Collaborative CNIC: US-Argentina planning visits for fungal biodiversity investigation

该合作项目旨在促进美国和阿根廷研究人员之间的研究合作。 该项目将由Symbiogenics的Russell Rodriguez博士和华盛顿大学的Regina Redman博士（均位于华盛顿西雅图）以及美国方面的缅因州大学的劳里康奈尔博士（位于奥罗诺）领导。 在阿根廷方面，INIBIOMA（阿根廷国家科学和技术研究理事会研究所）的Diego Libkind博士、Martin Molino博士和Virginia de Garcia博士以及Comahue大学是该项目的对应方。 阿根廷研究人员为合作带来了真菌分类学和生物多样性方面的专业知识，特别是寒冷和极端环境。 美国研究人员带来了真菌和植物适应压力的专业知识，特别是在南极洲的不同栖息地。总的来说，这项合作旨在了解功能如何影响细菌群落结构，这是预测生态系统对气候变化反应的一个重要挑战。 在这个项目中，研究人员将通过调查它们在巴塔哥尼亚冰川水径流等极端栖息地的多样性，生理学和生态学来研究真菌群落。 这些初步研究的结果将为进一步的大规模项目奠定基础。 这项合作将为不同层次的学生提供培训机会，并有很大的潜力来增加我们对全球营养循环，生物体间关系和极端环境中生命的理解。

This collaborative project aims to catalyze a research collaboration between US and Argentinian researchers. The project will be led by Drs. Russell Rodriguez at Symbiogenics and Regina Redman of the University of Washington, both in Seattle, Washington, and Dr. Laurie Connell at the University of Maine, Orono, for the US side. On the Argentinean side, Drs. Diego Libkind, Martin Molino and Virginia de Garcia of INIBIOMA (Instituto de Investigaciones en Biodiversidad y Medioambiente, an Argentinean National Scientific and Technical Research Council Institute) and the University of Comahue, are the counterparts for the project. The Argentinian researchers bring to the collaboration expertise in fungal taxonomy and biodiversity, particularly of cold and extreme environments. The US researchers bring expertise in fungal and plant adaptation to stresses, particularly in diverse habitats of Antarctica. Overall, this collaboration aims to understand how function impacts bacterial community structures, an important challenge in predicting ecosystems responses to climate change. For this project the researchers will study fungal communities by investigating their diversity, physiology, and ecology in extreme habitats such as glacial water run-off in Patagonia. The results of these initial studies will lay the groundwork for further large-scale projects. The collaboration will provide training opportunities for students at different levels and has significant potential to increase our understanding of global nutrient cycling, inter-organismal relationships, and life in extreme environments.