Project description:To unravel complex dynamics of environmental disturbance and microbial metabolic activities, we set up laboratory microcosms to investigate the effects of SO42- and O2 alone or in combination on microbial activities and interactions, as well as the resulting fate of carbon within wetland soil. We used proteogenomics to characterize the biochemical and physiological responses of microbial communities to individual perturbations and their combined effects. Stoichiometric models were employed to deconvolute carbon exchanges among the main functional guilds. These findings can contribute to the development of mechanistic models for predicting greenhouse gas emissions from wetland ecosystems under various climate change scenarios.
Project description:Investigation of mRNA expression (using HiSeq 2500) in response to treatment of Daphnia magna to pyriproxyfen, wetland water, or stormwater samples.
Project description:Background biology: Global warming has accelerated in recent decades, with the Arctic warming 2–3 times faster than the global average. As a result boreal species are expanding into the Arctic, at a pace reflecting environmental warming. Nevertheless, the poleward expansion of boreal marine species is restricted by their ability to tolerate low water temperatures, and in the case of intertidal species, sub-zero air temperatures during winter. In Greenland, however, the number of days with extreme sub-zero air temperatures has decreased by more than 50% since the 1950’s, suggesting that the low air temperature constraint is weakening. Although boreal intertidal species could potentially benefit from this warmer climate to establish populations in the Arctic, recent work has shown that local intertidal summer air temperatures in Greenland can exceed 36°C. This temperature is above the thermoregulatory capacity of many boreal intertidal species, including the highly abundant blue mussel Mytilus edulis. Therefore will further colonisation of M. edulis in Greenland be inhibited by the increasingly warm summer temperatures. Aim of experiment: Intertidal animals (Greenland blue mussel M. edulis) were sampled in situ on the first warm days of the year from the inner (warmer) and outer (cooler) regions of the Godthåbsfjorden around Nuuk (64°N) to examine the fjord temperature gradient effect. In addition, subtidal M. edulis were also collected and subjected to two acute temperature shocks of 22 and 32°C, which represented common and extreme summer air temperatures for intertidal habitats near Nuuk.
Project description:Analysis of microbial community composition in arctic tundra and boreal forest soils using serial analysis of ribosomal sequence tags (SARST). Keywords: other
Project description:Monitoring microbial communities can aid in understanding the state of these habitats. Environmental DNA (eDNA) techniques provide efficient and comprehensive monitoring by capturing broader diversity. Besides structural profiling, eDNA methods allow the study of functional profiles, encompassing the genes within the microbial community. In this study, three methodologies were compared for functional profiling of microbial communities in estuarine and coastal sites in the Bay of Biscay. The methodologies included inference from 16S metabarcoding data using Tax4Fun, GeoChip microarrays, and shotgun metagenomics.
Project description:The impacts of man-made chemicals, in particular of persistent organic pollutants, are multifactorial as they may affect the integrity of ecosystems, alter biodiversity and hinder the health of most organisms. We have demonstrated that the belowground mycobiota of forest soils acts as a buffer against the pollution provoked by the biocide pentachlorophenol. However the trade-offs of the mitigation of the pollutant remain cryptic. To address this question we scrutinised the key changing aspects of a metacommunity of fungi when confronted (or not) with the biocide, comprising taxonomic and functional levels, as well as the identification of the major pollutant degraders within the metacommunity. Exposure to the biocide led to alterations in the metacommunity composition and functioning, many of which were not fully alleviated when most of the biocide was degraded, especially the dysregulation of the carbon and nitrogen metabolisms. The last is possibly linked to the higher pathogenic potential of the metacommunity after exposure to the biocide, supported by the secretion of proteins related to pathogenicity and reduced susceptibility to a standard fungicide. Our findings provide additional evidence for the silent risks of environmental pollution, particularly as it may favour the development of pathogenic trade-offs in fungi, which may impose serious threats to animals and plant hosts.