MicrObs
Financiado
Assessing the effects of climate change on soil ecosystem functioning using an e...
Assessing the effects of climate change on soil ecosystem functioning using an established alpine Microbial Observatory
Soils are an invaluable asset for human wellbeing. Thus monitoring their quality and sustainable functioning should be a priority in a time of global change with unpredictable consequences. Climate-induced changes in species assem...
Soils are an invaluable asset for human wellbeing. Thus monitoring their quality and sustainable functioning should be a priority in a time of global change with unpredictable consequences. Climate-induced changes in species assemblages of biological communities are well documented. However, relatively little is known about such changes in microbial communities, in spite of their critical importance for ecosystem health. Microorganisms adapt faster to changing local conditions than plants and other macro-organisms, making them ideal as indicators for soil and ecosystem health. Thanks to their steep altitudinal gradients, mountain areas are particularly well suited for studying soil microbial community changes induced by climate change. This also makes them more vulnerable, increasing the risk for loss of biodiversity through mountaintop extinction and perturbations of ecosystem integrity. The advancement of DNA sequencing technologies now enables us to explore microbial diversity in-depth and to monitor microbial community composition and dynamics. In MicrObs, I propose an innovative study utilising next generation sequencing to survey and monitor the functional and compositional diversity patterns of soil microbial communities along an altitudinal gradient in response to climate change. A soil transplantation experiment will also be carried out to accelerate climate-induced changes. I seek to combine my existing skills with the expertise of the Soil Microbial Ecology Group at NEIKER, utilising the group’s unique Microbial Observatory Project. MicrObs will improve the current understanding of the impact of climate change on soil microbial communities and associated ecological processes, on local and global scales. In addition, it will facilitate for continued monitoring. The conceptual and methodological training objectives proposed will strengthen my scientific and management skills, enabling a future establishment as an independent researcher.
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Línea de financiación: concedida
El organismo FP7 notifico la concesión del proyecto el día 2015-07-28
Presupuesto
El presupuesto total del proyecto asciende a
166K€
Líder del proyecto
NEIKER-INSTITUTO VASCO DE INVESTIGACION
Desarrollar actividades de investigacion y realizar estudios en materia de ciencias agrarias, acuaticas, ambientales y en general de los rec...
Perfil tecnológico
TRL
4-5
3M
Perfil tecnológico
TRL
4-5
3M