معرفی
Dr Krista Sumby is a Grant-Funded Researcher (B) at the University of Adelaide, affiliated with the School of Agriculture, Food and Wine (within the Faculty of Sciences, Engineering and Technology) and the Department of Agricultural Science. Her research focuses on microbial ecology, molecular biology, and their applications in soil and wine systems. She currently leads a project investigating how farming practices influence soil microbial communities, aiming to optimize sustainable agricultural methods. Previously, she specialized in wine microbiology, particularly enzyme functions in wine production and microbial interactions during fermentation.
Dr Sumby holds an MSc in Microbiology from the University of Canterbury and a PhD in Wine Microbiology from the University of Adelaide (2013). Her postdoctoral work (2017–2022) at the Australian Research Council Training Centre for Innovative Wine Production explored yeast strains and their roles in vine and grape attributes. She supervises HDR students in projects related to lactic acid bacteria, yeast bioprospecting, and microbial co-inoculation strategies in winemaking.
Her research emphasizes interdisciplinary approaches, combining genomic analysis, microbial ecology, and agricultural practices to address challenges in both soil health and wine production. Key interests include microbial community dynamics, strain improvement via directed evolution, and the reduction of external inputs in farming and fermentation processes.
Dr Sumby’s work has contributed to advancements in understanding soil microbiome changes, non-Saccharomyces yeast applications, and malolactic fermentation optimization. She is a member of the Soil Ecology Research Group and actively engages in collaborative projects to bridge basic and applied research in agricultural and enological fields.
