Overlooked tripartite microbial interactions influencing chemical cycling in the ocean.

Abstract

Inter-microbial interactions fundamentally govern ocean ecology and biogeochemistry. Recently, Henshaw and colleagues revealed that important inter-bacterial associations in the ocean can be shaped by viral infections, whereby infected cyanobacteria release specific chemicals that attract heterotrophic bacteria, uncovering a new tripartite microbial interaction that influences carbon transfer in the surface ocean.