BIOMIMIC · BIOphysics of MIcrobe-Microplastic Interactions and Colonization
Horizon 2020 — Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions
- Duration
- 2020-09-01 → 2022-08-31
- EU contribution
- €178,320
- Participants
- 1
- Scheme
- MSCA-IF
Lines connect the coordinator with its partners.
Results in brief
BIOphysics of MIcrobe-Microplastic Interactions and Colonization
BIOMIMIC studied the impacts of microplastics on marine microorganisms, and this fundamental problem has far-reaching implications due to the pivotal role of marine microorganisms in modulating the marine ecosystem: sitting at the bottom of the food chain, the perturbations to dynamics and well-being of these microorganisms can create cascading effects, and man-made microplastics, given its high surface-to-volume ratio, fits the description of a phenomenon that can cause such cascading effects. To begin our understanding of the impacts of microplastics on marine microorganisms, BIOMIMIC contributes to this burgeoning field by exploring novel in-lab experimental platform and methods, thereby proposing a sustainable method to study such global-scale, marine-based phenomenon within laboratory settings. Despite prominent impacts of microplastics being already presented in scientific communities and mainstream media, BIOMIMIC strives to create a platform for systematic studies that produces quantitative data that can be reliably analyzed, and doing this within the sustainable research environment of laboratories and current state of technology. The potential data from such lab-based studies, where experimental parameters are well-controlled, allow the audience to better-appreciate the conclusions from such studies without uncertainties due to external factors that arises from real-world studies. Nonetheless, this platform provides room to incorporate and mimic real-world conditions. Overall, BIOMIMIC strives to develop a platform that can lay the foundation for lab-based platform for studying the impacts of microplastics on microorganisms, and potentially further developing it more closely mimic real world conditions. These results are aimed to be disseminated to the wider communities to provide convincing basis to adopt lifestyles and policies for the betterment of our environment.
Data: CORDIS, © European Union
Project objective
Aquatic microbes - both marine and freshwater - drive global biogeochemical cycles. However, owing to the influx of microplastics (MPs) in their natural ecosystems, microbes now face a daunting task of holding such cycles in balance. From passive encounters with suspended particles to active interactions among species, microbes tackle a myriad of environmental signals along the water depths. Crucially, a steady inflow of MPs into aquatic ecosystems has led to reduced species fitness, altered feeding dynamics, and ultimately, ecosystem restructuring. Due to their abundance, durability, and an easy mobility across trophic levels, MPs have been implicated in perturbing diverse aquatic settings. Despite the growing evidence of potentially deleterious ramifications, we still lack a mechanistic understanding of the microbe-MP interactions. BIOMIMIC will zoom into the microscale biophysics mediating the microbe-MP interactions, and develop a mechano-genetic framework to assess the emergent physiological consequences. By combining microfluidics, quantitative imaging, and molecular techniques, I will experimentally simulate, analyse and quantify the impact of MPs on aquatic microbes. To capture ecologically relevant settings, a representative group of bacteria and algal populations will be exposed to MPs with characteristic physico-chemical makeup, over a range of concentrations, and under different hydrodynamic regimes. Specifically, I will uncover MP-induced microbial response: behaviour, physiology, and bio-molecular, and concomitantly, the modification of MP-attributes due to microbial interactions. By cataloging the species-MP encounters in realistic settings, BIOMIMIC will unravel fundamental biophysical principles of microbial response to MPs. Through it's innovative approach, BIOMIMIC, for the first time, will offer a unique framework linking behaviour, physiology and bio-molecular response to MPs, paving the way for potential remediation of this global challenge.
Original text from CORDIS.
Participants
- UNIVERSITE DU LUXEMBOURG · ESCH-SUR-ALZETTECoordinatorLuxembourg
Links
Data: CORDIS, © European Union