Instrumentation

Particulate and dissolved organic matter composition

Our analytical infrastructure for the analysis particulate and dissolved organic matter consists of state-of-the-art instrumentation for detecting and identifying, for example, surfactants, carbohydrates, amino acids, and lipids. Instrumentation includes elemental analyzers, spectrophotometers, polarography high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) coupled to mass spectrometry, HPLC coupled to fluorescence detection and Ion-exchange chromatography.

Microbial activity and abundance

To determine the abundance of plankton in the ocean, we use automated counting of individual cells by flow cytometry. Microbial activity analyses include radioisotope-based analysis of primary production and heterotrophic biomass production as well as extracellular enzyme activities involved in the degradation of organic matter.

Microscopy

We have a range of light and inverted microscopes, some equipped with a UV-excitation lamp, suitable objectives and filters, to perform fluorescence microscopy to specify and quantify microbial plankton and visualize and quantify marine gel-like particles. We additionally operate a confocal laser scanning microscope (CLSM), which allows to study three-dimensional sectioning of fully hydrated, living, thick microbial communities, such as in marine aggregates. The CLSM can further be combined with CLASI-FISH (Combinatorial Labelling and Spectral Imaging – Fluorescence In Situ Hybridization), an advanced microscope technique to identify the phylogeny of around 10 different microbial taxa simultaneously by keeping their spatial composition.

Microbial culturing

We are equipped for microbiological cultivation of marine phytoplankton and bacteria. We routinely grow microbial plankton in batch cultures and under defined and constant conditions in chemostats. We additionally use roller tanks to study phytoplankton-derived marine snow aggregates and couette chambers to study particle coagulation processes.

RD2

Marine Biogeochemistry

Head of Working Group
Microbial Biogeochemistry (BI/MB)
Prof. Dr. Anja Engel
GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel
Seefischmarkt / building 5
Wischhofstrasse 1 - 3
24148 Kiel / Germany
Phone: +49 (0)431 600-1510
email: aengel(at)geomar.de
Team Assistant/
Office Management (BI/MB)
Monika Peschke
Phone: +49 (0)431 600-4447
email: mpeschke(at)geomar.de
Find the list of current members here
Find the list of past members here

Contact

Working Group Members

Former Group Members