Microbiome Productivity: investigating the photophysiology and productivity of microalgal biomes in coralline algal habitats

该项目利用了英国合作伙伴在大型和微型藻类分类、生态学和生理学方面的专业知识，与法国合作伙伴在使用高光谱成像和高分辨率荧光相结合进行样本单细胞分析方面进行了新的合作。主题将是生物工程珊瑚巨藻与这些巨藻叶内相关的表观和内生微藻生物群的组合。这是一项增值调查，扩大了由英国合作伙伴监督的NERC英国海洋酸化研究计划学生项目。珊瑚大型藻类是钙化生物，它们设计了一个三维栖息地，由许多内生和附生生物定居。这个群落的很大一部分是由光合作用的微藻组成的。这些都是重要的生物群，但关于群落结构的基本知识，或微藻和大型藻类之间的功能相关性或相互作用，人们知之甚少。因此，该项目旨在建立英国和法国合作伙伴之间的长期合作，调查生物群的两个光合作用组成部分，涉及群落结构、初级生产力和功能光生理学。PI和法国合作伙伴利用海草(Zostera物种)获得的初步试点数据表明，配对的高光谱成像和高分辨率荧光成像产生的光谱特征可以识别在Zostera上生长的附生群落的主要分类群。进一步的分析表明，这些数据与高分辨率荧光相结合，可以分析初级生产力、光合色素和功能光生理学(例如，下调调节、光适应等)。单个单细胞附生植物以及大型藻类叶的单个节段(膝间)。如果这被证明是正确的，那么这些方法的新颖配对将提供关于大型藻类、微藻以及两者之间相互作用的光生理学和生产力的超精细数据。这将极大地扩展我们对这些重要群落的宏观和微观组成部分的功能的理解，从而使我们能够在调查酸化和光诱导应激源或加强二氧化碳处理等应用于这些重要沿海生物的研究中的影响时，对光生理学数据进行更有见地的解释。

This project utilises the expertise of the UK partners regarding macro and microalgal taxonomy, ecology and physiology, in a novel collaboration with the French partners regarding single cell analysis of samples using the combination of Hyperspectral Imaging and high resolution fluorescence. The subject matter will be the combination of the bioengineer Coralline macroalgae and the epi and endo biotic microalgal biome associated within the fronds of these macroalgae. This is a value added investigation expanding upon a NERC UK Ocean Acidification research Programme studentship project supervised by the UK partners. Coralline macroalgae are calcifying organisms that engineer a 3-dimensional habitat colonised by many endobiotic and epibiotic organisms. A large part of this community is comprised of photosynthetic microalgae. These are important biomes, yet are extremely poorly understood with regard to basic knowledge of community structure, or the functional relevance or interaction of the microalgae and the macroalgae. This project therefore aims to establish a long term collaboration between the UK and French partners, investigating the two photosynthetic components of the biome with regard to community structure, primary productivity and functional photophysiology. Initial pilot data obtained by the PI and the French partners using seagrass (Zostera species) has indicated that paired hyperspectral imaging and high resolution fluorescence imaging produces spectral signatures that can identify the major taxa dominating the epiphytic community growing on the Zostera. Further analysis suggests that this data, paired with high resolution fluorescence may enable analysis of primary productivity, photosynthetic pigments and functional photophysiology (e.g. down regulation, photoacclimation etc.) of individual single cell epiphytes as well as individual segments (intergenicula) of the macroalgal frond. If this proves correct, then the novel pairing of these methods will provide ultra-fine scale data on the photophysiology and productivity of the macroalgae, the microalgae and the interaction between the two. This will greatly expand our understanding of the function of the macro and micro components of these important communities and hence enable a far more informed interpretation of photophysiological data when investigating impacts, such as acidification and light induced stressors, or enhanced carbon dioxide treatments, applied in studies of these important coastal organisms.