Mangrove Microbiome Initiative (MMI)

Overview

Mangrove ecosystems provide important ecological benefits and ecosystem services, including acting as major carbon sinks and stabilizing coastlines; but they also suffer great anthropogenic pressures. Microorganisms associated with mangrove sediments and the rhizosphere play principal roles in this ecosystem and make essential contributions to its productivity and carbon economy. Understanding this nexus and moving from descriptive studies of microbial taxonomy to hypothesis-driven field and lab studies will facilitate a mechanistic understanding of mangrove ecosystem interaction webs, and opportunities for microorganism-mediated approaches to mangrove protection and rehabilitation. Such an effort requires a multidisciplinary and collaborative approach, involving chemists, ecologists, evolutionary biologists, microbiologists, oceanographers, plant scientists, conservation biologists and government representatives, using standardized methods.
We have formed the Mangrove Microbiome Initiative (MMI), an international network of researchers aimed at advancing mangrove microbiome research through collaboration, discussion, and advocacy. Read our recent Perspectives article (https://bit.ly/3o8FpK9) for our thoughts on the most urgent research priorities to advance the field.
The aim of this platform is to facilitate the collaborative work between us, strengthening the efforts towards marine ecosystem recovery and protection. We are always accepting new members who are willing to join and build the network. To start, we have an email group to facilitate our interaction, a twitter account and this website. We use the email group to share ideas, protocols, organize small groups to apply for funding, standardize methods, ask for tips and help when running experiments, etc. Ultimately we seek to organize manuscripts, workshops and joint applications for funding.

How to Join

click here:
https://forms.gle/ZCGzqRwBu9BG5jvC8

 

Chairs:
Alexandre Rosado – King Abdullah University of Science and Technology – KAUST, Saudi Arabia

Jack Gilbert – University of California San Diego, USA

Sarah M. Allard – University of California San Diego, USA

Jeff Bowman – University of California San Diego, USA

 

Team:

Ian M. Head, Newcastle University, UK

Jorge Rodrigues, University of California Davis

Norman Duke, James Cook University, Australia

Martin Zimmer Leibniz-Centre for Marine Tropical Research (ZMT) and University of Bremen, Germany

Jonathan Eisen, University of California Davis

Howard Junca, Microbiomas Foundation, Chia, Colombia and Leibniz Institute DSMZ-German Collection of Microorganisms and Cell Cultures GmbH, Germany

Vânia Melo, Federal University of Ceará , Brazil

Christiane Hassenrück, Leibniz-Centre for Marine Tropical Research (ZMT), Germany

Véronique Helfer, Leibniz-Centre for Marine Tropical Research (ZMT), Germany

Raquel Peixoto, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology – KAUST, Saudi Arabia

Huxley Makonde, Technical University of Mombasa, Kenya

Diego Javier Jiménez Avella, Universidad de los Andes, Bogotá, Colombia

Matthew T. Costa, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, USA

Daniele G. Daffonchio, KAUST, Saudi Arabia

Laetitia Wilkins, University of California Davis, USA

Karsten Zengler, University of California San Diego, USA

Jeff S. Bowman, University of California San Diego, USA

Ashley Bulseco, MBL, Woods Hole, Massachusetts, USA

Tallita Tavares, Federal University of Ceara, Brazil

Marco Fusi, Edinburgh Napier University, UK

Octavio Aburto Oropeza, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC San Diego, USA

Inka Vanwonterghem, Australian Centre for Ecogenomics (ACE), The University of Queensland, Australia

Natalia Galud Erazo, University of California San Diego, USA

Carlos Duarte, KAUST, Saudi Arabia

Steven Canty, Smithsonian Marine Station, FL, USA

Jennifer Rowntree, Manchester Metropolitan University, UK

Terrence Forrester, The University of the West Indies, Jamaica

Luke Thompson, NOAA Northern Gulf Institute, FL, USA

Meng Li, University,Shenzhen, China

Sean Crowe, The University of Hong Kong, China

Aristóteles Góes-Neto, Federal University of Minas Gerais, Brazil

Vasco Azevedo, Federal University of Minas Gerais, Brazil

Punyasloke Bhadury, Indian Institute of Science Education and Research Kolkata, India

Dayana E. Salas, Dalhousie University, Canada