MICOL-FUNTRANS
HORIZON Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships 2022 "MICOL-FUNTRANS: Microbial soil colonization and structure formation by fungal hyphae mediated transport"
MICOL-FUNTRANS explores a unique microbial feature—the movement of bacteria along fungal hyphae in soil. Fungal hyphae are thread-like filaments that can extend over long distances in soil, forming a “physical connector network” in this complex habitat. Although this phenomenon is not often studied in nature, it may significantly influence many geomicrobiologically mediated processes.
We follow the hypothesis that fungal networks provide preferred travel routes for fungal-associated bacteria, offering a quick and direct way for them to migrate through the soil. In other words, instead of moving randomly through soil, bacteria can effectively “hitch a ride” on fungal filaments, making it easier for them to colonize new areas. Understanding this mechanism is crucial as it holds potential to play a key role in the soil colonization and overall migration of bacteria in soil.
To investigate this, we use custom-designed laboratory microcosms, that allow us to monitor soil colonization rates and the associated biodiversity under different conditions. These findings are scaled up to real-world settings through field experiments in natural chronosequences of soil development in glacier forefields in Greenland, Iceland, and Austria.
The interdisciplinary nature of the project creates new collaborative networks—within the GFZ, throughout the Helmholtz Association at the national level, and with international partners. By bringing together state-of-the-art expertise in geomicrobiology and geochemistry, MICOL-FUNTRANS is pioneering new insights into how microscopic life shapes and transforms our planet’s soils.