Research Interests (Global Research)

My research is concerned with the distribution and behavior of biogenic organic compounds in the marine environment, and the role of these compounds in the global carbon cycle. Understanding how organic compounds behave requires knowledge of the biological, geological, and physical processes in the sea. Most biogenic organic compounds are produced in surface waters by phytoplankton as a result of photosynthesis. These compounds can enter the marine food chain by acting as food for bacteria or zooplankton. Organic compounds can also be affected by chemical and physical processes such as adsorption, photochemical degradation, and transport by currents. I am interested in the rates and mechanisms of the transformation reactions which occur as organic compounds are affected by these processes. To study transformation reactions, my students and I identify and measure the amount of individual organic compounds present in the environment with analytical techniques like gas chromatography, mass spectrometry, and high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). We also use radiolabeled compounds as tracers to simulate the behavior of naturally occurring compounds. I am interested in organic compounds in all environments, particularly seawater, surface microlayer and sediments of open ocean and coastal areas.

Selected Publications

Lee, C., S.G. Wakeham and C. Arnosti. (2004) Particulate organic matter in the sea: The composition conundrum.  Ambio  33: 565-575.

Ingalls, A.E., C. Lee, S.G. Wakeham and J.I. Hedges (2003) The role of biominerals in the sinking flux and preservation of amino acids in the Southern Ocean along 170oW. Deep-Sea Res. II. 50: 709-734.

Hedges, J.I., J.A. Baldock, Y. Gélinas, C. Lee, M. Peterson and S.G. Wakeham (2002) The biochemical and elemental compositions of marine plankton: A NMR perspective. Mar. Chem. 78:47-63.

Hedges, J.I., J.A. Baldock, Y. Gélinas, C. Lee, M. Peterson and S.G. Wakeham (2001) Evidence for non-selective preservation of organic matter in sinking marine particles. Nature 409: 801-804.

Kuznetsova, M. and C. Lee (2001) Enhanced extracellular enzymatic peptide hydrolysis in the sea surface microlayer. Mar. Chem. 73: 319-332.

Lee, C., S.G. Wakeham and J.I. Hedges (2000) Composition and flux of particulate amino acids and chloropigments in equatorial Pacific seawater and sediments. Deep-Sea Research I, 47: 1535-1568.

Pantoja, S. and C. Lee (1999) Peptide decomposition by extracellular hydrolysis in coastal seawater and salt marsh sediment. Mar. Chem. 63: 273-291.

Lee, C., D.W. Murray, R.T. Barber, K.O. Buesseler, J. Dymond, J.I. Hedges, S. Honjo, S.J. Manganini, J. Marra, C. Moser, M.L. Peterson, W.L. Prell and S.G. Wakeham (1998) Particulate organic carbon fluxes: Compilation of results from the 1995 US JGOFS Arabian Sea Process Study. Deep-Sea Res. II 45: 2489-2501.

Wakeham, S. G., C. Lee, J. I. Hedges, P.J. Hernes and M. L. Peterson (1997) Molecular indicators of diagenetic status in marine organic matter. Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta, 61: 5363-5369.

Pantoja, S. and C. Lee (1994) Cell-surface oxidation of amino acids in seawater. Limnol. Oceanogr., 39: 1718-1726.

Wakeham, S. G. and C. Lee (1993) Production, transport, and alteration of particulate organic matter in the marine water column. In: M.H. Engel and S. A. Macko (eds) Organic Geochemistry, pp. 145-169. Plenum Press.

Lee, C. (1992) Controls on organic carbon preservation: The use of stratified water bodies to compare intrinsic rates of decomposition in oxic and anoxic systems. Geochem. Cosmochim. Acta, 56: 3323-3335.

Complete List of Publications