The article from the China-UK Joint Research Center of OUC, titled “Atmospheric deposition and river runoff stimulate the utilization of dissolved organic phosphorus in coastal seas”, was published in Nature Communications.

In recent years, with the continuous input of land-based pollutants, the ratio of nitrogen to phosphorus in offshore waters has continued to increase, and phosphorus relative nitrogen deficiency has become increasingly common. In face of dissolved inorganic phosphorus (DIP) deficiency, phytoplankton can utilize dissolved organophosphorus (DOP) by increasing alkaline phosphatase activity. However, to what extent this approach can alleviate phosphorus restriction in offshore phytoplankton remains unclear. 

The research shows that even with the phosphorus relative nitrogen deficiency, atmospheric sedimentation and river input can promote the growth of phytoplankton through the input of nitrogen nutrients, and that the hydrolysis utilization of DOP is the key to improve the bioavailability of phosphorus in seawater and may even become the main source of phosphorus nutrients for phytoplankton growth. In this study, the driving mode of phytoplankton to achieve growth by absorbing large amounts of nitrogen, intensifying phosphorus stress, and improving DOP bioavailability under the influence of anthropogenic activities was called “Anthropogenic Nitrogen Pump”. It is found that the hydrolytic utilization of DOP is jointly regulated by the DIP concentration and biomass in water. The DOP utilization process driven by anthropogenic nitrogen pump is widespread in the global offshore waters with different nutrient levels. 

The research was complished by Prof. Gao Huiwang’s team at the Frontiers Science Center for Deep Ocean Multispheres and Earth System, and the Key Laboratory of Marine Ecology and Environmental Science, in collaboration with Prof. Thomas Mock’s team from the College of Environmental Sciences at the University of East Anglia.