Abstract

Microorganisms play critical roles in the ocean food web and nutrient cycling.  Research during the past 20 years has discovered a previously unseen role of microbes in the ocean carbon cycle.  Bioassay experiments and molecular biomarkers indicate that bacteria are producers of DOM that is very resistant to degradation and persists in the ocean for centuries to millennia.  This seminar will provide an overview of the role of microorganisms in the production of refractory DOM.

Biography

Dr. Ronald Benner is a Distinguished Professor at the University of South Carolina, USA. He received his B.S. and Ph.D. degrees from Florida International University and the University of Georgia, respectively, before joining the University of Texas at Austin as an Assistant Professor (1990-1993), Associate Professor (tenure-track, 1993-1998), and Professor (1998-1999). In 1999, he was appointed to the University of South Carolina, where he served as a full Professor (1999-2013) and Distinguished Professor (2013-). Over the past 30 years, he has focused on the biogeochemical cycling of marine organic matter. His early work uncovered the reactivity of plant lignins, provided a quantitative assessment of the terrigenous contribution of marine organic matter, elucidated the complex chemical composition of marine dissolved organic matter, and introduced the renowned  "Size-Reactivity Continuum" model concept. In recent years, his recent research has greatly enhanced our understanding of the microbial sources, transformations and fate of marine organic matter. He has published more than 200 articles in top-tier scientific journals such as Nature, Science, and PNAS, with over 37,000 citations in Google Scholar and a h-index of 100. He has been elected as an AAAS Fellow (2009), AGU Fellow (2011), ASLO Sustaining Fellow (2015), and has received the Fulbright Senior Research Scholar Award (2019), A.C. Redfield Lifetime Achievement Award (ASLO, 2021).