The process by which plants and some bacteria can convert light energy to sugar, or photosynthesis, is crucial to global food webs, and complicated. Very little is known about the photosynthetic bacteria in the purple sulfur bacteria group, which may represent one of the most primitive photosynthetic organisms and are capable of carbon fixation and…
Why sequence two strains of Cyanobacteria for biological remediation?
Microbes for bioremediation have primarily focused on ability to break down the contaminants. But microbes can also remove contaminants from water or waste streams by converting them into a less toxic form that is then precipitated out of the liquid. These techniques have industrial applications as conventional wastewater treatment processes without microbial aid are inefficient…
Why sequence novel acetogenic bacterial isolates from dechlorinating microbial mixed cultures?
Heavy metal contaminants such as lead, copper and mercury can enter the food chain through sources such as vehicle exhaust, house paint, fertilizers and atmospheric deposition. To better understand how microorganisms might influence the break down of such contaminants, the U.S. Department of Energy has established research sites, including one in Oak Ridge, Tenn. The…
Why sequence Actinotalea fermentans?
Actinotalea fermentans is a bacterium isolated from a landfill and grows best in moderate temperature, where it ferments cellulose to acetate and ethanol aerobically. This organism was previously considered as a potential way to convert cellulose to ethanol for use as a fuel, but the fermentation reaction always led to reduced yields, reducing the bacterium’s…
Why sequence genomic survey of haloarchaeal genomes?
Established as a separate group of organisms just a few decades ago, archaea are tiny, single-celled organisms that thrive in environments noted for their extreme conditions such as very hot or very cold temperatures. For example, salt-loving or halophilic archaea can be found throughout the world in environments such as Utah’s Great Salt Lake and…
Why sequence Xylan degraders?
Producing biofuels from lignocellulosic biomass is being investigated as a possible energy source to reduce the United States’ dependence on foreign oil. One challenge researchers face is that plant cell walls are complex structures composed of cellulose, hemicellulose, lignin, pectin, and protein. Current methods of breaking down these plant cell walls are not cheap, making…
Why sequence Shewanella strains (role of population microdiversity in adaptation to environmental redox gradients)?
First isolated in 1931, Shewanella bacteria are rock-dwelling and grow naturally almost everywhere. They can be found in freshwater lakes, marine sediments and play key roles in global carbon and nitrogen cycles. They are major microbial players in cleaning up environments contaminated with toxic metals and radioactive waste, and are capable of using contaminants such…
Why sequence fungal pathogen Cochliobolus sativus?
Wheat and barley have been and will continue to be the cereal crops of major importance in the United States and around the world. In 2008, the U.S. produced over 130 million tons of wheat, third in the world behind China and India. Fungal diseases such as spot blotch are a consistent source of economic…
Why sequence Chlamydomonas and Chlorella?
Algae sequester roughly half of the carbon dioxide generated, and the DOE JGI has already sequenced genomes of the algae Chlamydomonas reinhardtii (made available 2007) and two species of Chlorella, while the sequencing of a fourth, the salt water alga Dunaliella salina, is underway. Understanding how algal gene function is affected by varying levels of…
Why sequence diatom transcriptome and genome?
Diatoms are photosynthetic microorganisms found in both freshwater and marine ecosystems. They fix as much as 40 percent of the global ocean carbon. The DOE JGI has sequenced two diatoms: Thalassiosira pseudonana and Phaeodactylum tricornutum, and has made available the complete draft genome of a third, Fragillariopsis cylindrus. Neither of these species demonstrate a typical…