CAREER: Implications of phytoplankton trait adaptation for biogeochemical cycling

职业：浮游植物性状适应对生物地球化学循环的影响

• 批准号: 2044852
• 负责人: Naomi Levine
• 金额: $ 99.98万
• 依托单位: University of Southern California
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Continuing Grant
• 财政年份: 2021
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2021-04-01 至 2026-03-31
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2044852&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: CAREER; Implications; phytoplankton; trait; adaptation

Photosynthetic microbes (phytoplankton) are vitally important for maintaining a habitable planet. These tiny organisms contribute approximately half of global photosynthesis, and form the base of the marine food web -- thereby supporting global fisheries and other marine ecosystem services. Understanding how these essential microbes will evolve as the oceans change is essential for predicting future shifts in marine ecosystem dynamics, global carbon cycling and climate. However, we still lack fundamental knowledge about how phytoplankton may adapt to future environmental changes. In addition, the representation of phytoplankton evolution has not yet been explicitly included in global climate models. As a result, our predictions of future carbon cycling and climate-feedbacks do not include this important mechanism (evolution) that will alter marine ecosystem dynamics. This project is developing and testing new hypotheses related to phytoplankton adaptation using a new framework that combines evolutionary theory with ecological and physical ocean models. This project investigates how phytoplankton community dynamics will be altered by adaptation in a changing ocean and the implications of these changes on ocean carbon cycling. In this age of big data, it is imperative that we provide our students with a deeper, more rigorous foundation in data analysis and experience with computational tools. This project is generating a set of computational modules aimed at increasing the quantitative curriculum provided to environmental studies students at both the undergraduate and K-12 level. This curriculum is being broadly distributed using online platforms with particular focus on providing access and training to Minority Serving Institutions. A key aim of this project is to increase quantitative curriculum for under-represented groups with the ultimate goal of increasing representation in STEM fields.This project is providing new insights into phytoplankton trait adaptation in a dynamic environment by combining an evolutionary model of trait adaptation with a mechanistic, trait-based quota model for phytoplankton dynamics. By explicitly validating the model with physiology data from published experimental evolution studies and then applying the model to realistic environmental fluctuations (temperature, light and nutrient limitation) from a global circulation model, this study is scaling-up the impact of phytoplankton adaptation to the global scale. Specifically, this project is generating new hypotheses about the types of trait changes that might result from adaptation under multi-stressor selective pressure, constraining the relevant timescales for marine phytoplankton adaptation, and creating new understanding of the implications of phytoplankton adaptation for carbon cycling and ecosystem dynamics. The project is creating a novel framework for understanding the complex multi-dimensional problem of phytoplankton trait adaptation to multi-stressors and new understanding of how carbon cycling might change in the future.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.

光合微生物（浮游植物）对于维持一个可居住的星球至关重要。这些微小生物贡献了全球光合作用的大约一半，构成了海洋食物网的基础，从而支持全球渔业和其他海洋生态系统服务。了解这些基本微生物如何随着海洋变化而演变，对于预测海洋生态系统动态，全球碳循环和气候的未来变化至关重要。然而，我们仍然缺乏关于浮游植物如何适应未来环境变化的基本知识。此外，浮游植物演化的代表性尚未明确纳入全球气候模式。因此，我们对未来碳循环和气候反馈的预测并不包括这一将改变海洋生态系统动态的重要机制（进化）。该项目正在利用一个将进化理论与生态和物理海洋模型相结合的新框架，发展和检验与浮游植物适应有关的新假设。该项目研究浮游植物群落动态如何通过适应不断变化的海洋而改变，以及这些变化对海洋碳循环的影响。在这个大数据时代，我们必须为学生提供更深入，更严格的数据分析基础和计算工具经验。 该项目正在生成一套计算模块，旨在增加向本科和K-12级别的环境研究学生提供的定量课程。这一课程正在利用在线平台广泛传播，特别侧重于为少数群体服务机构提供机会和培训。该项目的一个主要目的是增加代表性不足的群体的定量课程，最终目标是增加在STEM领域的代表性。该项目通过将性状适应的进化模型与浮游植物动态的基于性状的配额模型相结合，为浮游植物性状适应提供新的见解。通过明确验证该模型与生理数据从已发表的实验进化研究，然后将该模型应用于现实的环境波动（温度，光照和营养限制）从全球环流模型，这项研究是按比例放大的影响浮游植物适应全球规模。具体而言，该项目正在产生新的假设类型的性状变化，可能会导致适应多压力选择压力下，限制海洋浮游植物适应的相关时间尺度，并创造新的理解浮游植物适应碳循环和生态系统动态的影响。该项目正在创建一个新的框架，以了解浮游植物特性适应多种压力的复杂多维问题，并对未来碳循环可能如何变化有了新的认识。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并被认为值得通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估来支持。