This award is funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5).
The Microbial Diversity Summer Course has been taught since 1971 at the Marine Biological Laboratory at Woods Hole, MA, and is internationally recognized as one of the great advanced research courses in biology. This project will develop and implement new techniques and develop a new course curriculum that fosters the application of single cell ecological techniques as a paradigm to explore the microbial diversity, and will train the next generation of scientists to apply this single cell paradigm. Microorganisms are the most diverse and ubiquitous form of life on the planet, they have fundamentally influenced the development of our biosphere, and they continue to do so today, yet we are still only beginning to understand the vast biodiversity of the microbial world and the principles that govern how these organisms mediate and respond to changes in the biosphere. In addition, the reservoir of genomic information contained within the microbial realm represents a treasure trove for those interested in natural product discovery. The vast majority of microorganisms in natural systems have yet to be cultivated in the laboratory and characterized, and their genomes exhibit a degree of fluidity unparalleled in other forms of life. As a result, individual cultivated isolates may contain only a fraction of the total genetic diversity present in wild populations. Perhaps it is not surprising then that microbes in captivity can at times demonstrate different properties from their wild counterparts. Biologists are still grappling with the implications of these discoveries, trying to understand how these dynamic evolutionary mechanisms impact the ecology of microorganisms and their ability to deliver ecosystem services. Single cell approaches make it possible to examine the genotypes of individual cells using single cell genome amplification or their activities using techniques like secondary ion mass spectrometry (Nano-SIMS). These exciting developments are providing information needed to build a fundamental understanding of the ecology of diverse microorganisms.
The Microbial Diversity course is a research incubator that provides advanced training for individuals from a variety of backgrounds who seek a fundamental understanding of microbial diversity and its theoretical underpinnings. As such, the training provided in the course has a unique impact that spans multiple fields that focus on the diversity and ecology of microbial life. The course provides graduate students, postdoctoral scholars, and established investigators from fields such as microbiology, ecology, geobiology, biogeochemistry, marine biology, environmental engineering, and even astrobiology and bioinformatics, with an unequaled opportunity to receive training in advanced methods for exploring the biodiversity of the natural world. The course also has a strong commitment to the advancement of women in science and enhancing the participation of underrepresented minorities. It is an immersive research experience consisting of 6.5 weeks of lectures, laboratory exercises, field work, and it culminates with self-directed research projects in which participants use their new knowledge and skills to make novel discoveries, some of which have become career research projects. Foremost investigators from around the world visit the course every summer to participate in course mini-symposia, to lecture, and interact with students in the laboratory and in the field. The immersive, integrative, inter-disciplinary, and international nature of the course provides a training opportunity that is currently not provided elsewhere in the United States. The funding of this project will help support several students, fund visits by numerous renowned investigators in single cell approaches to microbiology, and provide material support for laboratory studies by the students.
