The overarching aim of this project is to explore the mechanisms underlying sensitivity of phytoplankton to chemical mixtures. Phytoplankton play a key role in global biogeochemical cycling, yet knowledge of how their functioning is affected by environmental exposure to mixtures of chemical pollutants is lacking. Using chemical activity as a quantitative measure of chemical mixtures, we can generate new process-based understanding of ecological and ecotoxicological effects caused by chemical mixtures in phytoplankton, and how environmental conditions may infer higher sensitivity to pollution due to regulation of lipid content and composition.
