MIT Libraries homeMIT Libraries logoDSpace@MIT

MIT
View Item 
  • DSpace@MIT Home
  • MIT Libraries
  • MIT Theses
  • Theses - Dept. of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences
  • Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences - Bachelor's degree
  • View Item
  • DSpace@MIT Home
  • MIT Libraries
  • MIT Theses
  • Theses - Dept. of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences
  • Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences - Bachelor's degree
  • View Item
JavaScript is disabled for your browser. Some features of this site may not work without it.

Exploring the microbe-mediated soil H² sink : a lab-based study of the physiology and related H² consumption of isolates from the Harvard Forest LTER

Author(s)
Rao, Deepa, S.B. Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Thumbnail
DownloadFull printable version (9.540Mb)
Alternative title
Lab-based study of the physiology and related H² consumption of isolates from the Harvard Forest Long Term Ecological Research.
Other Contributors
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences.
Advisor
Laura Meredith and Ron Prinn.
Terms of use
MIT theses are protected by copyright. They may be viewed, downloaded, or printed from this source but further reproduction or distribution in any format is prohibited without written permission. http://dspace.mit.edu/handle/1721.1/7582
Metadata
Show full item record
Abstract
Atmospheric hydrogen (H²) is a secondary greenhouse gas that attenuates the removal of methane (CH⁴) from the atmosphere. The largest and least understood term in the H² biogeochemical cycle, microbe-mediated soil uptake, is responsible for about 80% of Earth's tropospheric H² sink. A recent discovery of the first H²-oxidizing soil microorganism (Streptomyces sp. PCB7) containing a low-threshold, high-affinity NiFe-hydrogenase functional at ambient H² levels (approx. 530 ppb) made it possible to identify a model organism to characterize microbial H²-uptake behavior. In the present research, several strains of Streptomyces containing the high-affinity NiFe-hydrogenase were isolated from the Harvard Forest LTER and used to characterize H² uptake alongside analysis of their life cycles. It was found that containing the gene encoding for the specific hydrogenase predicted H² uptake behavior in the wild Streptomyces strains and also in more distantly related organisms that contained the gene. The H² uptake rates were correlated with the microorganisms' life cycles, reaching a maximal uptake corresponding with spore formation. Understanding how environmental conditions, organismal life cycle, and H² uptake are connected can help reduce the uncertainty in atmospheric models. With the rise of H²-based energy sources and a potential change in the tropospheric concentration of H² , understanding the sources and sinks of this trace gas is important for the future.
Description
Thesis: Ph.D., Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences, 2012.
 
Cataloged from PDF version of thesis.
 
Includes bibliographical references (pages 91-92).
 
Date issued
2012
URI
http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/114352
Department
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences
Publisher
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Keywords
Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences.

Collections
  • Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences - Bachelor's degree
  • Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences - Bachelor's degree

Browse

All of DSpaceCommunities & CollectionsBy Issue DateAuthorsTitlesSubjectsThis CollectionBy Issue DateAuthorsTitlesSubjects

My Account

Login

Statistics

OA StatisticsStatistics by CountryStatistics by Department
MIT Libraries homeMIT Libraries logo

Find us on

Twitter Facebook Instagram YouTube RSS

MIT Libraries navigation

SearchHours & locationsBorrow & requestResearch supportAbout us
PrivacyPermissionsAccessibility
MIT
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Content created by the MIT Libraries, CC BY-NC unless otherwise noted. Notify us about copyright concerns.