SGER: Hydrogenase activity and microbial metabolism of the deep biosphere

深海沉积物中生物圈研究的一个关键问题是微生物代谢活动普遍较低，这使得传统技术在检测微生物方面相对无效。基于对氢气是厌氧微生物过程中普遍存在的中间产物的认识，本研究项目将开发一种新的基于氢化酶（H2ase）的技术来测量海洋沉积物中这种酶的活性，并将校正该技术用于测量深海钻井中经常遇到的缺氧沉积物中的微生物代谢率。如果成功，研究人员设计的方法将在深部生物圈的IODP研究和缺氧海洋沉积物的常规岩心研究中得到直接和广泛的应用。该计划的目标直接涉及IODP长期科学计划的生物圈部分。这项研究也有可能扩大对维持生命所需的最低能量和深层生物圈中生命的环境限制的理解。该项目通过培养一名博士后研究员和本科生研究员的参与，支持教育和人力资源开发。

A critical problem for the study of the biosphere in deep marine sediments is the pervasively low level of microbial metabolic activity that renders conventional techniques relatively ineffective for detecting microbes. Based on the recognition that H2 is a ubiquitous intermediate product of anaerobic microbial processes, this research program will develop a new hydrogenase(H2ase)-based technique to measure the activity of this enzyme in marine sediments and will calibrate the technique for application to measuring microbial metabolic rates in anoxic sediments like those often encountered during deep ocean drilling. If successful, the methods devised by the researchers will find immediate and wide-ranging application in IODP studies of the deep biosphere and in studies of conventional cores from anoxic marine sediments. The goals of the program directly address the biosphere component of the IODP long-range science plan. The research also has the potential for expanding understanding of the minimum energy required to sustain life and the environmental limits of life in the deep biosphere. The program supports education and human resource development through training of a postdoctoral researcher and involvement of undergraduate research fellows.