Our research is driven by a desire to understand the roles of microbes in natural environments. 

Our major objectives include linking microbial taxa to critical ecosystem processes, exploring functional gene diversity and its relation to community structure along with biogeochemical processes, and identifying novel enzymes and/or catabolic pathways.

Much of our work focuses on the Roseobacteraceae family, an abundant, broadly distributed, and biogeochemically relevant group of heterotrophic marine bacteria. 

Aspects of Roseobacter biology that are of particular interest to us include catabolism of plant-derived compounds, attachment and colonization of surfaces, and geographical distributions. Two recently added areas of investigation are the influences of phage lysis on Roseobacter populations and the impact of aromatic compounds on the cell membrane and its lipid profile. 

Research Themes