Prof. P.L.E. Bodelier (Paul)

My expertise and research interests are reflected in my broad perspective on ecology and the interactions between microbes and their biotic and abiotic environments. My work has always spanned multiple levels of biological organization. The central topic of my current research line is the biogeochemical cycling of carbon and nutrients in wetlands and soils, mainly related to methane production and consumption. This area of research has proven particularly well-suited to link even combined multi-level effects to global element cycles, as the factors ultimately controlling atmospheric methane emissions include both physical (e.g. flooding, fertilizer use, temperature) and biotic factors (community composition, protozoa, macrofauna, plants, animals). For these studies, I use microbiological, biogeochemical, molecular biological, analytical chemical as well as isotopic approaches spanning the organization levels from genes to ecosystems.