Research project How does meltwater affect marine microbial metabolic diversity, production and nutrient cycling?
- a study in the Central Arctic Ocean
The purpose of this research project is to complement the existing knowledge on the global marine microbiome (bacteria, archaea, fungi, protists) with data from the Central Arctic Ocean (CAO). This includes not only mapping the full collection of genes in the microbial communities living in different sympagic (ice-associated), pelagic and benthic microhabitats, but also to analyse gene expression, both in the field and during incubation experiments, and to relate the results to biogeochemical cycling. Samples were collected during the international MOSAiC expedition (2019-2020) and the Swedish SAS-Oden expedition (2021). Our main research question is if the carbon and nitrogen metabolisms of microbial communities will change when the CAO transforms from a permanent ice-covered ecosystem into a seasonal one through increased meltwater influence? Specific hypotheses we test are: (a) that biological N2-fixation is a significant source of new nitrogen to the oligotrophic CAO marine ecosystem, and (b) that urea is an alternative substrate for ammonium oxidation and chemoautotrophic CO2 fixation in the CAO, especially at low ammonium availability.
Project members
Project managers
Pauline Snoeijs Leijonmalm
Professor
Members
Javier Vargas Calle
Anders Torstensson
Publications
Snoeijs-Leijonmalm, P. and the SAS-Oden 2021 Scientific Party (2022)
Expedition Report SWEDARCTIC Synoptic Arctic Survey 2021 with icebreaker Oden. Swedish Polar Research Secretariat. 300 pp.