Description du projet
Résoudre l’énigme de l’ancienne fixation du carbone sur Terre
L’atmosphère primitive de la Terre, imprégnée de CO2 au cours de l’éon archéen, a favorisé l’évolution de la vie microbienne par le biais de la fixation autotrophique du carbone. Les environnements modernes, dont les niveaux de CO2 sont plus bas, obscurcissent toutefois les anciennes voies métaboliques vitales pour les premiers stades de la vie. Dans cette optique, le projet Archean Park, financé par le CER, se propose d’explorer divers écosystèmes souterrains riches en CO2. En étudiant ces reliques dans des environnements riches en CO2, les chercheurs espèrent découvrir des informations biochimiques novatrices aux implications profondes. Cette initiative entend remodeler les paysages biotechnologiques et géotechniques, en proposant des solutions allant de la production avancée de biomasse au stockage du carbone. Archean Park ne fait pas seulement la lumière sur le passé, il guide également l’avenir de l’évolution microbienne et du cycle du carbone de la Terre.
Objectif
The biological conversion of inorganic to organic carbon, autotrophic CO2 fixation, is arguably the most important biosynthetic process on Earth. Having been established early in the Archean Eon, a period characterized by an atmosphere rich in CO2, this metabolism helped spark and fuel the evolution of early microbial life. Mounting evidence suggests that exceedingly high levels of CO2 select for energetically efficient CO2 fixation pathways, immensely affecting carbon cycling. We hypothesize that CO2-rich subsurface ecosystems still harbor microbes that prefer or even require extremely high CO2 concentrations; we refer to these microbes as carbodioxyphiles. Accordingly, elevated CO2 levels would impact the thermodynamics of the microbial central carbon metabolism, enhancing autotrophy and hindering remineralization of organic matter by heterotrophs. To this end, we will study microbial life in CO2-rich subsurface environments and elucidate ancient metabolic pathways rendered obsolete by the CO2 levels of most modern environments. Each of the research team’s members has contributed to prior breakthroughs in novel autotrophic pathways, environmental genomics, metabolomics, and/or the biogeochemistry of deep subsurface environments. Establishing optimal synergy in this wealth of expertise and experience, we will describe novel modes of microbial carbon fixation in CO2-rich settings and elucidate the importance of carbodioxyphily for microbial evolution. Archean Park will provide a unique window through which to study a new mode of cellular biochemistry, the relicts of primordial carbon fixation, and Earth’s earliest carbon cycle. We will comprehensively characterize the metabolic mechanisms exploited by microbes to achieve evolutionary dominion in these relict environments. Our findings will stimulate biotechnological and geotechnical innovations ranging from enhanced autotrophic biomass production to improved carbon sequestration and storage.
Champ scientifique
Programme(s)
- HORIZON.1.1 - European Research Council (ERC) Main Programme
Thème(s)
Régime de financement
HORIZON-ERC-SYG - HORIZON ERC Synergy GrantsInstitution d’accueil
48149 MUENSTER
Allemagne