Carbon isotopic heterogeneity in modern bacterioplankton: Model systems for understanding paleoenvironmental signatures.

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This award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5).Through research in the past two decades, the science community has seen a revolution in the understanding of marine microbial diversity. Molecular sequencing has revealed several previously unknown major groups of Bacteria and Archaea, yet total marine microbial diversity exceeds current species estimates. Preliminary research from Harvard University shows a systematic difference in the carbon isotope signature between bacterioplankton and eukaryote plankton, such that modern bacterioplankton show evidence of a carbon isotope shift. By sampling bacterioplankton from diverse regions of the surface ocean, researchers from Harvard University will examine patterns of carbon isotope distribution in marine surface bacterioplankton to identify the metabolic differences among microbial communities of various surface water types. Results from this research will enhance the current understanding of upper ocean carbon recycling and the action of the biological pump. In addition this research may identify and refine potential differences between export of microbial biomass in oligotrophic open ocean environments and organic-rich continental margin environments. This information could allow for scientist to understand the implications of past and future warm climates on marine microbial diversity. This research will provide support for a postdoctoral researcher, as well as two graduate students. The PIs involved in this project will also utilize the results to host a community outreach event in collaboration with the Harvard University Microbial Sciences Initiative.