Viruses Could Reshuffle the Carbon Cycle in a Warming World
Microbes play important roles in ecosystems, and these roles are changing with global warming. Scientists also now know that most types of microbes are infected by viruses, but they know relatively little about how these viral infections could change how microbes react to warming. In this study, scientists describe many different ways that increasing temperatures could affect viruses and their microbial hosts. These changes could ultimately affect the responses of whole ecosystems to warming. The work exposes several important gaps in researchers’ current knowledge about the connections between viruses, warming, and ecosystem functioning. Filling these gaps is crucial for understanding and predicting the effects of climate change on ecosystems.
