Scientists Warn: Microorganisms Key to Global Sustainability

Scientists recommend that international policies give microorganisms more prominence since they play a critical role in attaining global sustainability.

Four researchers from Ohio State University are part of an international scientific team that is advocating for more acknowledgement of microorganisms in the pursuit of global sustainability. The researchers stress in a recent paper that will be published in Cell that microbes—viruses, fungi, bacteria, and other single-cell organisms—are essential to the survival of life on Earth and may be essential to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the UN.

Microorganisms: Vital to All Life

Ecosystems are based on microorganisms, which allow all animals to survive on land, in the sea, in the air, and inside human bodies. Microbes continue to be under-represented in worldwide sustainability programs, including the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations, despite their vital roles in waste breakdown, nutrient cycling, and oxygen generation. These objectives seek to address issues with inequality, poverty, health, and education as well as environmental problems like climate change.

Ways to Becoming Sustainable

The scientists list seven ways that microbial technology and research could contribute to the attainment of sustainability goals: promoting bioremediation, accelerating bioremediation, regulating global biogeochemical cycles related to climate change, boosting food production and nutrition, producing clean energy, recycling and synthesising products, supporting ecosystem health, and improving health and disease treatment.

This rapidly developing field of study demonstrates the vital roles played by various microbial populations. Effective management of these communities may offer answers to important global issues, such as bettering human health and developing sustainable energy and food systems. Nonetheless, policy frameworks continue to underuse the potential of microorganisms.

Closing the Awareness Divide

The researchers speculate that a dearth of political and public awareness may be one factor contributing to the exclusion of microorganisms from global sustainability initiatives. Even though most people are aware of dangerous bacteria and viruses, there are an estimated 1 trillion types of microorganisms that are beneficial to the health of the planet. These microorganisms can be used for useful purposes, such employing bacteria that have been genetically modified to target cancerous tumours or using microbes to clean up environmental contaminants.

The multidisciplinary character of microbiome research is crucial, according to Matthew Sullivan, founding director of Ohio State’s Centre of Microbiome Science, as it has the potential to scale up microbial solutions to meet global concerns. He said, “Microbiomes impact everything,” adding that the key to realising the sustainability of microbial ecosystems is to comprehend them.

The scientists urge more funding and cooperation between scientists from other fields to fully use microorganisms’ potential for environmental preservation and sustainable development.

Next Article

This post was originally published on here