Researchers call for the study and protection of the marine microbiome

A study recently published in the journal Nature Microbiology highlights the priorities for understanding and protecting the ocean microbiome, which include describing interactions between marine microbiota, sustainable ocean observations, the promotion of ocean and microbial literacy, sustainably applying resources from oceanic microbes, creating policy- and funder-friendly ocean education resources, the development of research infrastructures and dedicated funding programmes, and suggests how best to achieve these ambitious goals.

Abstract

Microbial communities have essential roles in ocean ecology and planetary health. Microbes participate in nutrient cycles, remove huge quantities of carbon dioxide from the air and support ocean food webs. The taxonomic and functional diversity of the global ocean microbiome has been revealed by technological advances in sampling, DNA sequencing and bioinformatics. A better understanding of the ocean microbiome could underpin strategies to address environmental and societal challenges, including achievement of multiple Sustainable Development Goals way beyond SDG 14 ‘life below water’. We propose a set of priorities for understanding and protecting the ocean microbiome, which include delineating interactions between microbiota, sustainably applying resources from oceanic microorganisms and creating policy- and funder-friendly ocean education resources, and discuss how to achieve these ambitious goals.

Read the full publication here:

Tara Ocean Foundation., Tara Oceans., European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL). et al. (2022). Priorities for ocean microbiome research. Nature Microbiology 7, 937–947. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41564-022-01145-5