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The DOE Joint Genome Institute hosted the hybrid “NeLLi 2023 Symposium” delving into the most recent expansions of the Tree of Life and latest discoveries toward the evolution of cellular complexity and microbial symbiosis. Further, the symposium showcases cutting-edge experimental approaches, computational innovations, and other technological advancements that facilitate the shift from uncovering microbial novelties to deciphering metabolic and functional capabilities.

Overview of Symposium Goals

Metagenomic and single-cell sequence data have provided a means to access novel microbial lineages, leading to a new appreciation for the extent of diversity. The phylogenetic and functional characterization of this novel diversity represents an ongoing challenge.

This symposium series will provide an overview of the bacterial, archaeal and microeukaryote diversity cataloged and taxonomically classified to date. Under the “sequence to function’ umbrella, this symposium will further focus on computational approaches to characterize novel microbial lineages and sequence novelty and experimental approaches to assign functional “read out” to sequence data. Moving from cataloging microbial diversity to experimental characterization and validation of the functional potential of these new lineages will provide new cornerstones for research in the areas of bioenergy and biomedicine, as well as biotechnology.

NeLLi August 24 – 25, 2023 Session Speakers:

 

Joint Genome Institute Organizers:

  • Frederik Schulz, New Lineages of Life Lead
  • Emiley Eloe-Fadrosh, Metagenome Program
  • Tanja Woyke, Microbial Program
  • Robert Bowers, User Project Coordination
  • Rekha Seshadri, Functional Annotation Group
  • Natalia Ivanova, Functional Annotation Lead
  • Juan Villada, New Lineages of Life Group

External Organizers:

  • Jen Biddle, University of Delaware
  • Eunsoo Kim, American Museum of Natural History
  • Roland Hatzenpichler, Montana State University
  • Maggie Sogin, UC Merced