Project

The secret garden: diatom adaptation and evolution in benthic environments

Code
01G01323
Duration
01 January 2023 → 31 December 2027
Funding
Regional and community funding: Special Research Fund
Promotor-spokesperson
Research disciplines
  • Natural sciences
    • Computational evolutionary biology, comparative genomics and population genomics
    • Single-cell data analysis
    • Chemical and physical ecology
    • Marine ecology
  • Engineering and technology
    • Environmental marine biotechnology
Keywords
Diatoms phototrophic biofilms sexual life cycles interkingdom signaling bacteria climate change quorum sensing recombination experimental evolution population genomics single-cell RNA-sequencing regulatory pathways biomarkers.
 
Project description

We aim to identify and functionally characterize key adaptations that drive the extraordinary species diversity and ecological success of benthic diatoms. We will employ a multi-disciplinary approach to study the role of climate-sensitive abiotic stressors and diatom-bacteria interactions on life cycle dynamics in existing and newly developed model species, as well as in natural populations.