PhD Studentship: Developing Non-model Microorganisms for a Net Zero Future

This 3.5 year PhD project is being funded by the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences. The start date is 1st October. Tuition fees will be paid and you will receive a tax free stipend based on the UKRI rate (£19,237 for 2024/25).

This project intends to leverage the power of engineering biology / synthetic biology to contribute innovative solutions for climate change mitigation. Microorganisms have been converting CO2 into organic compounds for billions of years, yet their role in enabling humankind to become carbon neutral has been underutilised. This is in large part due to the relatively small number of model organisms that are used in microbial biotechnology, so far none of them deriving from CO2-rich environments. In this project we will explore the diversity and genetic tractability of microorganisms inhabiting geothermal springs, in order to develop new microbial chassis for CO2 upcycling.

Geothermal springs in Iceland are subject to naturally high CO2 fluxes from volcanic and tectonic activity, and are inhabited by often prolific microbial communities. Light-independent carbon fixation is the predominant mode of primary production at temperatures above 40-50°C, though this ability is widespread in cooler springs too. This represents an attractive opportunity to apply this natural proficiency to our biggest environmental problem to date: the burden of anthropogenic CO2 in our atmosphere.

Using a combination of metagenomics-informed culturing and engineering biology approaches, we will test the following research questions:

1. Which CO2-fixing community members can be isolated? Who (exactly) are they?
2. Are these isolates genetically tractable?
3. Can the range of value-added products from CO2 be enhanced through genome engineering?
4. How do these new chassis compare to CO2-enriched stable communities?

The project will build on a BBSRC Stratregic Longer and Larger Award (sLoLa) that seeks to understand the rules of life in microbiomes from CO2-rich geothermal springs. It will therefore benefit from substantial metagenomic, multi-omics and modelling data generated through the sLoLa. The ultimate goal of the sLoLa project is to harness CO2-fixing microorganisms to convert waste CO2 emissions to metabolic by-products of added value, such as low-value high-yield platform chemicals (e.g. polymer precursors) and high-value low-yield fine chemicals (e.g. pharmaceuticals).

The PhD student will receive broad interdisciplinary training including (meta)genomic bioinformatics (esp. metabolic predictions and phylogenomics), novel microbial cultivation / isolation approaches, and genome engineering tools.

Applicants should have, or expect to achieve, at least a 2.1 honours degree or a master’s (or international equivalent) in a relevant science or engineering related discipline.

We strongly recommend contacting the lead supervisor, Dr Sophie Nixon, for this project before you apply: sophie.nixon@manchester.ac.uk.

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