Overview
ROICE 2016 continued the first expedition with a more precise sampling strategy.
Organized by INCDSB with governmental and Romanian Academy support, the campaign used field mapping and preliminary ROICE 2015 results to broaden research at King Sejong Antarctic Station on King George Island.
Scientific Objectives
Continuity
Continue the INCDSB-KOPRI bilateral scientific collaboration and ROICE 2015 direction.
Climate effects
Investigate climate change effects on microbial communities and glacial ecosystems.
Stable isotopes
Analyze the King George Island hydrological network in relation to microcosm diversity.
Human adaptation
Study erythrocyte viability and pre-/post-expedition physiological changes.
Field and Laboratory Activities
Samples moved from Antarctic field sites into molecular and geochemical workflows.
The team collected water, ice, subglacial water, snow and soil, then filtered samples for DNA extraction, chemical analyses and low-temperature cultivation.
Field network
Approximately 50 locations across King George Island habitats.
Station lab
Around 300 samples processed at King Sejong Research Station.
Integrated workflows
SEM, 16S rRNA, LSU rRNA, Illumina MiSeq, bioinformatics and diversity-chemistry correlations.
Team
Expedition members.
Dr. Cristina Purcărea
Extremophile microbes, polar microbiology, microbial genetics
Dr. Cristian Coman
Microbial ecology, metagenomics, extreme-environment ecosystems
Dr. Iris Maria Tusa
Human adaptation to Antarctica, physiology, microbiology
Dr. Corina Ițcuș
Glacial microbiology, microbial communities, climate impacts
Dr. Aurel Perșoiu
Geology, paleoclimate, geochemistry, Antarctic land processes
Expedition timeline
Five Antarctic campaigns since 2015.
Gallery
Visual record of the expedition.
Sponsors and Supporters