The Evolution of Life on Earth and its Role in Climate Change (Glass)

Microbial life has fundamentally changed the chemistry of the ocean and atmosphere over the last four billions years of Earth history. Researchers in the geochemistry group are using a combination of geochemical proxies and bioinformatic approaches to reconstruct the evolution of microbial metabolisms, especially those that exert a strong influence on atmospheric and marine chemistry. Particular focus is placed on the evolution of microbial metalloenzymes involved in greenhouse gas cycling, with the goal of determining the influence of metal bioavailability on greenhouse gas fluxes on modern and ancient Earth (Glass)