Abstract

Serpentinization is the process in which ultramafic rocks, characteristic of the upper mantle, react with water liberating mantle carbon and reducing power to potenially support chemosynthetic microbial communities. These communities may be important mediators of carbon and energy exchange between the deep Earth and the surface biosphere. Our work focuses on the Coast Range Ophiolite Microbial Observatory (CROMO) in Northern California where subsurface fluids are accessible through a series of wells. Preliminary analyses indicate that the highly basic fluids (pH 9-12) have low microbial diversity, but there is limited knowledge about the metabolic capabilities of these communties. Metagenomic data from similar serpentine environments [1] have identified Betaproteobacteria belonging to the order Burkholderiales and Gram-positive bacteria from the phylum Clostridiales, as key components of the serpentine microbiome. In an effort to better characterize the microbial community, metabolism, and geochemistry at CROMO, fluids from two representative wells (N08B and CSWold) were sampled during a recent field campaign. The wells selected can be differentiated in that N08B had cell counts ranging from 10⁵ -1⁰⁶ cells mL^-1 of fluid, and abundance of the Betaproteobacterium Hydrogenophaga. In contrast, fluids from CSWold have lower cell counts (~10³ cells mL^-1 ) and an abundance of Dethiobacter, a taxon within the phylum Clostridiales. Geochemical characterization of the fluids includes measurements of dissolved gases (H₂, CO, CH₄), dissolved inorganic and organic carbon, volatile fatty acids, and nutrients. Microcosm experiments were conducted with the purpose of monitoring carbon fixation and metabolism of small organic compounds, such as acetate, while tracing changes in fluid chemistry and microbial community composition. These experiments are expected to provide insight into the biogeochemical dynamics of the serpentinite subsurface at CROMO and represent a first step for developing RNA based Stable Isotope Probing (RNA-SIP) experiments to trace microbial activity at this site.