Second microbe group post

Hello again from the microbe group!

Since our first post, we have collected water and sediment samples that we will extract DNA and RNA from so that we can investigate the microbial community and activity. These cores are about 2 meters long (photo below), so we need to cut them up into smaller pieces (photo below) for further processing.

Each core segment ends up being roughly 25cm long. We drill a small hole into the top part of each segment so that our collaborators from TAMUCC can capture methane gas, if it is present. Our group takes oxygen measurements (photo below) from that same hole, then we cut open a rectangular window and remove some of the sediment (photo below) to freeze for processing back at our lab at the University of South Alabama.

We wear gloves, face masks, and hairnets to ensure we don’t accidentally put our bacteria into these samples. We also wear safety glasses when we use power tools to drill the holes and cut the rectangular window.

We have six cores so far and we hope to get many more, but the coring equipment and ice formation will determine what additional samples we get. Keep your fingers crossed for us!

Dr. Katie Howe
University of South Alabama