Do microbial numbers count? Quantifying the regulation of biogeochemical fluxes by population size and cellular activity.

In order to enhance understanding of the interrelationships among community members and between them and their environment, the concept of regulation analysis is extended from biochemistry into microbial ecology. Ecological regulation analysis quantifies how biogeochemical fluxes are regulated by the microorganisms performing the process; the degree to which changes in fluxes are due to changes in population size and to changes in activity cel