The southern gap in ocean microbiome science

The ocean microbiome is at the forefront of science, and although most of the global ocean lies in the southern hemisphere, research efforts have historically been concentrated in the northern hemisphere, leaving important southern regions underexplored. Here, we address this geographic gap in ocean microbiome research, including sampling efforts, access to technology, and expert human resources. We showcase north–south and south-south collaborations and discuss the main challenges posed by parachute research, and collective efforts to avoid it and achieve shared capacity, equitable access to knowledge, and shared benefits. Our recommendations emphasize the importance of actively involving students and researchers from low- and middle-income countries from the global south in co-designing global ocean microbiome research.

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Publication Details

Journal
Ocean Microbiology
Published
2025-10-17
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1186/s44375-025-00006-w
Citations
3
Primary Topic
Microbial Community Ecology and Physiology
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
5.15

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The southern gap in ocean microbiome science

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3 citations
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Microbial Community Ecology and Physiology
5.15
article

The southern gap in ocean microbiome science

Michael P. Meredith, Giorgio Dall’Olmo, Silvia G. Acinas, András Hidas, Stéphane Pesant, J. Michel Flores, Cláudia Delgado, Célio Dias Santos Júnior, Meike Vogt, Domenico D’Alelio, Luke Thompson, Karine Labadie, Pierre E. Galand, Rubens M. Lopes, Ralf Schwamborn, David G. Johns, Fabio Benedetti, Natasha Karenyi, Hugo Sarmento, Flora Vincent, Cosimo Solidoro, Shinichi Sunagawa, Clara Arboleda-Baena, Olivier Jaillon, Samuel Chaffron, Douglas Couet, Tonje Marita Bjerkan Heggeset, Georg Pohnert, Marion Gehlen, Nicole Dames, Céline Dimier, Samuel Kakambi Mafwila, Helena Cruz de Carvalho, Serena Zunino, Diana Sousa, Ferenc Jordán, Ludmilla Veado, Catherine Longo, Andréa Green Koettker, Valeria A. Guinder, Bruno Buongiorno Nardelli, Alessandro Tagliabue, Andrea Santarosa Freire, Alice Soccodato, Pedro C. Junger, Ulisse Cardini, Lucia Campese, Érica Caroline Becker, Rémi Laxenaire, Martín Saraceno, Simone Libralato, Emma Rocke, Suzana Nicolau, Nastassia Patin, Antonella Ruggiero, Giancarlo Bachi, Marco Bellacicco, Federico M. Ibarbalz, Ricardo Oliveira, Luigi Maiorano, Louise Carin Gammage, Daniela Bănaru, Lars‐Éric Heimbürger‐Boavida, Sabrina Speich, Romain Troublé, Josep M. Gasol, Moacyr Araújo, Giang‐Son Nguyen, Thulani P. Makhalanyane, Raffaella Casotti, Pedro H. Oliveira, Erik Muxagata, Damien Eveillard, Paula Huber, Léa Olivier, Donata Melaku Canu, Andre Luis Abreu, Matteo Loschi, Pablo Pita, Colomban de Vargas, Daniele Iudicone, Linda Amaral-Zettler, Saliou Faye, Chris Bowler, Cora Hörstmann
article en
3 citations

Abstract

The ocean microbiome is at the forefront of science, and although most of the global ocean lies in the southern hemisphere, research efforts have historically been concentrated in the northern hemisphere, leaving important southern regions underexplored. Here, we address this geographic gap in ocean microbiome research, including sampling efforts, access to technology, and expert human resources. We showcase north–south and south-south collaborations and discuss the main challenges posed by parachute research, and collective efforts to avoid it and achieve shared capacity, equitable access to knowledge, and shared benefits. Our recommendations emphasize the importance of actively involving students and researchers from low- and middle-income countries from the global south in co-designing global ocean microbiome research.

Ocean MicrobiologyVol. 1(1)
Florida State University (US), Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (AR), University of Cape Town (ZA), Universidade Federal de São Carlos (BR), Stellenbosch University (ZA), Station Biologique de Roscoff (FR), École Normale Supérieure - PSL (FR), Laboratoire des Sciences du Numérique de Nantes (FR), Adaptation et Diversité en Milieu Marin (FR), Institut de Biologie de l'École Normale Supérieure (FR), Laboratoire de l'Atmosphère et des Cyclones (RE), Instituto Nacional de Limnología (AR), The Audio Recording Academy (CA), Nantes Université (FR)
European Commission, Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo, Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico, Horizon 2020 Framework Programme
Openalex Percentile: Top 5%
Microbial Community Ecology and Physiology
5.15
DOIOpen Access PDFOpenAlex
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