{"id":157944,"date":"2022-04-25T08:00:49","date_gmt":"2022-04-25T18:00:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/?p=157944"},"modified":"2022-04-25T16:21:18","modified_gmt":"2022-04-26T02:21:18","slug":"microbes-role-climate-change","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/2022\/04\/25\/microbes-role-climate-change\/","title":{"rendered":"Microbes play critical role in climate change in new report"},"content":{"rendered":"Reading time: <\/span> 3<\/span> minutes<\/span><\/span>
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Algal blooms can endanger humans and animals. (Photo credit: ASM<\/abbr> Microbes & Climate Change Report.)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Microbes may be small, but they are highly impactful to environmental and human health amid a changing climate. The American Society for Microbiology<\/a> (ASM<\/abbr>) issued a new report, Microbes and Climate Change: Science, People & Impacts<\/a>, co-authored by David Karl<\/strong>, a University of Â鶹´«Ã½<\/span> at Mānoa oceanographer, and more than 30 experts from diverse disciplines, illuminating how microbes can help us adapt to climate change.<\/p>\n

As major drivers of elemental cycles and producers and consumers of three of the gases responsible for 98% of increased global warming (carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide), microbes have a pivotal impact on climate change and are, in turn, impacted by it. To fully understand how to adapt to climate change, it is critical to learn how our changing climate will impact microbes and how they relate to humans and the environment.<\/p>\n

“It has been said that the very great is achieved by the very small,” said Karl. “Micobes matter!” Since 1988 Karl and his colleagues have been tracking changes in the ecology of marine microbes in response to climate change at UH<\/abbr>‘s deep sea observatory, Station ALOHA<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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Bleached coral, Acoropora sp.<\/em> (Photo credit: ASM<\/abbr> Microbes and Climate Change Report)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

This report is the outcome of ASM<\/abbr>\u2019s November 2021 colloquium meeting, which brought together more than 30 experts from diverse disciplines and sectors who provided multifaceted perspectives and insights. The American Academy of Microbiology, the honorific leadership group and think tank within ASM<\/abbr>, convened the colloquium.<\/p>\n

Karl, who is also the director of the Center for Microbial Oceanography: Research and Education<\/a> in UH<\/abbr> Mānoa\u2019s School of Ocean and Earth Science and Technology<\/a> (SOEST<\/abbr>), was a key participant in the colloquium and contributed to the report. He was also an author on the companion paper, Microbes and Climate Change, a Research Prospectus for the Future<\/em><\/a>, published this week in mBio<\/em>. The mBio<\/em> paper builds on concepts discussed at the November colloquium meeting and provides an extended view and opinions on research needed to fill in the knowledge gaps.<\/p>\n

The microbial sciences can provide us with invaluable insights in how to adapt to climate change and its cascading effects. From developing alternative fuels to preventing the spread of pathogens, the applications of microbes are vast and far-reaching. The report details major recommendations for researchers, policymakers and regulators.<\/p>\n

Key report recommendations:<\/p>\n