Biodiversity impacts of natural and managed ecosystems in the Anthropocene

在人类主导的生态系统中，生物多样性受到人为干扰的严重威胁，这些干扰主要与农业、森林和采矿活动、城市化和外来入侵物种的引入有关。我的研究计划的长期目标和愿景是全面了解自然和管理生态系统对生物多样性的影响，以及在加速全球变化的背景下生物多样性的可持续利用。未来5年，我将继续以自然生态系统为基准，评估采矿和IAS引入等人为活动对严重干扰生态系统的生物多样性影响。我将通过组学方法研究生物、种群和群落，以深入了解：(1)植物物种及其多样化的共生体如何在矿山尾矿中直接建立和生长或成为入侵；（二）对重金属及其他污染物的耐受、降解、稳定或贮存情况；(3)如何预测未来的生态系统演替过程和轨迹。短期目标是：(1)分析两种模式植物（北方先锋种桤木（Alnus viridis subsp））的根际微生物组；Crispa与入侵的广域芦苇（芦苇）；(2)研究共生调节植物全息体在植物适应环境胁迫和生态振幅中的作用；(3)利用代谢组学方法阐明生物活性次生代谢物的生态功能；(4)发展基于空间显式个体的模拟模型和统计生态基因组学方法。我将使用高通量测序宏基因组学方法来解开这些模式物种的根茎微生物组。元表型学方法将用于确定在给定环境条件下活细胞和活性细胞所执行的功能。表型组学数据将在操纵对照实验中从植物全息体中收集。将分离出与抗逆性机制相关的生物活性代谢物，并阐明其作用和结构。结合生物信息学和机器学习（ML）算法将用于破译植物适应机制和改进预测生态系统演替过程和轨迹的模拟模型。该研究项目将有助于提高对生态系统功能和环境可持续性的认识，并为制定有关精细尺度生物多样性保护及其可持续利用的明智决策提供必要的科学可靠的背景信息。该研究计划将与北方和南方的几所大学合作，考虑到公平、多样性和包容性（EDI）的原则，以确保卓越的研究和高素质人才的培训，同时确保所有群体在宏基因组学和表型组学这些新的研究领域享有平等的机会。

In human dominated ecosystems, biodiversity is severely threatened by anthropogenic disturbances that are mainly related to agriculture, forest and mining activities, urbanization, and the introduction of invasive alien species (IAS). The long term objective and vision of my research program is to gain a thorough understanding of biodiversity impacts of natural and managed ecosystems and the sustainable use of biodiversity in the context of accelerated global change. For the next 5 years, I will continue to evaluate the biodiversity impacts of some anthropogenic activities, such as mining and IAS introductions, using natural ecosystems as baselines, on severely disturbed ecosystems. I will study organisms, populations and communities through omics approaches to gain insights into: (1) how plant species, with their diversified symbionts, can establish and grow directly in mine tailings or become invasive; (2) how they tolerate, degrade, stabilize or store heavy metals and other pollutants; and (3) how ecosystem successional processes and trajectories can be predicted into the future. The short term objectives are to:(1) analyze the rhizomicrobiomes of two model plant species (the pioneer boreal species Alnus viridis subsp. Crispa and the invasive cosmopolitan Phragmites australis); (2) examine the role of symbiotic modulation plant holobionts in plant adaptation to environmental stresses and ecological amplitude; (3) elucidate the ecological functions of bioactive secondary metabolites using a metabolomics approach; and (4) develop spatially explicit individual based simulation models and statistical ecogenomic methods. I will use high throughput sequencing metagenomics approaches to untangle the rhizomicrobiomes of these model species. Metaphenomics approaches will be used to determine the functions being carried out by viable and active cells under given environmental conditions. Phenomics data will be collected from plant holobionts in manipulated controlled experiments. Bioactive metabolites that are related to stress resistance mechanisms will be isolated, and their roles and structures elucidated. Combined bioinformatics and machine learning (ML) algorithms will be used to decipher plant adaptation mechanisms and improve simulation models for predicting ecosystem successional processes and trajectories. This research program will contribute to improved understanding of ecosystem function and environmental sustainability and provide the necessary scientifically sound background information for making informed decisions regarding fine scale biodiversity conservation and its sustainable use. In collaboration with several universities in the North and the South, this research program will take into account the principles of equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) to ensure excellence in research and training of highly qualified personnel, while ensuring equal opportunities for all groups in these new research areas of metagenomics and phenomics.