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Why Sequence Chlamydomonas by New Methods?

Chlamydomonas is a well studied model organism for which microarray gene expression data and the nuclear genome sequence are available. Still, our knowledge of gene expression is limited, since microarray technology is not ideal for detecting low-abundance mRNAs and small changes in gene expression. Sequencing an organism that has such a set of genomic resources… [Read More]

Why Sequence Ceriporiopsis subvermispora?

Global conversion of organic carbon to CO2 with simultaneous reduction of molecular oxygen involves the combined metabolic activity of numerous microorganisms. The most abundant source of carbon is plant biomass, composed primarily of cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin. Many microorganisms are capable of utilizing cellulose and hemicellulose as carbon and energy sources, but a much smaller… [Read More]

Why Sequence Rhizopogon salebrosus?

On October 3, 1995, smoke from the remains of an illegal campfire was spotted at Point Reyes National State Park in northern California. Over the next week, just over 12,000 acres burned, most of it concentrated at Mt. Vision in Point Reyes National Seashore, and several dozen homes were razed. Some 70 percent of the… [Read More]

Why Sequence Trichoderma reesei Mutant strains?

Trichoderma reesei is the workhorse organism for a number of industrial enzyme companies for the production of cellulases. The costs associated with enzymes that degrade biomass are considered a bottleneck to economic lignocellulosic fuel ethanol. The DOE has made large investments in bioenergy research with the goal of economically viable cellulosic ethanol. One of the… [Read More]

Why sequence metagenomics of uncultured marine eukaryotes?

Marine microbes help fix carbon in the deep ocean, and this process is crucial to regulating the planet’s atmosphere. Unfortunately, a large portion of the microbes responsible for these various cycles are uncultured, and thus hard to study. As the global temperature shifts, it is more likely that conditions will favor smaller microbes that can tolerate… [Read More]

Why sequence desert locust (Schistocerca gregaria)?

Desert locusts are a species of short-horned grasshopper that can form highly mobile swarms and spread over as much as 20 percent of the world’s land mass. Comprised of more than 30 million locusts per square mile, locust swarms can travel up to 80 miles a day and impact the livelihoods of up to 10… [Read More]

Why sequence metatranscriptomic analysis of bacterial-algal interactions?

Freshwater algae, here used to refer to both true algae and cyanobacteria, serve as a natural carbon sink and are a potentially rich source of biomass feedstock for biodiesel and hydrogen and have other commercial applications as well. While growing algae as candidate bioenergy feedstocks in open ponds is less expensive than closed-reactor growth, they… [Read More]

Why Sequence Permafrost Soil Microbiota?

Permafrost soils found at the poles are particularly vulnerable to climate change because the average annual temperature at these sites is at or just below the freezing point of water. Therefore, even a small increase in local warming can have large melting consequences. This is particularly troubling because permafrost is a large carbon reservoir. The… [Read More]

Why sequence viral communities in the Mediterranean Sea?

Ocean phytoplankton fix at least half of the carbon on the planet, and ocean viruses are responsible for the largest flux of carbon in the oceans through microbial cell lysis. Even though the viruses outnumber microbial cells 10 to one, however, the processes by which host and virus interact remains poorly understood. To better understand… [Read More]