From The International Space Station To Tropical Rainforests And Polar Ice Caps: Microbial Communities Foretell The Effects Of Climate Change

Background: Now more than ever, the deleterious effects of climate change and the imminent threat it poses to the entirety of human experiences are at the forefront of globally challenging issues. Numerous studies have sought to explore the effects of climate change in light of varying facets; however, the effect on the microbiome remains an under-researched area. In a novel approach of applying unsupervised learning and dimensionality reduction techniques for the actualisation of patterns associated with climactic disruption across diversified ecosystems, we compare microbial samples from habitually receptive and unreceptive areas worldwide. This comparison attempts to determine how the microbiome and, by extension macroscopic life, will adapt to altered global climates. Results: Based on cluster profiling, we present two significant overall inferences in summation of our methodological approach to the subject. Firstly we present that radiation exposure resulting from climate change has a concordance effect on microbial community compositions, as manifested in the clustering of samples from aboard the International Space Station (ISS), Chernobyl and Polar seawater. Secondly, we present that the lack of environmental biodiversity impacts microbial biodiversity to reduce it just as increased levels of biodiversity correlate to increased levels of microbial footprint richness. This, we deduced from the clustering profiles of extreme and habitually receptive environmental microbiomes. Our clustering results are validated in the existing literature. Conclusions: Based on the results of our work, we conclude that the environmental changes succeeding climate change render microbial footprints of habitually imperceptive environments specifically altered from the microbiomes of ecologically conserved regions, with noted effects of radiation exposure. We also note correlation dynamics that potentiate the survival of life in light of global warming. Our work may inform and aid shape decisions and policies about the overall issue and microbial survival in particular, with special regard to the applicability of reductional techniques, in navigating a post-climate change world.