The roles of vitamin B12 in the interaction between bacteria and eukaryotic algae

Abstract:

The direct or indirect interactions between bacteria and algae occur widely in nature environment, and impact greatly on the physiological functions, community structures, and stress responses of both partners. Vitamin B12 (VB12), a structurally complex and functionally important vitamin, is required for the growth of many eukaryotic algae. The fact that VB12 can only be formed by bacteria and archaea implies that VB12-producing prokaryotes play an important role for algae. In this review, we focus on the recent reseach of VB12-involved algal growth promotion, stress tolerance and gene expression regulatoin in the interaction between bacteria and algae. Based on the recent progroess, we also discuss the future research directions in the research mode of bacteria-algae interaction.

Key words:Vitamin B12, bacteria-algae interaction, algal physiology, stress response