Microbial loop

The microbial loop describes a trophic pathway in the marine microbial food web where dissolved organic carbon (DOC) is returned to higher trophic levels via its incorporation into bacterial biomass, and then coupled with the classic food chain formed by phytoplankton-zooplankton-nekton. The term microbial loop was coined by Azam et al. (Fenchel 2008) to include the role played by bacteria in the carbon and nutrient cycles of the marine environment.