CAREER: Analysis of Bacterial Catabolism of Plant Biomass- A Phenomenon with Special Relevance to Environmental Carbon Cycling and Alternative Energy

地球上的生命依赖于微生物对植物生物量的消耗。虽然土壤微生物降解和消耗大量的植物生物质，我们知道的很少，他们是如何做到这一点，这是一个重要的研究过程，提高对代谢的理解可能会导致从低成本和丰富的植物生物质生产高价值的化学品和/或燃料的策略。这个CAREER项目的重点是阐明细菌消耗植物生物质的机制。大多数已发表的关于植物生物质消耗的研究都集中在高等微生物（真菌）上，这个以细菌为重点的研究项目将为我们目前对微生物代谢的理解提供有趣和有用的对应点。更广泛的影响这个研究项目将提供教育和培训的机会，研究生和本科生谁是与主要研究者的工作。在布朗大学独立工作的前四年，PI培养了六名研究生和二十名本科生。同样数量的受训人员将参与这一项目。除了布朗大学的活动外，该项目的一个组成部分是与普罗维登斯、罗得岛和布朗大学赞助的暑期项目的高中教师和种族多样化的学生建立研究/教育伙伴关系。首席研究员还与他的阿尔马母校莫尔豪斯学院（Morehouse College）建立了伙伴关系，莫尔豪斯学院是美国唯一一所全男性、历史上的黑人学院，让更多来自代表性不足群体的个人参与研究项目。这种伙伴关系包括每年前往莫尔豪斯学院进行辅导活动，并为莫尔豪斯学生提供夏季在布朗大学进行研究的机会。除了培训未来的科学家外，该项目的外联活动还将提高公众的科学意识。该项目的研究结果将有助于环境科学和开发新的替代能源技术。

Life on Earth depends on the consumption of plant biomass by microorganisms. While soil-dwelling microorganisms degrade and consume tremendous amounts of plant biomass, we know little about how they do it. This is an important process for study, and an improved understanding of the metabolism could lead to strategies for the production of high value chemicals and/or fuels from low cost and abundant plant biomass. This CAREER project is focused on elucidating mechanisms of plant biomass consumption by bacteria. Most of the published research on plant biomass consumption has been focused on higher microorganisms (fungi), and this bacterial-focused research project will provide interesting and useful counterpoints to our current understanding of microbial metabolism. Broader impactsThis research project will provide educational and training opportunities for graduate students and undergraduates who are working with the principal investigator. In the first four years of his independent career at Brown University, the PI trained six graduate students and twenty undergraduates. Similar numbers of trainees will be involved with this project. Beyond the activities at Brown, an integral component of the project is a research/education partnership with teachers and ethnically diverse students at high schools in Providence, Rhode Island and in Brown University-sponsored summer programs. The principal investigator has also formed a partnership with his alma mater, Morehouse College, America's only all male, historically black college to involve additional individuals from under-represented groups in the research project. This partnership involves annual trips to Morehouse College for mentoring activities and opportunities for Morehouse students to carry out research at Brown University during the summers. In addition to training future scientists, the outreach activities in this project will enhance public awareness of science. The findings of the project will contribute to environmental science and the development of new alternative energy technologies.