Projektbeschreibung
Promotion über mikrobielles Leben in Gletschern und Eisschilden
Entgegen den Erwartungen gedeihen die Mikroben in Eisumgebungen. In der Tat sind Gletscher und Eisschilde alles andere als sterile Umgebungen. Sie sind wie tropische Wälder und jedes andere große Ökosystem als eines der Biome der Erde anerkannt. Die auf und unter den Gletschern lebenden Algen, Pilze, Bakterien und Viren sind in der Lage, die physikalischen und chemischen Eigenschaften von Eis und Schnee zu verändern, wodurch das Eis schneller schmilzt und große Mengen an Treibhausgasen entstehen. Viele Fragen zu mikrobiologischen Prozessen bleiben jedoch unbeantwortet. Zu ihrer Beantwortung wird das über die Marie-Skłodowska-Curie-Maßnahmen unterstützte Projekt ICEBIO die nächste Generation Sachverständiger für Gletschermikrobiologie und Biogeochemie ausbilden und das Wissen in diesen wichtigen Bereichen erweitern.
Ziel
Glaciers and ice sheets were long believed to be sterile environments, but just like other large ecosystems (e.g. tropical forests, tundra), they are now widely recognized as one of the Earth’s biomes, teeming with life. Active algae, fungi, bacteria and viruses dominate the glacial environment and they have the ability to change the physical and chemical characteristics of the ice and snow, with global effects. For instance, increasing ice melt rates are observed due to growth of pigmented algae on glacier surfaces and substantial amounts of methane from subglacial habitats are added to the global greenhouse gas budget. Despite their global influence, many of the microbiological processes within the cryosphere remain poorly quantified. A deeper understanding of such processes are relevant to researchers interested in the possibility of life on icy extraterrestrial bodies, the survival and proliferation of life forms on our early Earth (e.g. during the part of the Proterozoic era known as Snowball Earth), and the positive and negative feedbacks that the cryosphere may have on global warming. The microbial communities living in association with icy environments may also harbor unique metabolic pathways, providing novel opportunities in biotechnology.
ICEBIO is a Doctoral Network that will train the next generation of glacier microbiology and biogeochemistry experts. The training and research programme is made up of seven interlinked Work Packages (WP). WP1 to WP4 are research work packages at the cutting edge of glacial microbiology and biogeochemistry and these will be supported by three overarching WPs (WP5-7) associated with the management, training, and dissemination of results. ICEBIO will deliver a detailed framework and database of the functional diversity and potential of the glacier biome, not only serving to dramatically advance our understanding of a threatened biome, but also laying out potential for use in economic and environmental services.
Wissenschaftliches Gebiet
- natural sciencesbiological sciencesmicrobiologyphycology
- natural sciencesbiological sciencesmicrobiologymycology
- natural scienceschemical sciencesorganic chemistryaliphatic compounds
- natural sciencesearth and related environmental sciencesphysical geographyglaciology
- natural sciencesearth and related environmental sciencesgeochemistrybiogeochemistry
Schlüsselbegriffe
Programm/Programme
- HORIZON.1.2 - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) Main Programme
Aufforderung zur Vorschlagseinreichung
Andere Projekte für diesen Aufruf anzeigenFinanzierungsplan
HORIZON-TMA-MSCA-DN - HORIZON TMA MSCA Doctoral NetworksKoordinator
8000 Aarhus C
Dänemark