One of the biggest challenges in the field of chemical oceanography is chemically characterizing the components of the dissolved organic matter (DOM) pool. The composition of DOM changes rapidly on short time scales and these changes could be linked to metabolites that are produced during marine microbial activity. When averaged over large spatial and temporal scales, the metabolic activity of individual microorganisms and the chemical interactions between microbes culminate in the observed global elemental cycles. Thus, being able to accurately characterize the major components of the DOM pool would allow scientists to predict the impact of changing ocean chemistry on microbial activity, as well as the marine carbon cycle.
Dr. Kujawinski from Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) will use high resolution mass spectrometry to characterize specific DOM metabolites produced by marine organisms to link specific compounds with specific metabolic pathways of organisms. Through this research, she will be able to identify the DOM compounds that play a significant role in cell-cell interactions in the marine environment, which could provide the chemical framework to enhance our understanding of the short-term DOM variability and microbial processes that take place in the ocean.
Broader Impacts: This research makes provision for support of a new graduate student. The methods developed during this research will be offered to all users of the WHOI FT-MS facility. Furthermore, a travel fund will be augmented for non-WHOI students and postdoctoral researchers who might wish to use the facility. This fund extends the research infrastructure by making the facility more accessible to those outside the institution.
