Collaborative Research: Eurythermal Adaptations to an Extreme Environment by the Symbionts of the Hydrothermal Vent Polychaete, Alvinella Pompejana

细菌和真核宿主之间的共生关系是海洋系统的一个突出特征。无论细菌是寄生在宿主外部还是内共生，这种关联的作用通常仍然知之甚少。这种缺乏理解的部分原因是，我们无法培养出大多数脱离宿主的共生体。即使在可能进行培养的情况下，在实验室中测量的细菌的生理能力也不太可能真正代表自然生态系统中的生理能力。分子遗传学方法有能力解决这些细菌的代谢潜力，从而推断它们在关联中的功能。拟议的研究旨在了解与管栖多毛类（Alvinella pompejana）相关的多种表观细菌群落的主要成员的代谢潜力。这种联系存在于深海热液喷口生物群落中，其特征是重金属浓度高，并且是迄今为止所描述的生物所经历的最陡的热梯度。

Symbiotic associations between bacteria and eukaryotic hosts are a prominent feature in marine systems. Whether the bacteria reside external to the host or endosymbiotically, the role of the association often remains poorly understood. This lack of understanding, in part, stems from our inability to cultivate the majority of these symbionts free from their host. Even in instances where cultivation is possible, it is unlikely that the physiological capacities of bacteria measured in the laboratory truly represnt those in the natural ecosysem. Molecular genetic approaches have the capability to resolve the metabolic potential of these bacteria and thereby infer their function in the association. The proposed research seeks to understand the metabolic potential of the primary members of a diverse epibiotic bacterial community found associated with the tube-dwelling polychaete, Alvinella pompejana. This association exists in a deep-sea hydrothermal vent biotope characterized by high concentrations of heavy metals and the steepest thermal gradient experienced by an organism yet described.