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Lessons learned from comparing Cochliobolus fungi

Cochliobolus fungi are cereal grain pathogens in the Dothideomycetes class, and many species are known to infect crops such as corn, rice, barley, wheat and oats, causing severe losses at harvest time and to biomass feedstocks for biofuels. In a study published January 24, 2013 in Plos Genetics, one in a series of publications concerning… [Read More]

A fungal pathogen with a “genetically flexible” genome

In 2012, the damp winter threatened the wheat harvest in the state of Kansas, the nation’s single largest producer of the grain and wheat prices rose by 10 percent as a result. Diseases such as tan spot caused by the fungus Pyrenophoratritici-repentis (Ptr) factored into the reduced wheat harvests. In North Dakota, which ranks second… [Read More]

DOE JGI Science Highlight: Benefits of “diversity-driven genome sequencing” in CyanoGEBA

Despite their miniscule size, cyanobacteria play significant roles in the global carbon and nitrogen cycles. Researchers are also looking at utilizing them for biofuel and biotechnology applications. In an effort to learn more about the diverse strains in this phylum, DOE Joint Genome Institute scientist Cheryl Kerfeldis leading an effort called CyanoGEBAto increase the number… [Read More]

A Gossypium genome to cotton on to cellulose biosynthesis

Growing, processing and manufacturing cotton is a major global industry. In the United States, more than 200,000 domestic jobs are related to cotton production and processing, with an aggregate influence of about $35 billion on the annual U.S. gross domestic product. The fibers that have woven themselves into so many lives, however, are seen by… [Read More]

Lifestyles of a fungal plant pathogen family

The fungi that belong to the Dothideomycetes family are found on every continent and can tolerate a wide range of environmental extremes. Additionally, several of the fungi are plant pathogens that infect nearly every major crop used for food, fiber or fuel. In the December 6, 2012 issue of PLoS Pathogens, an international team led… [Read More]

Fungal pathogens – the common thread between pine and tomato

The disease that causes leaf mold on a tomato was first reported in the 1800s but hasn’t posed a major economic threat for several decades. Needle blight affects pine species around the world, causing severe economic losses. At first glance, the diseases appear unrelated but they are both caused by related fungal plant pathogens from… [Read More]

A photosynthetic pathway for mats under anoxic conditions

Many microbes are unculturablebecause they do not thrive when extracted from their habitats. Studies conducted within the context of a group allows researchers to see the interactions taking place and use the clues provided to identify the individual roles of the microorganisms. Photosynthetic microbial mats fix carbon in the day, but it turns out that… [Read More]

Yellowstone yields novel achaeon and candidate Archaea phylum

When a third branch to the Tree of Life was proposed several decades ago, the evidence used to support the need to recognize the kingdom Archaea came in the form of two divisions of organisms that could not be categorized as Eukaryotes or Bacteria. Since then, several more archaeal phyla have been recognized, many of them… [Read More]

(De)Coupling marine microbial abundance and activity levels

Prochlorococcus count among the most abundant species of tiny cyanobacteria in the oceans. An estimated 100 million cells of this unicellular organism can be found in a single liter of seawater, and these cyanobacteria help remove some 10 billion tons of carbon from the atmosphere every year. A long-held assumption has been that the size… [Read More]

The poplar genome’s impact, a decade on

During his keynote speech at the DOE Joint Genome Institute’s Annual Genomics of Energy & Environment Meeting, science writer Carl Zimmer discussed the status of personalized medicine following the completion of the Human Genome Project. In an article published online October 25, 2012 in Tree Physiology, researchers including Oak Ridge National Laboratory’s Jerry Tuskan present a similar… [Read More]