Andrew D. Steen

This study traces the evolution of microbial alkaline phosphatases and shows their role in phosphorus recycling through geological time, highlighting their expansion during the Neoproterozoic and their association with specific metabolic strategies.

This study shows microbial exoenzymes played a key role in Earth's oxygenation by enhancing nutrient recycling and supporting cyanobacterial productivity.

The paper identifies genomic signatures predictive of microbial culturability using MAGs from the GEM catalog, finding that cultured microbes have more conserved metabolic pathways.

The paper finds that thermophilic traits in permafrost microbes correlate with slow growth in low-energy environments, suggesting these traits are an adaptation to persistent cold rather than phylogenetic constraints.

The paper analyzes subsurface microbiomes globally, finding a marine-terrestrial phylogenetic divide and revealing that marine subsurface environments host significant microbial diversity.

The paper uses simulations to show how microbial community structure affects sequencing effort needed for metagenome assembly and introduces a tool to optimize sequencing based on genome abundance.