Research Starter Grant

一项研究启动补助金已授予斯科特R博士。米勒的蒙大拿大学，以协助PI的建立一个独立的研究计划，在微生物生态学和进化。 该奖项将使PI能够采购所需的材料和用品，以建立在以前支持的调查，解决有关自然界微生物多样性的起源和分布的关键问题。 人口遗传，生理和现场生态的方法将被整合，以测试的想法如何遗传和生理变异是分布在孤立的微生物种群内和之间，使用蓝藻Mastigocladus，发现世界各地的地理上不同的温泉“岛屿”的栖息地，作为一个自然的实验系统。 将完成三个具体项目：（1）从世界各地收集的Mastigocladus实验室分离物中收集的几个代谢基因的DNA序列数据将通过最近开发的谱系学方法进行分析，以评估特定代谢途径的局部自然选择、迁移的地理障碍和遗传重组在形成Mastigocladus多样性中的各自作用;（2）生理学实验将用于确定区分先前研究中确定的Mastigocladus的六个主要进化“部落”的生态差异;（3）环境温度与种群内鞭枝藻遗传变异之间的假设关联将被沿着一个井-通过分析从不同温度下生长的细胞中收集的DNA序列数据的模式，研究了温泉的温度梯度。了解形成地球上微生物多样性分布的进化，人口和地理因素是微生物生态学的一个关键目标。 通过采取多种方法相结合，明确解决自然选择，机会和地理的贡献，在Mastigocladus的遗传和生态多样性的全球模式，这项研究将提供新的见解微生物的多样性的起源，以及如何多样性从一个地方移动到另一个地方。

A research starter grant has been awarded to Dr. Scott R. Miller of The University of Montana to assist the PI's establishment of an independent research program in microbial ecology and evolution. This award will enable the PI to procure materials and supplies required to build upon previously supported investigations that address key issues regarding the origins and distribution of microbial diversity in nature. Population genetic, physiological and field ecological approaches will be integrated in order to test ideas about how genetic and physiological variation is distributed within and among isolated microbial populations, using the cyanobacterium Mastigocladus, found worldwide in geographically disparate hot spring "island" habitats, as a natural experimental system. Three specific projects will be completed: (1) DNA sequence data collected for several metabolic genes from Mastigocladus laboratory isolates collected from around the world will be analyzed by recently developed genealogical methods in order to evaluate the respective roles of localized natural selection on specific metabolic pathways, geographic barriers to migration, and genetic recombination in shaping Mastigocladus diversity; (2) physiological experiments will be used to determine the ecological differences that distinguish the six major evolutionary "tribes" of Mastigocladus identified in previous studies; (3) the hypothesized association between environmental temperature and genetic variation of Mastigocladus within a population will be tested along a well-studied hot spring thermal gradient by analyzing patterns of DNA sequence data collected from cells growing at different temperatures.Understanding the evolutionary, demographic and geographical factors that shape the distribution of microbial diversity on the planet is a key goal of microbial ecology. By taking a combination of approaches to explicitly address the contributions of natural selection, chance and geography to the global patterns of genetic and ecological diversity in Mastigocladus, this study will provide new insights into the origins of the diversity of microorganisms and how that diversity moves from one place to another.