Research
I am working with microbial ecology and biogeochemistry in different
marine environments such as sediments, hyperthermal sediments, anoxic waterbodies and microbial mats. My research has mainly concentrated on
the sulfur cycle, where I am interested in the microbial and chemical
processes occurring in this cycle today those that have been of
importance through Earth's history. I am associated with the Nordic
Center for Earth Evolution (NordCEE) where we investigate the coupling
between the chemical evolution of Earth's surface and the biological
evolution. In this connection my special interest is the evolution of
the sulfur cycle Earth's early history from 3.5 to around 0.5 billion
years ago.
Currently my research can be divided in two areas:
1. Sediment investigations
Deposits of sulfur compounds in the sediments of today, store
information about the processes occurring in the sulfur cycle.
Interpretation of this information can make it possible to study sulfur
compounds in sedimentary rocks from different geological ages, and
reconstruct the evolution of the sulfur cycle through Earth's history.
2. Microbial culture studies:
The research with sediments is supplemented with pure culture studies
of prokaryotes (Bacteria and Archaea) metabolising inorganic sulfur
compounds. This gives me the opportunity to study different processes in
the sulfur cycle under controlled conditions. The microorganisms are
grown under anaerobic conditions at different temperatures in both batch
cultures and chemostats. Currently I am cultivating thermophilic
sulfate-reducing prokaryotes living at 60-80°C. These microorganisms
may represent some of the oldest form of life on Earth.
Contact
Publications
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