Collaborative Research: Biogeochemistry and Geomicrobiology of Taylor Glacier Basal Ice

合作研究：泰勒冰川基底冰的生物地球化学和地球微生物学

• 批准号: 0636828
• 负责人: Brent Christner
• 金额: $ 19.08万
• 依托单位: Louisiana State University
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2007
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2007-09-15 至 2012-08-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=0636828&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Collaborative; Research; Biogeochemistry; Geomicrobiology; Taylor

AbstractThe proposed research will address an emerging and exciting question in cryospheric biology: are microorganisms capable of metabolism in glacier ice? The proposed study will involve a comprehensive assessment of the biogeochemistry and geomicrobiology of Taylor Glacier (McMurdo Dry Valleys, Antarctica) basal ice via a combination of field measurements and laboratory experiments. Our holistic approach will provide data to connect nutrient availability, geochemical composition, and gas composition with microbial cell density, diversity and metabolic status in the basal ice sequence. Multi-sample analysis of the same ice facies will allow assessment of the chemical and microbial linkages in basal ice and the manner by which microbes may modify gas compositions in situ. The proposed approach will address two key questions outlined by the National Research Council's "Frontiers in Polar Biology in the Genomic Era" (2003): (i) "Can microorganisms in this (frozen) environment reproduce?" and (ii) "What are the similarities and differences among microorganisms in different subzero environments?" Confirming that microbial activity occurs in situ in glacier ice at temperatures of -17C would represent a significant advance in cryospheric biology and significantly expand the known boundaries of the biosphere. Such information is highly relevant to the ice core paleoclimatic community, as it would provide a viable explanation for inconsistencies in some ice-core gas records. The basal ice zones of polar glaciers show similarities with the layered deposits evident in images of the marginal zones of the northern ice cap on Mars. Thus, our research will also have implications relevant to discussions about microbial persistence and survival in ice on Mars. This research will support 2 new investigators, and provide training for 2 Ph.D. students and 2 undergraduate students. Students from unrepresented communities in science and engineering will be actively recruited for these positions. Web-based tools to target students interested in pursuing a career in science will be maintained and expanded upon by incorporating our results into the NSF funded (DERMEED-1) library under construction at MSU, as part of the national (SMETE) digital library.

摘要拟议的研究将解决Cryosper生物学中的新出现和令人兴奋的问题：微生物是否能够在冰川冰中代谢？拟议的研究将涉及对泰勒冰川（McMurdo Dry Valleys，Antarctica）基础冰的生物地球化学和地球生物学的全面评估，这是通过现场测量和实验室实验的结合。我们的整体方法将提供数据，以将营养素的可用性，地球化学组成和气体组成与基础冰序列中的微生物细胞密度，多样性和代谢状态联系起来。对同一冰面的多样本分析将允许评估基础冰中的化学和微生物连接，以及微生物可以在原位修改气体成分的方式。拟议的方法将解决国家研究委员会“基因组时代极地生物学领域的边界”（2003）概述的两个关键问题：（i）“（冷冻）环境中的微生物可以繁殖吗？” （ii）“不同亚零环境中微生物之间的相似性和差异是什么？”证实微生物活性在-17C的温度下在冰川冰中进行原位发生，这将代表Cryopheric生物学的显着进步，并显着扩大了生物圈的已知边界。这些信息与冰核的古气候社区高度相关，因为它将为某些冰核天然气记录中的不一致提供可行的解释。极地冰川的基础冰区显示出与火星北部冰盖边缘区域的图像中明显的分层沉积物相似。因此，我们的研究还将与关于Mars冰上的微生物持久性和生存的讨论有关。这项研究将支持2名新研究人员，并为2博士学位提供培训。学生和2名本科生。这些职位将积极招募来自科学和工程领域无代表性社区的学生。作为国家（SMETE）数字图书馆的一部分，将我们的结果纳入正在建设的NSF资助的（Dermeed-1）图书馆中，可以维护和扩展有兴趣从事科学职业的学生的基于Web的工具。