GCR: Microbial Response to a Changing Planet: The Role of Microbes in Mineral Precipitation Resulting in Exceptional Fossil Preservation and CO2 Sequestration

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This Growing Convergence Research project will test the overarching hypotheses that exceptional preservation of organic material was influenced, in part, by microbially mediated, rapid deposition of carbonate minerals in response to elevated atmospheric pCO2, and that the mechanisms by which these microbes sequestered atmospheric CO2 as carbonate minerals can be discerned and harnessed to mitigate rising atmospheric concentrations of this greenhouse gas. To effectively study these hypotheses, a research team spanning microbiology, proteomics, paleoimmunology, sedimentology/geochemistry, paleontology, and engineering was assembled. The results of this project will enhance understanding of: (i) mechanisms of exceptional preservation and their potential application, (ii) the relationship between CO2 levels and microbial evolution, (iii) characterization of environments under greenhouse/high-pCO2 conditions, and iv) microbial participation in carbon sequestration. Microbial mechanisms investigated within this proposed work may provide a route for the development of economical and scalable methods to sequester CO2.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.