Microbial community structure and dynamics on patchy landscapes

Thesis: Ph. D., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Computational and Systems Biology Program, 2016.

Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Datta, Manoshi Sen
Other Authors: Jeff Gore, Otto X. Cordero and Martin F. Polz.
Format: Thesis
Language:eng
Published: Massachusetts Institute of Technology 2016
Subjects:
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/104464
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author Datta, Manoshi Sen
author2 Jeff Gore, Otto X. Cordero and Martin F. Polz.
author_facet Jeff Gore, Otto X. Cordero and Martin F. Polz.
Datta, Manoshi Sen
author_sort Datta, Manoshi Sen
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description Thesis: Ph. D., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Computational and Systems Biology Program, 2016.
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spelling mit-1721.1/1044642019-04-11T10:32:57Z Microbial community structure and dynamics on patchy landscapes Datta, Manoshi Sen Jeff Gore, Otto X. Cordero and Martin F. Polz. Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Computational and Systems Biology Program. Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Computational and Systems Biology Program. Computational and Systems Biology Program. Thesis: Ph. D., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Computational and Systems Biology Program, 2016. This electronic version was submitted by the student author. The certified thesis is available in the Institute Archives and Special Collections. Cataloged from student-submitted PDF version of thesis. Includes bibliographical references (pages 139-156). Microbes are tiny metabolic engines with large-scale effects on industry, the environment, and human health. Understanding how the micron-scale actions (and interactions) of individual microbes give rise to macro-scale consequences remains a major challenge in microbial ecology. However, for the most part, studies employ coarsegrained sampling schemes, which average over the heterogeneous microscopic structure of microbial communities. This has limited our ability to establish mechanistic links between dynamics occurring across these disparate spatial scales. However, such links are critical for (a) making sense of the tremendous extant microbial diversity on Earth, and (b) predicting how perturbations (e.g., global climate change) may influence microbial diversity and function. In this thesis, I characterize the structure and dynamics of wild bacterial populations in the ocean at spatial scales of tens of microns. I then employ a simple, two-strain laboratory model system to link (cooperative) inter-species interactions at local scales to emergent properties at larger scales, focusing on spatially connected meta-communities undergoing range expansions into new territory. This work encompasses diverse environments (ranging from well-mixed communities in the laboratory to individual crustaceans) and approaches (including mathematical modeling, highthroughput sequencing, and traditional microbiological experiments). Altogether, we find that the microscale environment inhabited by a microbe - that is, "what the neighborhood is like" and "who lives next to whom" - shapes the structure and dynamics of wild microbial populations at local scales. Moreover, these local interactions can drive patterns of biodiversity and function, even at spatial scales much larger than the length of an individual cell. Thus, our work represents a small step toward developing mechanistic theories for how microbes shape our planet's ecosystems. by Manoshi Sen Datta. Ph. D. 2016-09-30T18:24:53Z 2016-09-30T18:24:53Z 2016 2016 Thesis http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/104464 958681933 eng M.I.T. theses are protected by copyright. They may be viewed from this source for any purpose, but reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without written permission. See provided URL for inquiries about permission. http://dspace.mit.edu/handle/1721.1/7582 156 pages application/pdf Massachusetts Institute of Technology
spellingShingle Computational and Systems Biology Program.
Datta, Manoshi Sen
Microbial community structure and dynamics on patchy landscapes
title Microbial community structure and dynamics on patchy landscapes
title_full Microbial community structure and dynamics on patchy landscapes
title_fullStr Microbial community structure and dynamics on patchy landscapes
title_full_unstemmed Microbial community structure and dynamics on patchy landscapes
title_short Microbial community structure and dynamics on patchy landscapes
title_sort microbial community structure and dynamics on patchy landscapes
topic Computational and Systems Biology Program.
url http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/104464
work_keys_str_mv AT dattamanoshisen microbialcommunitystructureanddynamicsonpatchylandscapes