Ecology of Hot Spring Microbial Mat Communities: Causes and Importance of Biodiversity

[摘要]温泉微生物垫区生态：生物多样性的成因及重要性。本研究的目的是确定引起植物和动物物种进化的相同力量是否也引起了微生物物种的进化。我们利用分子方法检测天然地热环境中迄今未被识别的微生物，为了解微生物物种的生物多样性、生态学和进化提供模型系统。我们将研究在黄石国家公园温泉中发现的细菌是否像加拉帕戈斯雀一样，通过适应特定的环境特征（如温度、光线、pH值、硫化物）而进化，以及地理上分开的温泉中的细菌是否构成不同的物种（如不同大陆上不会飞的鸟类）。这些发现将帮助我们定义细菌种类，并获得对其生态重要性和潜在生物技术应用的恢复的预测性知识。尽管我们广泛使用抗生素等微生物产品，但科学已知的微生物种类不到1%。

ABSTRACT 97-08136 Ward Ecology of hot spring microbial mat communities: Causes and importance of biodiversity. The objective of this research is to determine whether the same forces that caused the evolution of plant and animal species also caused the evolution of microbial species. We use molecular methods to detect heretofore unrecognized microorganisms in natural geothermal environments, which serve as model systems for understanding the biodiversity, ecology and evolution of microbial species. We will study whether the bacteria we have detected in Yellowstone National Park hot springs evolved-like Galapagos finches-by adapting to specific environmental features (e.g., temperature, light, pH, sulfide), and whether bacteria in geographically separated hot springs constitute different species (like flightless birds on different continents). These findings will help us define what bacterial species are, and gain a predictive knowledge of their ecological importance and of their recovery for potential biotechnological use. Despite out extensive use of microbial products such as antibiotics, fewer than 1% of the species of microorganisms are known to science.