, JAMSTEC, Yokosuka 237-0061, Japan.
³MARUM Center for Marine Environmental Sciences, University of Bremen, D-28359 Bremen, Germany.
⁴Center for Deep-Earth Exploration, JAMSTEC, Yokohama 236-0061, Japan.
⁵Research and Development Center for Ocean Drilling Science, JAMSTEC, Yokohama 236-0001, Japan.
⁶College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR 97331, USA.
⁷Department of Subsurface Geobiological Analysis and Research, JAMSTEC, Yokosuka 237-0061, Japan.
⁸Department of Biogeochemistry, JAMSTEC, Yokosuka 237-0061, Japan.
⁹Center for Geomicrobiology, Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, DK-8000 Aarhus C, Denmark.
¹⁰Department of Environmental Genomics, J. Craig Venter Institute, Rockville, MD 20850, USA.
¹¹Geological Survey of Japan, National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8567, Japan.
¹²Department of Geology and Petroleum Geology, School of Geosciences, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen AB2A 3UE, UK.
¹³Department of Applied Geosciences and Geophysics, Montanuniversität, 8700 Leoben, Austria.
¹⁴School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham B15 2TT, UK.
¹⁵Environmental Management Research Institute, AIST, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8569, Japan.
¹⁶The State Key Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Biotechnology, School of Life Science, Nanjing University, Nanjing, Jiangsu 210093, China.
¹⁷Center for Advanced Marine Core Research, Kochi University, Nankoku, Kochi 783-8502, Japan.
¹⁸Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA.
¹⁹Petroleum and Marine Resources Research Division, Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon 305-350, Korea.
²⁰Department of Earth Sciences, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH 03824, USA.
²¹Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, University of Nebraska–Lincoln, Lincoln, NE 68588, USA.
²²Department of Earth Sciences, University of California Riverside, Riverside, CA 92521, USA.
²³Graduate School of Oceanography, University of Rhode Island, Narragansett, RI 02882, USA.
²⁴Department of Earth Science, Rice University, Houston, TX 77005, USA.
²⁵School of Earth Science, University of Queensland, Brisbane Queensland 4072, Australia.
²⁶Marine Works Japan, Yokosuka 237-0063, Japan.
²⁷Department of Earth Sciences, Graduate School of Science, Chiba University, Chiba 263-8522, Japan.
²⁸Geological and Planetary Sciences, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125, USA.
²⁹Department of Urban Management, Graduate School of Engineering, Kyoto University, Kyoto 615-8540, Japan.

↵*Corresponding author. E-mail: inagaki{at}jamstec.go.jp (F.I.); khinrichs{at}uni-bremen.de (K.-U.H.)

↵† Present address: CAGE - Centre for Arctic Gas Hydrate, Environment and Climate, Department of Geology, UiT The Arctic University of Norway, N-9037 Tromsø, Norway.
↵‡ Present address: Department of Environmental Systems Science, ETH Zurich, 8092 Zurich, Switzerland.
↵§ Present address: Department of Oceanography, National Sun Yat-Sen University, Kaohsiung 80424, Taiwan.
↵|| Present address: Adrok, Edinburgh, Scotland EH6 5NX, UK.
↵¶ Deceased.
↵# Present address: Noble Energy, 1625 Broadway, Suite 2200, Denver, CO 80202, USA.
↵** Present address: Boone Pickens School of Geology, 105 Noble Research Center, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK 74078-3031, USA.
↵†† Present address: Gas Hydrate Research Laboratory, Meiji University, Tokyo 101-8301, Japan.

See allHide authors and affiliations

Science 24 Jul 2015:
Vol. 349, Issue 6246, pp. 420-424
DOI: 10.1126/science.aaa6882

F. Inagaki

Kochi Institute for Core Sample Research, Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC), Nankoku, Kochi 783-8502, Japan.Research and Development Center for Marine Resources, JAMSTEC, Yokosuka 237-0061, Japan.

Find this author on Google Scholar
Find this author on PubMed
Search for this author on this site
For correspondence: inagaki@jamstec.go.jp khinrichs@uni-bremen.de

K.-U. Hinrichs

MARUM Center for Marine Environmental Sciences, University of Bremen, D-28359 Bremen, Germany.

Find this author on Google Scholar
Find this author on PubMed
Search for this author on this site
For correspondence: inagaki@jamstec.go.jp khinrichs@uni-bremen.de

Y. Kubo

Center for Deep-Earth Exploration, JAMSTEC, Yokohama 236-0061, Japan.Research and Development Center for Ocean Drilling Science, JAMSTEC, Yokohama 236-0001, Japan.

Find this author on Google Scholar
Find this author on PubMed
Search for this author on this site

M. W. Bowles

MARUM Center for Marine Environmental Sciences, University of Bremen, D-28359 Bremen, Germany.

Find this author on Google Scholar
Find this author on PubMed
Search for this author on this site

V. B. Heuer

MARUM Center for Marine Environmental Sciences, University of Bremen, D-28359 Bremen, Germany.

Find this author on Google Scholar
Find this author on PubMed
Search for this author on this site

W.-L. Hong

College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR 97331, USA.

Find this author on Google Scholar
Find this author on PubMed
Search for this author on this site

T. Hoshino

Find this author on Google Scholar
Find this author on PubMed
Search for this author on this site

A. Ijiri

Find this author on Google Scholar
Find this author on PubMed
Search for this author on this site

H. Imachi

Research and Development Center for Marine Resources, JAMSTEC, Yokosuka 237-0061, Japan.Department of Subsurface Geobiological Analysis and Research, JAMSTEC, Yokosuka 237-0061, Japan.

Find this author on Google Scholar
Find this author on PubMed
Search for this author on this site

M. Ito

Find this author on Google Scholar
Find this author on PubMed
Search for this author on this site

M. Kaneko

Research and Development Center for Marine Resources, JAMSTEC, Yokosuka 237-0061, Japan.Department of Biogeochemistry, JAMSTEC, Yokosuka 237-0061, Japan.

Find this author on Google Scholar
Find this author on PubMed
Search for this author on this site

M. A. Lever

Center for Geomicrobiology, Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, DK-8000 Aarhus C, Denmark.

Find this author on Google Scholar
Find this author on PubMed
Search for this author on this site

Y.-S. Lin

MARUM Center for Marine Environmental Sciences, University of Bremen, D-28359 Bremen, Germany.

Find this author on Google Scholar
Find this author on PubMed
Search for this author on this site

B. A. Methé

Department of Environmental Genomics, J. Craig Venter Institute, Rockville, MD 20850, USA.

Find this author on Google Scholar
Find this author on PubMed
Search for this author on this site

S. Morita

Geological Survey of Japan, National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8567, Japan.

Find this author on Google Scholar
Find this author on PubMed
Search for this author on this site

Y. Morono

Find this author on Google Scholar
Find this author on PubMed
Search for this author on this site

W. Tanikawa

Find this author on Google Scholar
Find this author on PubMed
Search for this author on this site

M. Bihan

Department of Environmental Genomics, J. Craig Venter Institute, Rockville, MD 20850, USA.

Find this author on Google Scholar
Find this author on PubMed
Search for this author on this site

S. A. Bowden

Department of Geology and Petroleum Geology, School of Geosciences, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen AB2A 3UE, UK.

Find this author on Google Scholar
Find this author on PubMed
Search for this author on this site

M. Elvert

MARUM Center for Marine Environmental Sciences, University of Bremen, D-28359 Bremen, Germany.

Find this author on Google Scholar
Find this author on PubMed
Search for this author on this site

C. Glombitza

Center for Geomicrobiology, Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, DK-8000 Aarhus C, Denmark.

Find this author on Google Scholar
Find this author on PubMed
Search for this author on this site

D. Gross

Department of Applied Geosciences and Geophysics, Montanuniversität, 8700 Leoben, Austria.

Find this author on Google Scholar
Find this author on PubMed
Search for this author on this site

G. J. Harrington

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham B15 2TT, UK.

Find this author on Google Scholar
Find this author on PubMed
Search for this author on this site

T. Hori

Environmental Management Research Institute, AIST, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8569, Japan.

Find this author on Google Scholar
Find this author on PubMed
Search for this author on this site

K. Li

Department of Environmental Genomics, J. Craig Venter Institute, Rockville, MD 20850, USA.

Find this author on Google Scholar
Find this author on PubMed
Search for this author on this site

D. Limmer

Department of Geology and Petroleum Geology, School of Geosciences, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen AB2A 3UE, UK.

Find this author on Google Scholar
Find this author on PubMed
Search for this author on this site

C.-H. Liu

The State Key Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Biotechnology, School of Life Science, Nanjing University, Nanjing, Jiangsu 210093, China.

Find this author on Google Scholar
Find this author on PubMed
Search for this author on this site

M. Murayama

Center for Advanced Marine Core Research, Kochi University, Nankoku, Kochi 783-8502, Japan.

Find this author on Google Scholar
Find this author on PubMed
Search for this author on this site

N. Ohkouchi

Research and Development Center for Marine Resources, JAMSTEC, Yokosuka 237-0061, Japan.Department of Biogeochemistry, JAMSTEC, Yokosuka 237-0061, Japan.

Find this author on Google Scholar
Find this author on PubMed
Search for this author on this site

S. Ono

Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA.

Find this author on Google Scholar
Find this author on PubMed
Search for this author on this site

Y.-S. Park

Petroleum and Marine Resources Research Division, Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources, Yuseong-gu, Daejeon 305-350, Korea.

Find this author on Google Scholar
Find this author on PubMed
Search for this author on this site

S. C. Phillips

Department of Earth Sciences, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH 03824, USA.

Find this author on Google Scholar
Find this author on PubMed
Search for this author on this site

X. Prieto-Mollar

MARUM Center for Marine Environmental Sciences, University of Bremen, D-28359 Bremen, Germany.

Find this author on Google Scholar
Find this author on PubMed
Search for this author on this site

M. Purkey

Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, University of Nebraska–Lincoln, Lincoln, NE 68588, USA.

Find this author on Google Scholar
Find this author on PubMed
Search for this author on this site

N. Riedinger

Department of Earth Sciences, University of California Riverside, Riverside, CA 92521, USA.

Find this author on Google Scholar
Find this author on PubMed
Search for this author on this site

Y. Sanada

Center for Deep-Earth Exploration, JAMSTEC, Yokohama 236-0061, Japan.Research and Development Center for Ocean Drilling Science, JAMSTEC, Yokohama 236-0001, Japan.

Find this author on Google Scholar
Find this author on PubMed
Search for this author on this site

J. Sauvage

Graduate School of Oceanography, University of Rhode Island, Narragansett, RI 02882, USA.

Find this author on Google Scholar
Find this author on PubMed
Search for this author on this site

G. Snyder

Department of Earth Science, Rice University, Houston, TX 77005, USA.

Find this author on Google Scholar
Find this author on PubMed
Search for this author on this site

R. Susilawati

School of Earth Science, University of Queensland, Brisbane Queensland 4072, Australia.

Find this author on Google Scholar
Find this author on PubMed
Search for this author on this site

Y. Takano

Research and Development Center for Marine Resources, JAMSTEC, Yokosuka 237-0061, Japan.Department of Biogeochemistry, JAMSTEC, Yokosuka 237-0061, Japan.

Find this author on Google Scholar
Find this author on PubMed
Search for this author on this site

E. Tasumi

Department of Subsurface Geobiological Analysis and Research, JAMSTEC, Yokosuka 237-0061, Japan.

Find this author on Google Scholar
Find this author on PubMed
Search for this author on this site

T. Terada

Marine Works Japan, Yokosuka 237-0063, Japan.

Find this author on Google Scholar
Find this author on PubMed
Search for this author on this site

H. Tomaru

Department of Earth Sciences, Graduate School of Science, Chiba University, Chiba 263-8522, Japan.

Find this author on Google Scholar
Find this author on PubMed
Search for this author on this site

E. Trembath-Reichert

Geological and Planetary Sciences, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125, USA.

Find this author on Google Scholar
Find this author on PubMed
Search for this author on this site

D. T. Wang

Department of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA.

Find this author on Google Scholar
Find this author on PubMed
Search for this author on this site

Y. Yamada

Research and Development Center for Ocean Drilling Science, JAMSTEC, Yokohama 236-0001, Japan.Department of Urban Management, Graduate School of Engineering, Kyoto University, Kyoto 615-8540, Japan.

Find this author on Google Scholar
Find this author on PubMed
Search for this author on this site

Article
Figures & Data
Info & Metrics
eLetters
PDF

eLetters is an online forum for ongoing peer review. Submission of eLetters are open to all. eLetters are not edited, proofread, or indexed. Please read our Terms of Service before submitting your own eLetter.

Submit a Response to This Article

Compose eLetter

Title

Contents

More information about text formats

Plain text

Plain text
No HTML tags allowed.
Web page addresses and e-mail addresses turn into links automatically.
Lines and paragraphs break automatically.

Author Information

Contributors
First name and middle name First or given name, e.g. 'Peter'. Last Name Your last, or family, name, e.g. 'MacMoody'. Email Your email address, e.g. higgs-boson@gmail.com Role / Occupation Your role and/or occupation, e.g. 'Orthopedic Surgeon'. Affiliation Your organization or institution (if applicable), e.g. 'Royal Free Hospital'.

Statement of Competing Interests

Competing interests?

Yes

Please describe the competing interests

CAPTCHA

This question is for testing whether or not you are a human visitor and to prevent automated spam submissions.

What code is in the image? Enter the characters shown in the image.

Vertical Tabs

No eLetters have been published for this article.

View Full Text

Coal beds more than 2 kilometers below the seafloor host methanogenic bacteria related to those found in forest soils. [Also see Perspective by Huber]

Exploring deep microbial life in coal-bearing sediment down to ~2.5 km below the ocean floor

Plain text

Vertical Tabs

Science

Article Tools