The Foundation Alma Dal Co and ISME have agreed to commemorate the life and work of Alma Dal Co by renaming the ISME Early Career Award to the Alma Dal Co Award. This award recognises researchers with a maximum of ten years post PhD and aims to honor Alma Dal Co contributions to the field of microbial ecology, preserve her intellectual heritage, and inspire early career researchers to pursue groundbreaking research.
The first winner of ISME Alma Dal Co Early Career Award, on August 23 rd, 2024 in Cape Town is Jean-Baptiste Raina, for his significant contribution to microbial ecology in marine environments.
J. B. Raina is a pioneering marine microbial ecologist whose innovative approach has significantly advanced the field of Microbial Ecology. By integrating environmental microbiology, chemical ecology, and biophysics, J. B. Raina has overcome technical challenges to uncover crucial microbial interactions in marine environments. His work has led to major breakthroughs and new methodologies which have been widely adopted in the ISME community. Some of his key contributions include the development of: In situ chemotaxis assay, a groundbreaking platform enabling the study of microbial behavior directly in the ocean; Micro-volume DNA Extraction, a technique that accurately characterizes microbial communities from minimal seawater samples and, single-cell Nutrient Exchange Quantification, providing detailed insights into microbial interactions at the cellular level
J. B. Raina has also heavily contributed to our understanding of the marine sulfur cycle, discovering the first non-photosynthetic DMSP producer and identifying genes involved in DMSP production and degradation. His recent research challenges long-standing beliefs about bacterial swimming behavior, highlighting his role as a transformative figure in marine microbial ecology.
