Articles | Volume 24, issue 9
https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-5181-2024
https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-24-5181-2024
Research article
 | 
03 May 2024
Research article |  | 03 May 2024

Bacteria in clouds biodegrade atmospheric formic and acetic acids

Leslie Nuñez López, Pierre Amato, and Barbara Ervens

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Cited articles

Adeleke, R., Nwangburuka, C., and Oboirien, B.: Origins, roles and fate of organic acids in soils: A review, S. Afr. J. Bot., 108, 393–406, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sajb.2016.09.002, 2017. a
Amato, P., Parazols, M., Sancelme, M., Laj, P., Mailhot, G., and Delort, A. M.: Microorganisms isolated from the water phase of tropospheric clouds at the Puy de Dôme: Major groups and growth abilities at low temperatures, FEMS Microbiol. Ecol., 59, 242–254, https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1574-6941.2006.00199.x, 2007. a, b
Amato, P., Joly, M., Besaury, L., Oudart, A., Taib, N., Moné, A. I., Deguillaume, L., Delort, A. M., and Debroas, D.: Active microorganisms thrive among extremely diverse communities in cloud water, PLoS ONE, 12, 1–22, https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0182869, 2017. a
Amato, P., Mathonat, F., Nuñez Lopez, L., Péguilhan, R., Bourhane, Z., Rossi, F., Vyskocil, J., Joly, M., and Ervens, B.: The aeromicrobiome: the selective and dynamic outer-layer of the Earth's microbiome, Front. Microbiol., 14, 1186847, https://doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2023.1186847, 2023. a
Ariya, P. A., Nepotchatykh, O., Ignatova, O., and Amyot, M.: Microbiological degradation of atmospheric organic compounds, Geophys. Res. Lett., 29, 2077, https://doi.org/10.1029/2002GL015637, 2002.​​​​​​​ a, b, c
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Living bacteria comprise a small particle fraction in the atmosphere. Our model study shows that atmospheric bacteria in clouds may efficiently biodegrade formic and acetic acids that affect the acidity of rain. We conclude that current atmospheric models underestimate losses of these acids as they only consider chemical processes. We suggest that biodegradation can affect atmospheric concentration not only of formic and acetic acids but also of other volatile, moderately soluble organics.
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