Biological Soil Crust Diversity and Variability of the Artic and Antarctic

<p>Biological Soil Crusts (BSC) are important primary producers in the terrestrial habitats of the polar regions. We aim to provide a precise evaluation of the biodiversity and ecological adaptation of polar BSC. Arctic samples were collected in August 2015 in close vicinity to Ny Ålesund and Longyearbyen. Antarctic samples were collected in January 2015 from the area around the Spanish research station Juan Carlos I on Livingston Island, South Shetland Islands in the western Antarctic. Biodiversity of the samples will be investigated in Rostock and Kaiserslautern, whereas in Cologne we will use a metagenomic and metatranscriptomic approach to investigate the genetic adaptation of selected cyanobacteria and green algae to their habitat.</p> <p> The planned outline for the Cologne subproject includes metagenomic and metatranscriptomic analysis of the BSC samples. To enable comparison of the material collected on Spitsbergen and Livingston Island we will investigate a BSC dominated by <em>Nostoc</em> from each location and a BSC dominated by green algae (e.g. <em>Klebsormidium</em>). Furthermore, transcriptomic data of <em>Nostoc</em> and <em>Klebsormidium</em> cultures, which are exposed to different stress conditions, will be generated to complement our results.</p