RII Track-1: Linking Microbial Life to Ecosystem Services Across Wyoming's Dynamic Landscape

非技术描述微生物在土壤和水环境中无处不在且数量丰富。一茶匙土壤可能含有超过10亿个细菌，分属于数千个不同的物种。这些生物在循环营养物质、分解有机物和决定人类活动释放的污染物的命运方面发挥着至关重要的作用。该项目将从怀俄明州数以千计的地点收集微生物样本，这些地点在当地气候、土地使用和植物生活方面存在差异。将对样本进行分析，以更好地了解微生物在环境中的作用及其对降水、土壤性质和土地利用变化的反应。物种组成和与生态系统的生态关系将使用DNA、RNA和蛋白质测序来确定。统计方法将被用来揭示微生物与整个生态系统如何运作之间的关系。研究结果将有助于预测不同地区将如何应对环境干扰，并为政策制定者提供更好地管理自然资源的工具。该项目还将培训工人如何处理此类研究产生的海量数据；这些技能将被转移到怀俄明州的许多经济部门。对美洲原住民、拉丁裔和听力障碍学生的外展工作将促进在STEM领域接受培训的劳动力的多样化。该项目的总体目标是促进对土壤和淡水微生物群的基于过程的了解，在怀俄明州发展尖端的数据科学培训和研发能力，并将怀俄明大学定位为微生物生态学和数据科学的全国领先者。为了确定决定微生物分布的因果因素，将收集和处理超过19000个与土壤、水和植物相关的微生物样本，利用全州存在的环境梯度。样本将使用各种不同的？经济学？(基因组、转录组、蛋白质组、代谢组)和生物地球化学技术，包括酶分析和稳定同位素探测。微生物生命和生态后果之间的关系将通过统计和实验手段进行建模和检验。对设备基础设施的投资，对不同学生和博士后的跨学科培训，以及新教师的招聘，都将增强怀俄明州的研究能力。对数据科学培训的关注将服务于怀俄明州的技术劳动力需求，并使该州经济受益。

Non-technical DescriptionMicrobial organisms are ubiquitous and abundant in soil and aquatic environments. One teaspoon of soil may contain over a billion bacteria, belonging to thousands of distinct species. These organisms play essential roles in cycling nutrients, decomposing organic matter, and determining the fate of pollutants released by human activities. This project will collect samples of microbes from thousands of sites across Wyoming that differ in their local climate, land use, and plant life. The samples will be analyzed to better understand the environmental roles of the microbes and their responses to changes in precipitation, soil properties, and land use. Species composition and ecological relationships to the ecosystem will be determined using DNA, RNA, and protein sequencing. Statistical methods will be used to uncover the relationships between microbes and how the overall ecosystems function. The results will help predict how different regions will respond to environmental disturbances and provide policy makers tools to better manage natural resources. The project will also train workers in how to handle the huge volumes of data generated by such research; these skills will be transferrable to many sectors of the Wyoming economy. Outreach efforts to Native American, Latino, and hearing-impaired students will promote diversification of the workforce trained in STEM fields.Technical Description The overarching aims of this project are to advance process-based understanding of soil and freshwater microbiomes, to develop cutting-edge data-science training and research and development capacity in Wyoming, and to position the University of Wyoming as a national leader in microbial ecology and data science. To define the causal factors that determine microbial distributions, over nineteen thousand samples of soil-, water-, and plant-associated microbes will be collected and processed, taking advantage of environmental gradients that exist across the state. Samples will be studied using a variety of ?omic? (genomic, transcriptomic, proteomic, metabolomic) and biogeochemical technologies, including enzymatic assays and stable isotope probing. Relationships between microbial life and ecological consequences will be modeled and tested by statistical and experimental means. Investments in equipment infrastructure, inter-disciplinary training for diverse students and postdocs, and new faculty hires will enhance the research capacity of Wyoming. The focus on data science training will serve the technology workforce needs of Wyoming and benefit the state economy.