Ocean Planet Exploration: Methane-powered Sea Spiders
Bianca Dal Bó, a biology major from Berkeley, has spent the last five years delving into the mysteries of deep-sea life. Guided by Professor of Biology Shana Goffredi, she researches invertebrates living in the unique ecosystem of the Del Mar methane seep off the Southern California coast—and now, she’s bringing that research to a wider audience.
Since graduating from Oxy, Dal Bó has been working in a post-baccalaureate program, conducting cancer research at USC while preparing to apply to Ph.D. programs in ecology. Yet her collaboration with Goffredi has continued, culminating in Dal Bó’s latest achievement: lead authorship on a scientific paper published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), one of the world’s most-cited and prestigious multidisciplinary journals.
Ruby Siehl ’24 and Bianca Dal Bó ’24 in the main lab on board the R/V Atlantis. This was the researchers’ home away from home for 2 weeks while they conducted all their research. In just a few days while the ship is in port, the researchers essentially turn a large empty room into a functioning biology lab. — Occidental College
“While many faculty at Oxy endeavor to publish with their students, it is rare that the student is the first author on the manuscript,” Goffredi explains. “This requires a special student—creative, curious, and critical of their own understanding and the ways in which their discoveries add to a body of knowledge. Bianca has all of these traits.”
The article—titled “Methane-powered sea spiders: Diverse, epibiotic methanotrophs serve as a novel source of nutrition for deep-sea methane seep Sericosura”—centers on ocean-dwelling spiders near methane seeps along the Pacific Coast that cultivate and consume bacteria on their own exoskeletons. Similar bacterial communities were identified in egg sacs carried by male sea spiders, suggesting that the microbes are transmitted between generations.
“Having PNAS recognize the significance of these findings makes me hopeful that we will reach broad audiences,” Dal Bó says. “I’m grateful to contribute to the literature, and am looking forward to being cited in future work and receiving questions about the study. Writing my first manuscript as an undergrad and learning that process has been invaluable as I continue my career in academia.”
The manipulator arm of one of the submersibles collects a carbonate rock with animals attached to it, some of which are sea spiders. Carbonates are unique substrates in these deep-sea ecosystems that give a sense of the fact that there is high methane in the area. This rock eventually gets put into a temperature-controlled container on the front of the submersible, and it is brought back to the surface, where the researchers are able to access the samples. — Occidental College
The symbiotic relationship between animals and methane-oxidizing microbes in these remote ecosystems are not well-studied, highlighting the importance of this research. This work also led to the discovery of three new species of sea spider. The research helps us better understand the biodiversity on our planet, which is crucial, Goffredi says.
“Our study aimed to examine the ways in which often overlooked animals might take advantage of novel energy sources, such as methane. While the deep sea feels far away, all organisms are interconnected, and the processes in one ecosystem affect another.”
From curious first-year to deep-sea researcher
Dal Bó wasn’t sure that she would major in biology when she first got to Oxy, but she loved Goffredi’s zoology class and offered to TA for her. Eventually, Goffredi invited Dal Bó to join her Symbioxy lab to study animal-bacteria partnerships and she “never looked back.”
As a sophomore, Dal Bó conducted research both on campus and abroad in Costa Rica, where she really caught the symbiosis research bug (along with actual bugs). In her junior year, Dal Bó was named an Occidental College Science Scholar, which granted her financial support to continue her undergraduate research as well as present at two conferences: the 2024 Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology and the 2023 Southern California Conference for Undergraduate Research.
Head into open waters with Bianca Dal Bó ’24 and Ruby Siehl ’24, two Occidental College undergraduate student researchers who spent the summer of 2023 onboard the Atlantis research vessel with Professor of Biology Shana Goffredi. The expedition was funded by the National Science Foundation. — Occidental College
In Summer 2023, Dal Bó and Ruby Siehl ’24 were asked to join a 20-member research team, co-led by Goffredi, as it undertook a two-week oceanic expedition aboard the R/V Atlantis to study the symbiotic relationships between invertebrates and microbes at deep-sea methane seeps. With the help of the human-occupied submersible Alvin, the team was able to collect and examine sea spiders living almost 1,000 meters below the surface, work that ultimately led to her PNAS publication.
“I had seen animal samples in preservatives in the lab for so long, so it was beautiful to finally see them moving around in their natural habitat,” Dal Bó says. “It made me feel all the more connected to my project and these fascinating ecosystems.”
Small college, big impact: the power of Oxy science
Goffredi notes that when young people want to pursue science as a career, small liberal arts colleges don’t necessarily come to mind. But there are incredible opportunities available in terms of mentorship, personalized support, and professional collaborations.
“At Oxy, one can conduct research with faculty that are making important contributions to their disciplines,” Goffredi says. “I would argue that this is an even better STEM education than at a larger institution, given the close student-mentor pairs that are formed.”
This also speaks to the larger theme of collaboration within the sciences. “None of us work in isolation, and that is what makes it most fun and rewarding,” Goffredi says. “Learning from other scientists and incorporating diverse perspectives enhances my own research.”
In turn, Dal Bó emphasizes her immense gratitude to Goffredi. “[All of this] is thanks to me being able to build close relationships in the biology department and having Dr. Goffredi root for me. I have learned more from her than I think she knows, and her support defined my Oxy career and changed my life.
“Her work and mentorship are really the reason that we find ourselves with such a great publication now.”
From left: Shana Goffredi, Bianca Dal Bó ’24, and Ruby Siehl ’24 in front of the human-occupied deep-sea exploration vehicle Alvin on the R/V Atlantis. Ship and submersible access was made available through funding by the National Science Foundation and NOAA.
Astrobiology, Oceanography,
