URoL:EN: Understanding the rule of life facilitating the proliferation of toxic cyanobacterial benthic mats in flowing freshwaters

URoL:EN：了解促进有毒蓝藻底栖垫在流动淡水中增殖的生命规则

• 批准号: 2222322
• 负责人: Ramesh Goel
• 金额: $ 299.78万
• 依托单位: University of Utah
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2023
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2023-01-01 至 2027-12-31
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=2222322&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: URoL; EN; Understanding; rule; life

Rivers and streams make up less than 1 % of the total surface freshwater available on earth, but are of enormous ecological and societal significance. Recently, biofilm forming toxic cyanobacteria, commonly known as benthic harmful cyanobacterial blooms, have become widespread in many rivers and streams. These cyanobacteria produce toxins as secondary metabolites which are harmful to humans and other animals when consumed. Species from the benthic cyanobacterial genus Microcoleus (formerly Phormidium) can form thick mats in flowing freshwaters which produce cyanotoxins in spatial and temporal patterns that are challenging to predict. Microcoleus benthic mats have become widespread and exhibit intriguing emergent behavior. Toxic strains of Microcoleus co-exist with its non-toxic counterparts and other cyanobacteria. Many metabolic pathways of toxic Microcoleus species operate differently from conventional pathways of other cyanobacteria. Through a combination of laboratory and field scale testing using a suite of genomic and modeling tools, this project seeks to understand the spatial and temporal dynamics of Microcoleus and the rule of life controlling the dynamics and emergent behavior of Microcoleus genera leading to toxic benthic mats. The results are expected to open new opportunities in the ecological science of benthic toxic mats in freshwater streams and to be applicable to cyanobacterial bloom mitigation. This project will broaden participation and promote student training in environmental biology, data science, ecological engineering, chemistry, mathematical modeling and computer science with an emphasis on training students from underrepresented groups. Despite recent findings that toxic and non-toxic strains of Microcoleus synergize their metabolic efforts to facilitate each other during colonization, how nutrient concentrations, riverbed type, and other environmental factors play a role in the Emergent Rule of Life governing the colonization and toxin production in Microcoleus are not well understood. Therefore, the rule of life this project aims to investigate is how mat formation and toxin production by Microcoleus emerge from its interactions with its non-toxic counterparts and other coexisting bacteria in the benthic mats. The project will study (1) how within-mat species interactions and biogeochemical conditions facilitate Microcoleus growth and toxin production in low-nutrient streams, (2) the molecular mechanisms (e.g., gene expression level) by which toxic non-heterocytous (e.g., Microcoleus) and heterocytous cyanobacteria (diazotrophs able to fix atmospheric nitrogen gas, e.g., Anabaena) flourish in nitrogen and/or phosphorus deficient flowing waters and, (3) develop models to predict the occurrence and dynamics of toxic Microcoleus at river scales and quantify how cyanobacterial community dynamics and abiotic environmental conditions drive benthic cyanobacteria and toxin production over the growing season.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.

河流和溪流不到地球上淡水的总表面淡水的1％，但具有巨大的生态和社会意义。最近，形成有毒蓝细菌的生物膜，通常称为底栖有害的蓝细菌盛开，在许多河流和溪流中都广泛存在。这些蓝细菌将毒素作为次生代谢产物，对人类和其他动物有害。来自底栖蓝细菌属的物种（以前为phormidium）可以在流动的淡水中形成厚的垫子，在流动的淡水中产生蓝毒素，它们以空间和时间模式产生挑战性的空间和时间模式。底栖垫子已广泛，表现出有趣的新兴行为。 Microcoleus的有毒菌株与其无毒对应物和其他蓝细菌共存。许多有毒微弹性物种的代谢途径与其他蓝细菌的常规途径不同。通过使用一组基因组和建模工具进行实验室和现场尺度测试的结合，该项目旨在了解微弹力的空间和时间动力学以及控制微弹性属的动力学和新兴行为的生命规则，从而导致有毒骨髓垫。预计该结果将在淡水流的底栖有毒垫的生态科学上开放新的机会，并适用于缓解蓝细菌的生态学。该项目将扩大参与并促进学生在环境生物学，数据科学，生态工程，化学，数学建模和计算机科学方面的培训，重点是培训代表性不足的群体的学生。 尽管最近发现，微弹力的有毒和无毒菌株在定植期间协同促进彼此的代谢努力，但营养浓度，河床类型和其他环境因素如何在统治生命的新生规则中发挥作用，从而尚不清楚殖民和毒素生产的生命和毒素。因此，该项目旨在调查生命的规则是，微弹素与其与底栖垫中的无毒对应物和其他共存的细菌相互作用中产生垫料的形成和毒素。 The project will study (1) how within-mat species interactions and biogeochemical conditions facilitate Microcoleus growth and toxin production in low-nutrient streams, (2) the molecular mechanisms (e.g., gene expression level) by which toxic non-heterocytous (e.g., Microcoleus) and heterocytous cyanobacteria (diazotrophs able to fix atmospheric nitrogen gas,例如，anabaena）在氮和/或磷缺水中蓬勃发展；通过基金会的智力优点和更广泛的影响评估标准通过评估来支持。