Aspergillus is not only one of the most important fungi for use in biotechnology it is also one of the most commonly found groups of fungi worldwide. This project seeks to sequence and annotate a series of additional Aspergillus species and Penicillium roqueforti to complement and strengthen the genomic data currently available for comparative studies….
Why sequence inbred Brachypodium lines?
The genome of the wild grass Brachypodium distachyon was published earlier this year in the journal Nature to help researchers develop grasses tailored to serve as feedstocks for biofuel production. Led by John Vogel of the US Department of Agriculture Agricultural Research Service, the project continues the stated objective and involves sequencing 50 inbred lines…
Why sequence barley?
The single largest project to date, with an anticipated five-gigabase genome, barley ranks fifth in the world among all crops cultivated, and is grown on four million acres in the United States alone. The crop can be used to produce ethanol from the grain or for cellulosic ethanol from the straw. The team intends to…
Why sequence arctic algae for alternative energy?
Five different protists representing different algal classes isolated from the Arctic Ocean are being investigated for adaptation to perennial cold conditions and for identification of genes linked to mixotrophy—how certain microorganisms can assimilate organic compounds as carbon sources and to characterize the horizontal gene transfer events over evolutionary time of donor algal genes to the…
Why Sequence Algae from Acidic Waters?
Strains of green algae from isolated acidic waters are being sequenced to understand how they adapt to variable levels of carbon dioxide, as well as to get a better sense of their role in the carbon cycle, and specifically how they can fix carbon under these conditions under these conditions. Principal Investigators: Cheryl Kerfeld, DOE…
Lost in symbiosis: genes dropped in piggy-backing bacterial strain
A genome comparison of two strains of a bacterium reveals gene loss as a result of a symbiotic relationship with a protist host. The Science The researchers sequenced the complete genome for a symbiotic strain of the bacterium, Polynucleobacter necessarius. They then compared the symbiont’s genome with the free-living strain in order to understand how…
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Expanding Research Communities and Collaborations: 2014 CSP Portfolio Announced
From the depths of ocean dead zones, to wide swaths of forests, and rising up to the troposphere, where most weather changes occur, the U.S. Department of Energy Joint Genome Institute (DOE JGI) 2014 Community Science Program portfolio seeks to parse functional information extracted from complex ecosystems to address urgent energy and environmental challenges. These…
Root-dwelling denizen of Sheoak trees characterized
The complete genome of a novel nitrogen-fixing bacterium has been recently sequenced and analyzed. The Science The researchers isolated and sequenced the complete genome of a species of Micromonospora, bacteria that play a role in promoting plant growth and breaking down plant cell walls, from root nodules of Sheoak trees (Casuarina equisetifolia). The Impact Although…
The heat is on – microbial mat communities in Hot Lake
Diverse underwater communities of cyanobacteria and other microorganisms are capable of withstanding drastic changes in salinity. The Science The microbial mat communities—multi-layered sheets of bacteria and archaea that grow at the interface between submerged, moist or even desiccated surfaces—in a remote lake near the border with Canada are relatively stable, despite weathering a 10-fold increase…