Anaerobic chamber system for culturing and characterizing novel anaerobic microorganisms from unique ecosystems

厌氧室能够安全地隔离、培养和检查需要无氧环境的厌氧微生物。所要求的厌氧室将支持怀特博士、比德博士和德里尔博士的研究小组对厌氧微生物的分离、鉴定和表征。怀特的研究小组利用经典微生物学和新的基于基因组学的分子技术，研究了加拿大高北极地区独特栖息地（永久冻土/地面冰，冷盐水泉，微生物海冰垫）的微生物生物多样性和生态。正在进行的培养独立的研究表明，这些环境窝藏新的厌氧16 S rRNA基因型相关的产甲烷菌，厌氧甲烷氧化细菌，硫酸盐还原菌（SRB），厌氧嗜盐菌。怀特的实验室将使用厌氧室从这些环境中分离和表征厌氧菌株，并对永久冻土和盐水泉样本进行厌氧活性测定。这将使我们能够定义厌氧微生物在超低温下的活动和生长，并导致更好地了解这些嗜冷厌氧微生物在这些冷冻环境中，特别是永久冻土中的营养循环和生物地球化学过程中发挥的潜在作用。比德对植物与昆虫的相互作用感兴趣，特别是了解植物防御反应的调节作用。这涉及到昆虫对食草动物的识别，这是由昆虫口腔分泌物中的诱导子介导的。最近，已经表明细菌肠道植物群影响毛毛虫防御剂中的激发子，从而影响植物防御反应。比德的实验室将使用厌氧室来分离和鉴定毛虫肠道中的厌氧细菌，并确定它们是否可以催化脂肪酸-氨基酸诱导剂的形成。Drivel的研究小组研究共生固氮，这是苜蓿中华根瘤菌-苜蓿系统中的一种厌氧生物化学过程。 厌氧生长室将使Drivel的研究小组能够在厌氧环境中研究豆类根瘤和类细菌，这对于一些生理学研究来说是最佳的。

Anaerobic chambers enable the safe isolation, incubation and examination of anaerobic microorganisms which require oxygen-free environments. The anaerobic chamber requested will support the isolation, identification and characterization  of anaerobic microorganisms by the research groups of Drs. Whyte, Bede, and Driscoll. Whyte's research team examines microbial biodiversity and ecology in unique habitats (permafrost/ground ice, cold saline springs, microbial sea-ice matts) in the Canadian high Arctic using both classical microbiology and novel genomics-based molecular techniques. Ongoing culture independent studies have indicated that these environments harbour novel anaerobic 16S rRNA phylotypes related to methanogens, anaerobic methane oxidizing bacteria, sulphate reducing bacteria (SRB), and anaerobic halophilic Archaea. Whyte's lab would use the anaerobic chamber to isolate and characterize anaerobic strains from these environments as well as conduct anaerobic activity assays with permafrost and saline spring samples. This will enable us to define anaerobic microbial activity and growth at ultra-low temperatures and lead to a greater understanding of the potential roles such psychrophilic anaerobic microorganisms play in nutrient cycling and biogeochemical processes in these cryoenvironments, particularly permafrost. Bede is interested in plant-insect interactions, specifically in understanding the regulation of plant defense responses to target the insect herbivore. This involves the recognition of the herbivore, which is mediated by elicitors in the insect oral secretions. Recently, it has been shown that the bacterial gut flora effects the elicitors in the caterpillar regurgitant and, hence, plant defense responses. Bede's laboratory would use the anaerobic chamber to in isolate and identifying anaerobic bacteria in the caterpillar gut and determining whether they can catalyze the formation of fatty acid-amino acid elicitors. Driscoll's research group studies symbiotic nitrogen fixation, an anaerobic biochemical process in the Sinorhizobium meliloti - alfalfa system.  An anaerobic growth chamber will allow Driscoll's group to study legume root nodules and bacteroids in an anaerobic environment, as is optimal for some physiological studies.