Note to users. If you're seeing this message, it means that your browser cannot find this page's style/presentation instructions -- or possibly that you are using a browser that does not support current Web standards. Find out more about why this message is appearing, and what you can do to make your experience of our site the best it can be.

Science 16 April 1999:
Vol. 284. no. 5413, p. 415
DOI: 10.1126/science.284.5413.415
Prev | Table of Contents | Next

News of the Week

MICROBIOLOGY:
Giant Sulfur-Eating Microbe Found

Bernice Wuethrich

In the sediment below the waters off Namibia, scientists have found a giant new species of bacterium, the world's largest, that grows as a string of pearly white globules. As reported on page 493, cells of Thiomargarita namibiensis, the "Sulfur pearl of Namibia," reach three-quarters of a millimeter in diameter--100 times larger than that of the average bacterium. This oddball microbe consumes both sulfide and nitrate; researchers note that such bacteria might one day help clean up coastal waters that have been polluted by excess nitrates from agricultural runoff.

Read the Full Text

To Advertise     Find Products

Science. ISSN 0036-8075 (print), 1095-9203 (online)