OCE-PRF Track 1: Dissecting the physiological and molecular responses of marine picoeukaryotes to the interactive effects of P deficiency and ocean acidification

微真核生物是一类生态上重要但研究不足的微藻浮游植物，它们对海洋初级生产力和全球碳循环有重要贡献。在这项博士后研究项目中，这位研究员将研究三种微真核生物对二氧化碳升高和营养可获得性变化的生理和分子反应。这是一个重要而及时的专题，有助于更好地了解海洋生态系统对全球气候变化的反应。这项为期两年的奖学金由毕格罗海洋科学实验室的迈克尔·洛马斯主持，将促进这位在微生物研究方面拥有强大背景的研究员的职业生涯，这是一个在海洋学中日益重要的领域。更广泛的参与活动包括教育和向自索马里内战以来居住在缅因州的当地索马里社区的年轻人进行外联。在这个项目中，研究员将研究微单胞菌、金黄色葡萄球菌和普拉辛巴斯菌，这些微核生物通常存在于营养稀少的地区，对代表未来海洋的条件，特别是海洋酸化和磷限制的反应。生理测量和全细胞转录图谱将被用来描述这一生态上重要的微藻浮游植物群体对磷有效性变化和环境二氧化碳上升的细胞反应。此外，将使用物种特有的分子分析方法在野外样本中调查细胞丰度和基因表达模式，以了解自然微真核生物种群如何对环境条件下的区域梯度做出反应。这项研究将深入了解气候变化如何影响微真核生物的生长，从而影响少营养环带的碳循环。有关速率过程和潜在细胞机制的数据和信息对于未来开发生态驱动的、可预测的海洋生态系统模型至关重要。

Picoeukaryotes are an ecologically important, but understudied group of picophytoplankton that are significant contributors to oceanic primary production and global carbon cycling. In this postdoctoral research project, the fellow will examine the physiological and molecular response of three picoeukaryotes to elevated carbon dioxide and changes in nutrient availability. This is an important and timely topic for improved understanding of marine ecosystem responses to global climate changes. This two year fellowship hosted by Michael Lomas, Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences, will advance the career of the fellow who has strong background in microbial research, a field that is of increasing importance in oceanography. The broadening participation activities include education and outreach to youths from a local Somalian community residing in Maine since the Somalian civil war.In this project, the fellow will study the response of Micromonas pusilla, Ostreococcus tauri, and Bathycoccus prasinos, picoeukaryotes commonly found in oligotrophic regions, to conditions representative of future oceans, specifically ocean acidification and phosphorus limitation. Physiological measurements and whole-cell transcriptomic profiling will be used to characterize the cellular response of this ecologically important group of picophytoplankton to changes in phosphorus availability and rising ambient carbon dioxide. In addition, cell abundance and gene expression patterns will be investigated in field samples using species-specific molecular assays to understand how natural picoeukaryotic populations respond to regional gradients in environmental conditions. The study will provide insight into how climate change may impact picoeukaryote growth and thus carbon cycling in oligotrophic gyres. Data and information about rate processes and underlying cellular mechanisms are critical for future development of ecologically-driven, predictive ocean ecosystem models.