CAREER: Bacteriophages in activated sludge bioreactors- effect on process performance and process sustainability and a tool for educational outreach to underrepresented students.

建议标题：职业：活性污泥生物反应器中的噬菌体--对过程性能和过程可持续性的影响以及对未被充分代表的学生进行教育推广的工具主要调查者：拉梅什·戈尔研究所：犹他大学建议编号：cBET-1055786本职业建议旨在将Pi？S在噬菌体方面的研究与教育和推广相结合。这个职业计划背后的动机有三个：工程、科学和教育。这份职业计划的主要工程目标是展示噬菌体(感染细菌的病毒)介导的生物控制在活性污泥系统中的应用，将丝状菌膨胀和浸没式生物反应器中的膜生物污染作为两个模型应用。主要的科学目标是：(1)更好地了解各种环境和操作参数对关键活性污泥噬菌体介导的溶原性的影响：(2)利用454焦磷酸测序技术研究从大规模活性污泥工厂分离的噬菌体的多样性。教育目标是利用新颖的计算机动画和基于互联网的技术，加强少数族裔本科生和K12学生对环境工程的参与，为少数族裔美国本科生提供国际研究经验，并将拟议的研究整合到各级和多个机构的教育中(犹他大学和德克萨斯大学泛美分校，这是一家位于美墨边境的拉美裔人口服务机构)。具体的研究任务是：(1)从实验室膜生物反应器膜上形成的生物膜中分离细菌并利用分子工具对其进行表征；(2)从具有选定的模型丝状菌的污水处理厂中分离出裂解噬菌体和从实验室膜生物反应器中分离出的细菌；(3)展示噬菌体介导的对选定的模式菌和生物膜形成菌引起的丝状菌膨胀的生物控制；评价分离的噬菌体在生物反应器中的交叉感染性和环境对分离的噬菌体接收水的影响；(4)评价在pH、温度、有机负荷和有毒负荷的变化下，溶原性对关键活性污泥细菌是否重要，在重金属存在的情况下，使用培养的模式菌和，(5)使用454焦磷酸测序从任务1和2中获得分离的噬菌体基因组，并使用现有的生物信息学工具研究基因组。皮？S的教育和推广的目的是：(1)让本科生和高中生参与实验室研究，激发他们对环境工程的兴趣，(2)将细菌生态学和病毒学的概念整合到教学中，为本科生开发有效的学习模块，(3)开发计算机动画和基于网络的工具，以提高公众对科学、废水处理和噬菌体相关问题的理解，以及，(4)将研究融入研究生教育，传播知识和研究成果。建议的研究将提高我们对噬菌体在活性污泥系统中的作用的理解，世界上最常用的工程生物反应器是S。这项研究将开发噬菌体介导的控制策略来控制膜生物反应器(MBR)中的丝状菌膨胀和膜生物污染，这是活性污泥生物反应器中最常见的两个运行问题。因此，这项研究承诺为包括膜生物反应器在内的活性污泥系统的运行提供长期的能源可持续性(即减少MBR中的喷气)和成本效益。在这份职业提案中提出的触发噬菌体介导的细菌裂解研究的操作和环境因素，在性质上是基本的，并可能揭示活性污泥生物反应器中工艺颠覆的未知原因。这项拟议的研究将首次使用病毒学的基本概念来为活性污泥系统提供可操作的可持续性。这是首次系统地研究活性污泥过程中噬菌体与细菌的相互作用，其研究成果将直接影响到许多其他相关领域，如饮用水分配系统中的生物膜、了解噬菌体介导的水平基因转移、消除生物制氢反应器中的嗜氢细菌以及厌氧氨氧化中的亚硝酸盐氧化菌。PI将重点培训美国原住民和西班牙裔学生，以鼓励他们在环境工程领域追求职业生涯。基于计算机的动画和基于网络的工具将有助于接触到更广泛的受众。派？S在德克萨斯大学泛美分校开发和教授本科课程的独特努力将激发对拉美裔学生攻读环境工程高等教育的兴趣。研究生将被培养成各自领域的领导者和工程大使。K12课程中的实验室实践将使K12学生接触到令人兴奋的废水工程和微生物学领域。在最高声誉的同行评议期刊上发表的重要会议和出版物将展示这项研究的成功。

AbstractProposal Title: CAREER: Bacteriophages in activated sludge bioreactors- effect on process performance and process sustainability and a tool for educational outreach to underrepresented studentsPrincipal Investigator: Ramesh GoelInstitution: University of UtahProposal No: CBET- 1055786This CAREER proposal aims to integrate PI?s research in bacteriophages with education and outreach. The motivations behind this CAREER proposal are three-fold: engineering, scientific and educational. The principal engineering goal of this CAREER proposal is to demonstrate the application of bacteriophage (virus that infect bacteria) mediated biocontrol in activated sludge systems using filamentous bulking and membrane biofouling in submerged bioreactors as the two model applications. The broad scientific goals are to: (1) to better understand phage mediated lysogeny of key activated sludge under the influence of various environmental and operational parameters: and (2) to study the phage diversity of the isolated phages from full scale activated sludge plant using 454 pyrosequencing. The educational goal is to enhance the participation of minority undergraduate and k12 students in environmental engineering using novel computer animation and internet based techniques, provide minority U.S. undergraduate students the international research experience and integrate the proposed research into education at various levels and at multiple institutes (University of Utah and the University of Texas Pan American, a Hispanic population serving institute at the U.S.-Mexico border). The specific research tasks are to: (1) isolate bacteria from the biofilm formed on the membrane of a laboratory scale membrane bioreactor and characterize these using molecular tools, (2) isolate lytic phages from full scale wastewater treatment plants with selected model filamentous bacteria and the bacteria isolated from the lab scale membrane bioreactor, (3) demonstrate phage mediated biocontrol of filamentous bulking caused by selected model bacteria and biofilm forming bacteria, evaluate the cross infectivity in bioreactor and environmental impact on receiving waters of isolated phages, (4) evaluate whether lysogeny is important in key activated sludge bacteria under the variations of pH, temperature, organic loading and toxic loadings, and in the presence of heavy metals using cultured model bacteria and, (5) obtain the genomes of isolated phages from tasks 1 and 2 using 454-pyrosequencing and study the genomes using established bioinformatic tools.The PI?s educational and outreach aims are to: (1) involve undergraduate and high school students in laboratory research to stimulate their interest in environmental engineering, (2) integrate bacterial ecology and virology concepts into teaching to develop an effective learning module for undergraduates, (3) develop computer animation and web based tools for improving the public understanding of science, wastewater treatment and phage-related issues and, (4) integrate research into graduate education and disseminate the knowledge and research findings.The proposed research will improve our understanding about the role of bacteriophages in activated sludge systems, the world?s most used engineered bioreactors. The research will develop phage mediated control strategies for filamentous bulking and membrane biofouling in membrane bioreactors (MBRs), the two most common operational problems in activated sludge bioreactors. Hence, the research promises to provide long term energy sustainability (i.e reduced air sparging in MBRs) and cost effectiveness to the operation of activated sludge systems including membrane bioreactors. Operational and environmental factors that triggered phage mediated bacterial lysis research, proposed in this CAREER proposal, is fundamental in nature and potentially sheds light on unknown reasons for the process upsets in activated sludge bioreactors. The proposed research, for the first time, will use fundamental concepts of virology to provide operational sustainability to activated sludge systems. This is the first systematic study to explore phage-bacteria interactions in activated sludge processes.The research outcomes will directly affect many other related areas such as biofilm in drinking water distribution systems, understanding phage mediated horizontal gene transfer, elimination of hydrogenotrophic bacteria in biohydrogen producing reactors and nitrite oxidizers in anaerobic ammonia oxidation. The PI will focus on training of Native American and Hispanic students to encourage them to pursue careers in environmental engineering. Computer based animation and web based tools will help reach a broader audience. The PI?s unique effort to develop and teach an undergraduate course at the University of Texas Pan American will stimulate interest in Hispanic students to go for higher studies in environmental engineering. Graduate students will be trained to be leaders in their field as well as engineering ambassadors. Lab practices in k12 curriculum will expose k12 students to the exciting field of wastewater engineering and microbiology. Presentations at leading conferences and publications in peer reviewed journals of highest repute will demonstrate the success of the research.