Arctic biofilms:sentinels of environmental change and microbial reservoirs of novel biomolecules

The Arctic is warming at rates more than twice the global average, and much larger changes are projected for high northern latitudes by the end of this century. This collaborative research brings together the Arctic ecological expertise of Université Laval, Canada, and the microbiological and biochemical expertise of CNR, Italy, to determine the microbial composition and function of a major element of northern ecosystems: Arctic biofilm microbiomes.Bacterial taxa from these complex consortia will be isolated and will be taxonomically and biochemically characterized, including to identify biomolecules of potential biotechnological application.