Christina Kaiser
Guest Postdoctoral Research Scholar
Evolution and Ecology
International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis
Austria
Biography
Christina Kaiser joined IIASA's Evolution and Ecology (EEP) Program as a IIASA Postdoctoral Research Scholar from December 2011 to January 2014. During this time, she investigated mechanisms of microbial carbon and nitrogen cycling in the soil using an individual-based, spatially explicit microbial micro-scale model. In a joint project with the EEP Program and IIASA's Ecosystems Services and Management (ESM) Program, she explored how competitive and synergistic interactions between functionally different microbes at the microscale affect C and N turnover of the soil system at the macroscale. Dr. Kaiser studied ecology at the University of Vienna, where she received her master's degree in 2003 and her PhD in 2010. Before she joined IIASA, she conducted experimental research in the field of soil biogeochemistry, ecology and microbiology.In February 2014, Dr. Kaiser was appointed Assistant Professor at the University of Vienna (Department for Microbiology and Ecosystem Research), and returned to IIASA as a Guest Research Scholar in April 2014.
Research Interest
Her main fields of scientific interest are carbon and nutrient cycling in plant-soil systems, the link between soil microbial community structure and function, and ecological modeling as a key for a more mechanistic understanding of soil decomposition processes.
Publications
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Kaiser C, Franklin O, Dieckmann U, & Richter A (2014). Microbial community dynamics alleviate stoichiometric constraints during litter decay. Ecology Letters 17 (6): 680-690. DOI:10.1111/ele.12269.
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Kaiser C, Franklin O, Richter A, & Dieckmann U (2015). Social dynamics within decomposer communities lead to nitrogen retention and organic matter build-up in soils. Nature Communications 6: no.8960. DOI:10.1038/ncomms9960.
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Evans S, Dieckmann U, Franklin O, & Kaiser C (2016). Synergistic effects of diffusion and microbial physiology reproduce the Birch effect in a micro-scale model. Soil Biology and Biochemistry 93: 28-37. DOI:10.1016/j.soilbio.2015.10.020.
