Project 7

Fundamental Principles of Microbiome Dynamics

The complexity of microbial community behavior is shaped not only by which functions members can perform but also by the distribution, complementarity, and redundancy of these functions within the community. Microbiome research is often highly fragmentary, limited to system-specific interpretations of observed microbiome dynamics. Project 7 is structured into three Work packages that all follow a uniquely broad approach to identifying fundamental mechanisms of microbiome dynamics.

We aim to identify general mechanisms of growth and turnover in complex microbial communities by investigating microbial ecosystems as distinct as human gut, soil, and ocean. The results will also complement efforts to investigate the growth law as a central ecological theory in this module.

Growth dynamics of complex communities are shaped not only by environmental constraints but also strongly by internal interactions. We will enhance our understanding of microbial interaction mechanisms and interaction networks in complex microbiomes.

Interaction networks are essential not only for community growth and turnover but also for community functions and services and for how they respond to perturbations or changes in environmental conditions. We strive to identify universal patterns of how microbial communities respond to pulsed perturbations or oscillating environmental conditions, which is a phenomenon most natural communities experience.