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…
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…
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…
Why sequence microbial symbionts of New Zealand’s endemic wood-degrading insects?
New Zealand was separated from other land masses eight million years ago when the Gondwana supercontinent split up and the only mammals found there were bats and marine mammals. This isolation has led to the evolution of native species that may not be found anywhere else in the world such as the huhu grub, a…
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…
Why sequence eukaryotic microbial metatranscriptome of blue grama grass rhizosphere soils?
About 50 miles south of Albuquerque, New Mexico is the Sevilleta National Wildlife Refuge managed by the U.S. Department of the Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service. The region is the intersection of several regional ecosystems, including grasslands, woodlands and riparian vegetation. The location is ideal for researchers to study how climate variability and climate change…
Why sequence lignocellulolytic microbes from cow rumen?
One of the biggest challenges in making biofuels cost-effective is finding alternative methods for breaking down biomass, and particularly, materials such as lignocellulose that provide rigidity and structure to the plant cell walls. To find these alternative methods, many researchers are turning to natural refineries such as the cow rumen or forestomach to learn more…
Why sequence Great Boiling Spring sediment and water microbial communities?
The Great Boiling Spring in Nevada is host to a two-member water-borne microbial community and a sediment community, both of which contain uncultured representatives. Microbes from the sediment metagenome, for example, are poised to make a contribution to the DOE JGI’s ongoing Genomic Encyclopedia of Bacteria and Archaea project. This metagenomic project focuses on learning…
Why sequence dehalobacter-containing dechlorinating community?
One of the most common types of environmental contaminants, especially in groundwater, is chlorinated solvents. Often used as degreasing agents or for dry cleaning, these compounds have toxic properties and contaminate more than 50,000 groundwater sites throughout North America. Studies have identified several microbial species that can break down these compounds and harness the energy…
Why sequence viruses that infect freshwater cyanobacteria?
Cyanobacteria are important and diverse members of aquatic systems both in marine and freshwater environments. The viruses that infect cyanobacteria are known as cyanophages and they can impact global carbon cycling and climate change. For example, when the freshwater lakes are enriched in nutrients and minerals, the dominant cyanobacteria will bloom, impacting the water quality….