Net primary productivity (NPP) plays a pivotal role in the global carbon balance, but estimating the NPP of underwater habitats remains a challenging task. Seaweeds (marine macroalgae) form the largest and most productive underwater vegetated habitat on Earth. Yet, little is known about the distribution of their NPP at large spatial scales, despite more than 70 years of local-scale studies being scattered throughout the literature. We present a global dataset containing NPP records for 242 seaweed species at 419 individual sites distributed on all continents from the intertidal to 55 m depth. All records are standardized to annual aerial carbon production (g C m-2 yr-1) and are accompanied by detailed taxonomical and methodological information. The dataset presented here provides a basis for local, regional and global comparative studies of the NPP of underwater vegetation, and is pivotal for achieving a better understanding of the role seaweeds play in the global coastal carbon cycle.

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Mechanistic contributions of anaerobic microbiota to airway disease are poorly understood due to inherent limitations of existing laboratory models. To address this knowledge gap, we developed a co-culture approach that maintains an oxygen-limited apical epithelial microenvironment while host cells are oxygenated basolaterally. Reduced oxygen culture did not alter the physiology or gene expression of Calu-3 cells but sustained anaerobe-epithelial interactions for 24h without affecting bacterial or host cell viability. Anaerobe challenge led to increased expression of inflammatory marker genes and compromised integrity of apical mucins, leading to our hypothesis that anaerobe-host interactions prime the airways for chronic infection. Indeed, anaerobe pre-treatment of Calu-3 cells led to an increase in Pseudomonas aeruginosa colonization. This model system offers new insight into anaerobe-host interactions in airway disease pathophysiology and motivates further study of the lung, gut, and oral cavity, where etiological roles of anaerobes have been proposed but specific pathogenic mechanisms remain unclear.

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