Carbon isotopic heterogeneity in modern bacterioplankton: Model systems for understanding paleoenvironmental signatures.

该奖项是根据2009年美国复苏和再投资法案（公法111-5）资助的。通过过去二十年的研究，科学界已经看到了对海洋微生物多样性理解的革命。分子测序揭示了几个以前未知的主要细菌和古细菌群，但海洋微生物的多样性超过了目前的物种估计。哈佛大学的初步研究表明，浮游细菌和真核浮游生物之间的碳同位素特征存在系统性差异，因此现代浮游细菌显示出碳同位素变化的证据。通过对海洋表层不同区域的浮游细菌进行采样，哈佛大学的研究人员将研究海洋表层浮游细菌的碳同位素分布模式，以确定不同地表水类型微生物群落之间的代谢差异。本研究的结果将增强目前对上层海洋碳循环和生物泵作用的认识。此外，本研究还可以确定和细化贫营养开放海洋环境和富有机物大陆边缘环境中微生物生物量输出的潜在差异。这些信息可以让科学家了解过去和未来温暖气候对海洋微生物多样性的影响。本研究将资助一名博士后研究员和两名研究生。参与该项目的pi还将利用结果与哈佛大学微生物科学倡议合作举办社区外展活动。

This award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5).Through research in the past two decades, the science community has seen a revolution in the understanding of marine microbial diversity. Molecular sequencing has revealed several previously unknown major groups of Bacteria and Archaea, yet total marine microbial diversity exceeds current species estimates. Preliminary research from Harvard University shows a systematic difference in the carbon isotope signature between bacterioplankton and eukaryote plankton, such that modern bacterioplankton show evidence of a carbon isotope shift. By sampling bacterioplankton from diverse regions of the surface ocean, researchers from Harvard University will examine patterns of carbon isotope distribution in marine surface bacterioplankton to identify the metabolic differences among microbial communities of various surface water types. Results from this research will enhance the current understanding of upper ocean carbon recycling and the action of the biological pump. In addition this research may identify and refine potential differences between export of microbial biomass in oligotrophic open ocean environments and organic-rich continental margin environments. This information could allow for scientist to understand the implications of past and future warm climates on marine microbial diversity. This research will provide support for a postdoctoral researcher, as well as two graduate students. The PIs involved in this project will also utilize the results to host a community outreach event in collaboration with the Harvard University Microbial Sciences Initiative.