Collaborative Research: Integration of Deep Ocean Benthic Sampler Technology with Microbial Biogeochemistry of Methane Seeps and Isolation of Piezophilic Deep-Sea Sediment Microbes

细菌和古细菌占地球上生物量的一半，并推动主要的生物地球化学循环，因为它们有能力催化广泛的化学反应。它们构成了各种生态系统的基础，然而我们对微生物群落在许多这些环境中的功能的理解仍然有限。对于深海沉积物来说尤其如此，深海沉积物中有很大一部分微生物生物圈存在于较高的静水压力（高达110兆帕；1086大气压）和低温下。这阻止了许多（如果不是大多数）来自这些环境的微生物在实验室中培养，这表明我们只触及了居住在这些环境中的微生物群落的代谢潜力和生理多样性的表面。从生物地球化学的角度来看，静水压力也可以显著影响微生物生态系统内的化学梯度，特别是在含天然气和天然气水合物的深海沉积物中。从这些环境中保存沉积物样品是一项特别的挑战，因为采样和提取之间的时间可能长达数小时，压力、温度的变化会导致大量的排气，破坏提取的沉积物样品的结构完整性，并改变所含微生物群落的组成和活性。深海底栖生物取样器（DOBS）在深海微生物生态学和生物地球化学领域具有独特的能力，能够获得无污染的核心，并在回收到船上时保持原位压力和温度条件。π吗?我们建议将深海底栖取样器（DOBS）发展成为一种常规仪器，可以被海洋学界用来获取在原位条件下保持原状的沉积物岩心，用于生物地球化学和微生物学分析。更广泛的影响：这是一项新技术，引起了来自多个科学领域的广泛研究人员的兴趣。所获得的知识不会只存在于一个特定的科学家群体中，而是会引起各种各样的科学家以及公众的兴趣。考虑到深海是地球上最大的生态系统，目前我们对深海栖息地的了解非常有限。作者对包括女性和少数民族在内的本科生和研究生的教育项目非常关注。这一激动人心的科学将得到广泛的公众宣传。

Bacteria and archaea account for half the biomass on Earth and drive major biogeochemical cycles, due to their ability to catalyze a broad spectrum of chemical reactions. They form the basis of various ecosystems, yet our understanding of the functioning of the microbial communities in many of these environments is still limited.This is particularly true for deep ocean sediments, which harbor a significant portion of the microbial biosphere existing under elevated hydrostatic pressure (up to 110 MPa; 1086 atm) and low temperatures. This prevents many, if not most microorganisms from these environments from being cultured in the laboratory, suggesting that we have only scratched the surface of the metabolic potential and the extent of physiological diversity of the microbial communities inhabiting these environments. From a biogeochemical standpoint, hydrostatic pressure can also dramatically influence chemical gradients within microbial ecosystems, in particular in gas- and gas-hydrate bearing deep-sea sediments. Preservation of sediment samples from these environments is a particular challenge in that the time between sampling and retrieval can be hours and changes in pressure, temperature can result in substantial out-gassing that destroys the structural integrity of the retrieved sediment sample as well as changes the composition and activity of the contained microbial communities. The Deep Ocean Benthic Sampler (DOBS) possesses a capability that is unique to the fields of deep-sea microbial ecology and biogeochemistry, the ability to obtain a contamination-free core and preserve in situ conditions of pressure and temperature upon retrieval to the ship. The PI?s propose to develop Deep Ocean Benthic Sampler (DOBS) into a routine instrument that can be used by the oceanographic community to obtain undisturbed sediment cores maintained under in situ conditions for biogeochemical and microbiological analyses.Broader Impacts: This is a novel technology that is of interest for a broad range of researchers from several fields of science. The knowledge gain will not remain in a distinct community of scientists but will be of interest for a wide variety of scientists as well as or the public. Given that the deep sea is the largest ecosystem on earth, our knowledge about deep sea habitats is very limited at present. The authors take good care of educational programs for undergraduate and graduate students including females and minorities. Ample public outreach of the exciting science will be achieved.