The application of flow cytometry to environmental samples led Chisholm and her collaborators (most notably R.J. Olson and H.M. Sosik) to the discovery that small plankton (in particular Prochlorococcus and Synechococcus) accounted for a much more substantial part of marine productivity than had previously been realized.
A aplicación de fluxo citométrico ás mostras ambientais, levaron a Chisholm e os seus colaboradores (como os notables R.J. Olson e S.M. Sosik) ao descubrimento de que o plancto pequeno (en particular Prochlorococcus e Synechococcus) representan unha parte moito máis importante da produtividade mariña do que se pensaba.