Negligible microbial heterotrophic quantitative contribution onto trace metals remobilization during marine sediment resuspension - insights from a Mediterranean urbanized bay

Abstract

Marine sediments are a sink for trace metals but also a potential source during sediment resuspension events. Understanding the factor that regulates this uptake or release of contaminant is of prime importance. While the impact of abiotic processes has been widely studied, the quantitative influence of microbial activities on metal cycling during sediment resuspension events is still largely unknown. This study was designed to quantify such microbial contributions on the cycling of a suite of metals (Al, As, Ba, Co, Cr, Cs, Cu, Fe, Li, Mn, Mo, Ni, Pb, Rb, Sb, Sr, Ti, Tl, U, V and Zn) and evaluate the specific contributions of heterotrophic micro-organisms originating from either the seawater or the sediment. For that purpose, the sediment and seawater were selectively sterilized using either autoclave (sediment) or filtration under 0.2 μm (seawater) prior to be mixed for 5 days in darkness. Dissolved concentration in trace elements were measured over time, along with physical-chemical parameters. The pH in the different conditions decreased all along the experiments while the redox potential decreased during up to 4 days before increasing back to its initial value. Three groups of trace metals were identified: metals whose dissolved concentrations (1) increased (Al, Ba, Co, Cs, Cu, Mn, Mo, Ni, Pb, Sb, Tl, U and Zn) as a consequence of the transfer from sediment, (2) decreased (Cr, Fe and Ti) as a consequence of transfer onto sediment, and (3) remained unchanged over time (As, Li, Rb, Sr and V). The sterilization of either sediment and/or seawater did not have a statistically significant impact onto the dynamics of the physical-chemical parameters, nor onto the metals' behavior (except Mn). Our results demonstrate (i) that marine sediment autoclaving prior to mixing with seawater did not disrupt the behavior of metals in the seawater / sediment mixing over the 5 days of experiments and (ii) that the microbial activity had a negligible influence on the variation of physical-chemical parameters or metals' transfers over the mixing time.