Collaborative Research: Microbial Community Assembly in Coastal Waters of the Western Antarctic Peninsula

在过去的50年里，西南极半岛经历了前所未有的变暖和海冰覆盖的变化。这些变化如何影响海洋微生物群落，以及随后生物群的这些变化可能如何影响表层水域的碳循环尚不清楚。这项工作将研究这些生态系统水平的变化如何影响微生物群落的结构和功能。这项研究将使用现代元基因组学和转录组学方法来检验这样一种假设，即从春季浮游植物水华中引入有机物会推动微生物群落的更替。这项研究将在两个长期监测点：北部的Palmer站和南部的Rothera站，描述从南半球冬季的过渡过程中细菌和古生物的演替模式。该项目还将包括微宇宙培养，以直接评估添加有机碳和融化的海冰对微生物群落结构和功能的影响。这项工作的结果将使人们更广泛地了解稀有和丰富的微生物在WAP地区碳循环中的作用，以及这些群落可能如何因应气候变化而在结构和功能上发生变化。结果将通过出版物以及在国家和国际会议上的发言广泛传播。这项研究将为研究生和本科生提供培训机会，并将加强与英国南极调查局的国际合作。

The Western Antarctic Peninsula (WAP) has experienced unprecedented warming and shifts in sea ice cover over the past fifty years. How these changes impact marine microbial communities, and subsequently how these shifts in the biota may affect the carbon cycle in surface waters is unknown. This work will examine how these ecosystem-level changes affect microbial community structure and function. This research will use modern metagenomic and transcriptomic approaches to test the hypothesis that the introduction of organic matter from spring phytoplankton blooms drives turnover in microbial communities. This research will characterize patterns in bacterial and archaeal succession during the transition from the austral winter at two long-term monitoring sites: Palmer Station in the north and Rothera Station in the south. This project will also include microcosm incubations to directly assess the effects of additions of organic carbon and melted sea ice on microbial community structure and function. The results of this work will provide a broader understanding of the roles of both rare and abundant microorganisms in carbon cycling within the WAP region, and how these communities may shift in structure and function in response to climate change. Results will be widely disseminated through publications as well as through presentations at national and international meetings. The research will provide training opportunities for both graduate and undergraduate students and will enhance international collaborations with the British Antarctic Survey.