C-DEBI Newsletter – March 1, 2019

Publications & Press

Applied and Environmental Microbiology
Growth Kinetics, Carbon Isotope Fractionation, and Gene Expression in the Hyperthermophile Methanocaldococcus jannaschii during Hydrogen-Limited Growth and Interspecies Hydrogen Transfer – NEW!
Begüm D. Topçuoğlu, Cem Meydan, Tran B. Nguyen, Susan Q. Lang*, James F. Holden
*C-DEBI Contribution 465

Hyperthermophilic methanogens are often H₂ limited in hot subseafloor environments and their survival may be due in part to physiological adaptations to low H₂ conditions and interspecies H₂ transfer. The hyperthermophilic methanogen Methanocaldococcus jannaschii was grown in monoculture at high (80-83 μM) and low (15-27 μM) aqueous H₂ concentrations and in co-culture with the hyperthermophilic H₂ producer Thermococcus paralvinellae. The purpose was to measure changes in growth and CH₄ production kinetics, CH₄ fractionation, and gene expression in M. jannaschii with changes in H₂ flux. Growth and cell-specific CH₄ production rates of M. jannaschii decreased with decreasing H₂ availability and decreased further in co-culture. However, cell yield (cells produced per mole of CH₄ produced) increased six-fold when M. jannaschii was grown in co-culture relative to monoculture. Relative to high H₂concentrations, isotopic fractionation of CO₂ to CH₄ (ϵ_CO2-CH4) was 16‰ larger for cultures grown at low H₂ concentrations and 45‰ and 56‰ larger for M. jannaschii growth in co-culture on maltose and formate, respectively. Gene expression analyses showed H₂-dependent methylene-tetrahydromethanopterin (H₄MPT) dehydrogenase expression decreased and coenzyme F₄₂₀-dependent methylene-H₄MPT dehydrogenase expression increased with decreasing H₂ availability and in co-culture growth. In co-culture, gene expression decreased for membrane-bound ATP synthase and hydrogenase. The results suggest that H₂ availability significantly affects the CH₄ and biomass production and CH₄ fractionation by hyperthermophilic methanogens in their native habitats.
 

NSF-UNOLS: EOS article on Strategies for Conducting 21st Century Oceanographic Research – NEW!
The UNOLS Logistics Working Group would like to announce the an EoS article entitled “Strategies for Conducting 21st Century Oceanographic Research.” Planning for cruises in/out of foreign ports and applying for marine research clearances takes a lot of time and effort. The UNOLS Logistics Working Group, comprised of scientists, operators and funding agency representatives, reviewed vessel policies and sticking points around working in foreign ports and obtaining marine science research (MSR) clearances.  The EoS article builds from the committee’s white paper on “Proposing, Planning, and Executing Logistics involved in Oceanographic Field Operations in Foreign Waters and Ports“ and its appendix in an effort to further awareness of the issues, responsibilities and key topics in planning for these complex cruises. If you will be working in/out of a foreign port or applying for an MSR clearance, we encourage you to read the article and pass it along to anyone else who this might impact.

Proposal Calls

AGU: Submit a nomination for the Taira Prize
Deadline to nominate: March 15, 2019.

NSF-UNOLS: Invitation to Participate in AXIAL aboard the R/V Marcus Langseth – NEW!
We are opening a call for the selection of current M.Sc. or Ph.D. students along with early career scientists to participate in the NSF funded project AXIAL aboard the R/V Marcus Langseth during the summer of 2019. The 33 day research cruise will allow participation in all facets of ship operation, including deployment of scientific instrumentation, keeping watch during data collection, initial onboard data processing, an onboard reading and discussion group and workshops for mapping and seismic processing. We encourage a diverse group of participants including women and demographics underrepresented in the geoscience community. Applications due April 1, 2019.

IODP-USSSP: Apply to Sail on Expedition 388: Equatorial Atlantic Gateway
The deadline to apply is April 1, 2019.

NSF: Opportunities for Promoting Understanding through Synthesis (OPUS)
Full proposal deadline: August 5, 2019.

NSF: Biological Oceanography
Full proposal deadline date: August 15, 2019.

NSF: Chemical Oceanography
Full proposal deadline date: August 15, 2019.

NSF: Physical Oceanography
Full proposal deadline date: August 15, 2019.

NSF: Accelerating Research through International Network-to-Network Collaborations (AccelNet)
Letter of intent due date: October 30, 2019.

NSF: Research Traineeship (NRT) Program
Next letter of intent window: November 25, 2019 – December 6, 2019.

Rolling Calls:

• C-DEBI: Rolling call for Research Exchange proposals
• DCO: Deep Life Cultivation Internship Program
• IODP-USSSP: Proposals for Pre-Drilling Activities
• NSF: Arctic Sciences Program Solicitation
• NSF: Division of Environmental Biology (core programs) (DEB)
• NSF: Infrastructure Innovation for Biological Research (IIBR)
• NSF: Instrument Capacity for Biological Research (ICBR)
• NSF: Non-Academic Research Internships for Graduate Students (INTERN) Supplemental Funding Opportunity
• NSF: Research Assistantships for High School Students (RAHSS): Funding to Broaden Participation in the Biological Sciences
• NSF: Research Experience for Teachers (RET): Funding Opportunity in the Biological Sciences
• NSF: Tribal Colleges and Universities Program (TCUP)

Employment

UCSD: Assistant Researcher in Marine Aquaculture / Marine Omics – NEW!
The Scripps Institution of Oceanography (SIO) at the University of California San Diego invites applications for a full-time Researcher position to be funded largely by extramural research grants and contracts in any of two areas: 1) Marine aquaculture research including micro and macroalgae, shellfish, or finfish and may include the basic biology of aquaculture species with application for enhanced productivity; 2) Marine “omics” research including applications of genomics, transcriptomics, proteomics and metabolomics to address fundamental questions in ocean biosciences and issues related to human health and the oceans. The Researcher series at SIO parallels the Professor series in terms of expectations for research and service but carries no teaching requirements. Researchers receive nine-month appointments with 25% salary support from institutional sources. Externally funded research programs are expected to provide the remaining salary support, including an opportunity for summer salary. Researchers at SIO often obtain lecturer appointments in the SIO department, which provides a mechanism to serve as a graduate student advisor. For full consideration, please apply by the April 1, 2019.

UNH: Research Faculty – NEW!
The University of New Hampshire (UNH) School of Marine Science and Ocean Engineering (SMSOE) of the Institute for the Study of Earth, Oceans, and Space (EOS) invites applications at the rank of Associate or Full Research Professor in the broad area of Marine Science. The successful applicant can expect to interact with faculty from the life sciences, ocean engineering, Earth sciences, and oceanography as well as the social sciences and humanities to address critical coastal and marine science problems in new and coordinated ways. The successful candidate will have a strong track record of research demonstrating outstanding potential for establishing his or her own independent research program and to raise his/her salary from external grants, be a proven programmatic and organizational leader, and a distinguished scientist with international connections and diverse perspectives. While primarily a research appointment, graduate level teaching and research interaction with diverse students is encouraged.

MSU: Assistant/Associate Professor of Environmental Microbiology

Princeton University: Assistant Professor

U Toronto: Postdoctoral Positions in Fluid-Rock Interactions and Deep Subsurface Life

TAMU: Instructional Assistant Professor