NfoLD Webinar — February 2022 — Chris Greening
"Atmospheric trace gases: hidden energy sources enabling extreme life"
Presented by Dr. Chris Greening of Monash University
About Dr. Greening:
Associate Professor Chris Greening leads the One Health Microbiology Laboratory at Monash University, Melbourne, Australia. After completing a BSc/MSc in Molecular and Cellular Biochemistry (University of Oxford, 2010) and PhD in Molecular Microbiology (University of Otago, 2014), he established his group in 2016. He hosts a diverse team of microbiologists, biochemists, ecologists, and bioinformaticians seeking to understand the causes and consequences of bacterial persistence. He has published over 85 papers, the majority in highly ranked journals, and has received multiple early-career fellowships and awards.
Talk Abstract:
Bacteria have an extraordinary capacity to colonise even the most barren environments. Our research program has shown that bacterial colonisation and viability depends on previously unrecognized metabolic capabilities. During this seminar, I will detail the surprising finding that aerobic bacteria and archaea can ‘live on air’, i.e. scavenge atmospheric hydrogen and carbon monoxide as alternative energy sources. Through research focused on the model bacterium Mycobacterium smegmatis, I will explain the role, basis, and controls of this process. I will then provide culture-based and culture-independent evidence that diverse soil and marine bacteria also meet their energy needs through this process, before explaining that certain ecosystems such as Antarctic soils are primarily driven by atmospheric energy sources. The wider implications for these findings, including for discovering extraterrestrial life and planetary protection, will also be discussed.
