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Drifting Poplar Populations Inform Breeding Strategies

Since the publication of the genome sequence of the first tree, the black cottonwood or poplar Populustrichocarpain 2006 by the DOE Joint Genome Institute, a growing community of researchers have been engaged in advancing the development of poplar as a candidatefeedstockfornext-generationbiofuelsowing to the tree’s compact genome, rapid growth and life cycle. One area of study… [Read More]

Rethinking Rhodanobacter

Denitrification, or breaking down nitrates in soil, is important. It removes the chemicals from potentially contaminating groundwater, but it can also release nitrous oxide, a greenhouse gas, into the atmosphere. Scientists discovered that many species of the low-pH dwelling bacteria in the Rhodanobactergenus are capable of denitrification. This is on the heels of the discovery… [Read More]

Prototypical genomic study of Plant-Microbe Interaction

Instead of using dangerous and toxic pesticides or expensive fertilizers, farmers may one day use microbes to fully manage diseases in soil. Already the microbial community in and surrounding plant roots fights pests and manages carbon and other soil nutrients, ultimately contributing to plant health and growth. What’s more, they aid plants in sequestering pollutants…. [Read More]

Understanding a Cereal Disease with DNA Sequencing

An international coalition of researchers, including those from the DOE Joint Genome Institute have now isolated the Barley stripe mosaic virus resistance gene from  Brachypodium distachyon. They found the single dominant gene responsible by analyzing the offspring of intercrossed disease-resistant and disease-susceptible Brachypodium. Their results were published in June in PLoSOne. Brachypodium distachyonis a good… [Read More]

Maturing Metagenomics Needs Ground Rules

For every known star in our universe, there are billions of microbes here on Earth. But scientists are unable to culture most of these species in the lab. One approach to getting to know these beguiling bugs is to look at the big picture of their community. Metagenomics aims to characterize the overall genomic profile… [Read More]

A Rotten Coaltastrophe

Much of the world’s coal was generated 300-360 million years ago, during an era known as the Carboniferous period. But it may have come to an end from an unlikely source: fungus. An international team of scientists, including researchers at Clark University and the U.S. Department of Energy Joint Genome Institute (DOE JGI), has proposed… [Read More]

Some Enzymes Like it Hot

It sounds like a dream vacation: hang out in hot springs all day, converting sugar to alcohol. But that’s precisely what researchers are looking for in microbes to more efficiently break down plant matter into fermentable sugars for biofuel. And they found it in Dictyoglomus turgidum, in samples from Obsidian Hot Spring in Yellowstone National… [Read More]

Protein studies offer clues on how palm worms can take the heat

Hydrothermal vents behave like geysers at a national park, except that they erupt deep underwater in the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans. Though the water that shoots out of these vents can reach temperatures as high as 300°C (572°F), many animals and other organisms thrive in the surrounding area.  Two such extremophiles  are “palm worms,” named… [Read More]