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AMT-omics: Atlantic Meridional Transect ‘omics network

The Atlantic Meridional Transect (AMT) programme, established in 1995 and coordinated by Plymouth Marine Laboratory, has now conducted 30 research cruises between the UK and the South Atlantic.

The structure and biogeochemical properties of planktonic ecosystems are studied in detail with each cruise spanning more than 100° of latitude with depths of 1000 m and crossing a range of ecosystems from sub-polar to tropical, and from eutrophic seas and upwelling systems to oligotrophic gyres. Molecular data has been collected since 2009 by several institutes, and a key aim of AMT-omics is to make these data more accessible in both raw and processed formats. Working together with the University of Southern California, St Francis Xavier University, The University of California (Irvine), the University of Stellenbosch and the Marine Biological Association of the UK, we will determine how molecular data collected using a variety of methods can be integrated to provide invaluable long-term time-series of data across the entire Atlantic Ocean. As future AMT cruises will increasingly rely on automated sampling, molecular-derived data will become a primary data source, replacing data collected from traditional techniques, we will determine if/how traditional and molecular-based datasets can be aligned, ensuring time-series can continue albeit using different methods.

Support and training of Early Career Researchers (ECR) molecular and bioinformatics skills will be offered through a POGO-sponsored fellowship on board the 2024 AMT Cruise, starting in November. The application window for this opportunity closes on 18 August.

AMT-omics was introduced in Webinar 5 of the OBON Network Spotlight series – view on YouTube.

Lead Institute
Key contacts

Karen Tait

Project period

10 January, 2024 – 31 December, 2029 

Joined OBON in July, 2024
Find out more about the project
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