Microbial Observatory: Linking Microbial Diversity With Biogeochemical Studies Throughout the Deep Greenland Ice Sheet

已向宾夕法尼亚州立大学的Jean Brenchley、Vanya Miteva和托德·索尔斯博士提供赠款，用于建立微生物观测站，研究格陵兰冰川冰芯中与地球化学分析有关的微生物多样性。这些研究人员已经证明，来自3,000多米深的冰中含有丰富多样的原核生物种群，它们在零下的温度、高压和有限的液体、氧气和营养物质中存活了超过12万年。这项新工作将开发一个低温微生物观测站，以检查冰芯样本中的原核生物种群，这些样本被选择来代表不同的深度/时间/沉积温度，并测试冰芯本身是否会发生微生物代谢。目标包括检查不同冰样品中原核生物的活力和数量，以确定特定类型是否与沉积气候相关，使用培养依赖和培养独立方法比较微生物多样性，利用冰中的稳定同位素监测痕量气体成分，将微生物多样性研究与地球化学过程联系起来。冰川冰是一个恶劣的栖息地，这个微生物观测站的结果将有助于了解在地球上生存的极限，并作为可能的外星生命的模型。除了广泛的教育影响，这项工作将提供一个全面的看法，在冰芯微生物种群的垂直分布，并有可能导致许多尚未培养的生物代表新的类群的培养。一些分离物可以产生生物技术上重要的新抗生素，化学品，冷活性酶等，此外，代谢是否可以在冰内检测到的跨学科测试是重要的，因为冰芯中的痕量气体记录过去的大气，然后与当前的成分进行比较。如果微生物的新陈代谢能够改变这种微量气体的记录，那么以前的结果和气候预测将不得不重新评估。

A grant has been awarded to Drs. Jean Brenchley, Vanya Miteva, and Todd Sowers of Pennsylvania State University to establish microbial observatory studies of microbial diversity in relation to geochemical analyses throughout a Greenland glacier ice core. These investigators have shown that ice from over 3,000 meters deep contained an abundant and diverse prokaryotic population that had survived subzero temperatures, high pressures, and limited liquid, oxygen, and nutrients for over 120,000 years. This new work will develop a low temperature microbial observatory to examine the prokaryotic populations in ice core samples selected to represent different depths/times/deposition temperatures and test whether microbial metabolism could be occurring within the ice core itself. Goals include examining the viability and number of prokaryotes in different ice samples to determine whether specific types correlate with deposition climates, comparing the microbial diversity using both culture dependent and culture independent methods, and monitoring trace gas composition using stable isotopes in ice to link the microbial diversity studies with biogeochemical processes.Glacier ice is a harsh habitat and results from this microbial observatory will help understand the limits for survival on earth and serve as a model for possible extraterrestrial life. In addition to broad educational impacts, this work will provide a comprehensive view of the vertical distribution of microbial populations in the ice core and is likely to lead to the cultivation of numerous not-yet cultivated organisms representing novel taxa. Some isolates could produce biotechnologically important new antibiotics, chemicals, cold-active enzymes, etc. In addition, the interdisciplinary test of whether metabolism can be detected within ice is important because trace gases in ice cores record past atmospheres that are then compared with current compositions. If microbial metabolism could have altered this trace gas record, then previous results and climate predictions would have to be reevaluated.