Steven D Allison

Our primary research goal is to understand the microbial mechanisms that regulate carbon and nutrient cycling in ecosystems. Our research interests integrate biochemical, molecular, and theoretical approaches to yield new insights into ecosystem and global-scale biogeochemistry. We study a broad range of systems--from the ocean to the boreal forest--but all of this work is linked to the functional role of microbes in ecosystems. The function we focus on is extracellular enzyme production, since enzymes drive biogeochemical cycles and help microbes acquire resources.