Time & Energy: Fundamental microbial mechanisms that control CH4 dynamics in a warming Arctic

Informations

Funding country

Norway

Acronym

-

URL

-

Start date

1/1/2016

End date

12/31/2019

Budget

381,300 EUR

Fundings

Abstract

Microorganisms use a large number of different energy sources, are adapted to various chemical conditions and are exposed to major changes in temperature, water and available energy throughout the seasons and as a result of climate change. How individual organisms and complex microbial communities adapt to their environment in the short and long term are the basic knowledge needed to understand their role in ecosystems and change in behavior as a result of climate change. In this project we try to understand how microbes with key roles in the global methane and carbon cycle have found their role in the environment and adapt to changes over time, and how this relate to the concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. The project takes place in four parallel races, each part focussing on an aspect of microbial ecology where important knowledge gaps limit our understanding of nature: 1: The Energetically Restrictive Step in Methane Production - Synthrophy - We look at how organisms living on a diet at the energetic limit of life react to temperature changes over time. This is important for our understanding of the link between climate change and methane production in Arctic peat. 2: Low concentrations of greenhouse gas methane in the atmosphere can only be broken down by a special group of bacteria that live with greatly limited energy availability, making them a key group in the methane cycle. Isolates of this group have not been available until now. We look at the evolution, cell biology and metabolism of one of the most important groups of bacteria in the subject of climate change. 3: Large amounts of carbon are stored in soil. Recently, scientists have found that warming over time (10-50 years) leads to a reduction in the amount of carbon stored in soil before a new balance is established with a smaller microbial biomass. We look at the adaptations that occur in microbial communities in unique land-heating attempts in Iceland, which were started more than 50 years ago. 4: The relationship between plants and microorganisms that live on or within plants and in the soil beneath them is fundamental to the global carbon cycle. Mosses, grasses and Carex species are among the most important contributors to the large carbon stocks of peat in Arctic and temperate areas. These peats are threatened by degradation and resulting increases in greenhouse gas emissions as a result of climate change. We look at how different peat bogs are associated with different groups of bacteria and how this is related to the evolution of such ecosystems in the short and long term. We also study how changes in the populations of grazing animals and altered vegetation composition affects the soil microbes and their activities.