SAN FRANCISCO, Aug. 25, 2020 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Today, Laboratory for Research in Complex Systems (LRC), announced it has been awarded a grant to join 41 other international scientific teams working collaboratively on The Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation's Symbiosis in Aquatic Systems Initiative. The Moore Foundation fosters path-breaking scientific discovery, environmental conservation, patient care improvements and preservation of the special character of the Bay Area. The funding will provide the scientific community with new tools and laboratory techniques to develop new model systems and capabilities in the understanding of aquatic symbioses.
Symbiosis is a phenomenon where two organisms live in a tight physical association and benefit from each other. Such associations not only are thought to be at the origin of complex life, they also continue to keep shaping it by playing a central role in the ecology and evolution of present-day species. Scientists at LRC aim to gain a better understanding of one particular type of symbiosis - chemosynthetic symbiosis - where microbes or animals harness the power of chemosynthetic bacteria that are capable of producing organic compounds in the dark. Discovered in the deep sea in the '70s, chemosynthetic symbioses are ubiquitous on Earth. Despite their common occurrence, however, lack of good model systems to design experiments and test hypotheses have hampered efforts to better understand the process and the exciting biology behind these associations.
With this grant, LRC will receive support to pursue ambitious research aimed at conceptual and methodological advances in symbiotic systems where the same symbiont is associated with different hosts. "The Moore Foundation's commitment to blending leaders in aquatic symbiosis research with scientists from other areas for sharing perspectives and fostering integrative brainstorming echoes LRC's mission to serve as an ideas hub for high-level transdisciplinary research to propel innovations that can change the world," said Dr. Shailesh Date, founder CEO of LRC Systems. "Collaborating with these brilliant teams will foster new ideas and principles that could push the aquatic symbiosis field years ahead."
Aquatic environments are Earth's largest natural habitat with evolutionary processes continuously underway. A significant portion of Earth's biodiversity lives in marine and freshwater ecosystems with much of this unexplored. Understanding the biological interdependence of organisms within these aquatic environments provides critical insight into their evolution and role in ecological systems. The Symbiosis in Aquatic Systems Initiative will provide learnings on the role symbiotic interactions play in the larger world's evolution and function.
For more information about the LRC team and its role in the Symbiosis in Aquatic Systems Initiative, visit https://www.lrc.systems.
To learn about the Moore Foundation's Symbiosis in Aquatic Systems Initiative, visit https://www.moore.org/article-detail?newsUrlName=building-community-to-accelerate-the-pace-of-model-system-development-in-aquatic-symbiosis.
About LRC Systems
Laboratory for Research in Complex Systems (LRC) develops powerful research-based solutions that drive scientific, commercial and social breakthroughs. Led by a team of trailblazers from industry and academia, LRC uniquely combines advances in natural and quantitative sciences with cutting-edge technology to help solve fundamental health, economic and social problems for public and private organizations. LRC serves as an ideas hub for high-level transdisciplinary research that is bigger, faster and more impactful, to propel innovations that can change the world.
SOURCE LRC Systems
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