Even the smallest environments can harbor extreme biodiversity. All the microbes attached to these nutrient patches originated from the same liter of seawater, yet the patterns in which they grow vary greatly across the different micro-ecosystems.

The Cordero Lab leverages genomics, cell culture, and microscopy to explain how the complex properties of microbial communities emerge from dynamic interactions among individual species at the microscale. Studying the development of the diverse communities on these spherical patches will help researchers build predictive models for microbial ecology in systems ranging from the environment to human health.