This volume presents a critical analysis and timely synthesis of the past decade of intensive research, development, and demonstrations on the in situ bioremediation of perchlorate in groundwater. The intended audiences include the decision makers, practicing engineers and hydrogeologists who will select, design, and operate these remedial systems, as well as researchers seeking to improve the current state-of-the-art. Our hope is that this volume will serve as a useful resource to assist remediation professionals in applying and developing the technology as effectively as possible. An overview of the current state-of-understanding of perchlorate remediation is followed by a discussion of basic principles of microbial and abiotic processes, and of the engineering and implementation issues underlying the technologies described. Characterization of both anthropogenic and natural sources of perchlorate, including isotopic analysis to distinguish between differing sources, precedes discussions of the advantages, performance, and relative costs of applying a range of remedial technologies. Active, semi-passive, and passive in situ bioremediation are fully described and compared with emphasis on field application. Cost information for each technology, using case studies and analyses of several template sites, covers capital costs, as well as costs for laboratory testing, pilot-scale demonstration, design, system operation, monitoring and maintenance during operations, and demolition and restoration after remediation. In addition, analogous cost data are presented for pump-and-treat systems for each template site to illustrate the potential cost savings associated with the use of alternative approaches. Emerging technologies such as monitored natural attenuation, phytoremediation, and vadose zone bioremediation are described, and field demonstrations are used to illustrate the current stage of maturity and the potential applicability of these approaches for specific situations. Each chapter in this volume has been thoroughly reviewed for technical content by one or more experts in each subject area covered.

Dysfunction of nuclear-cytoplasmic transport systems has been associated with many human diseases. Thus, understanding of how functional this transport system maintains, or through dysfunction fails to maintain remains the core question in cell biology. In eukaryotic cells, the nuclear envelope (NE) separates the genetic transcription in the nucleus from the translational machinery in the cytoplasm. Thousands of nuclear pore complexes (NPCs) embedded on the NE selectively mediate the bidirectional trafficking of macromolecules such as RNAs and proteins between these two cellular compartments. In this book, the authors integrate recent progress on the structure of NPC and the mechanism of nuclear-cytoplasmic transport system in vitro and in vivo.

Research on the interactions of plants and phytopathogenic fungi has become one of the most interesting and rapidly moving fields in the plant sciences, the findings of which have contributed tremendously to the development of new strategies of plant protection. This book offers insight into the state of present knowledge. Special emphasis is placed on recognition phenomena between plants and fungi, parasitization strategies employed by the phytopathogenic fungi, the action of phytotoxins, the compatibility of pathogens with host plants and the basic resistance of non-host plants as well as cultivar-specific resistance of host plants. Special attention is paid to the gene-for-gene hypothesis for the determination of race-specific resistance, its molecular models and to the nature of race non-specific resistance as well as the population dynamics of plants and the evolution of their basic resistance.

This book provides a comprehensive and up-to-date collection of review articles focusing on RNA-mediated regulation in prokaryotes. The various modes of action include the direct interaction with proteins, direct sensing of metabolites or of physical parameters, and the interaction with RNAs to stimulate or prevent binding of ribosomes or to stimulate degradation. Written by leading experts in the field, the book covers small RNA functions, RNA thermometers, riboswitches, the diversity of small RNA-guided CRISPR-Cas defense systems and selected RNA chaperons in both prokaryotic domains, bacteria and archaea. Recent advances towards the computational identification of regulatory RNAs and their targets are included and particular attention is paid to small RNA in pathogenic bacteria. This volume is the only one exclusively covering regulatory RNAs in the prokaryotic domains to date, making it essential literature for anyone interested in RNA function and gene regulation and a valuable resource for teaching these concepts.

This volume provides up-to-date and novel techniques for various screening technologies currently used in metagenomics and related areas. Starting with DNA/RNA isolation from environmental samples, the book continues by delving into areas such as current methods used to isolate DNA and construct metagenomic libraries, establishment of metagenome libraries in non-E. coli hosts, and topics like function-driven mining of metagenomic DNA, screening and analyzing protocols for a wide array of different genes encoding enzymes, bacterial viruses and much more. Written for the highly successful Methods in Molecular Biology series, chapters include introductions to their respective topics, lists of the necessary materials and reagents, step-by-step and readily reproducible protocols, and tips on troubleshooting and avoiding known pitfalls. Authoritative and practical, Metagenomics: Methods and Protocols, Third Edition provides a comprehensive collection of up-to-date metagenome protocols and tools for the recovery of many major types of biocatalysts and allows for the easy setup of these screens in microbiology laboratories.

The incidence of food poisoning continues to rise and now there is even greater interest in the subject of microbial food poisoning and food safety, than when the first edition of this popular book was published. As in the first edition of his book, Adrian Eley summarizes information on the principal agents that cause food poisoning and emphasizes their mode of action. Also discussed in chapters written by specially selected expert in the area are epidemilogical features of food poisoning, microbiological control of food production, mycoticoxic fungi and food safety legislation. Each chapter has been comprehensively updated to include any changes in for example laboratory practice, legislation, etc. Also included in this edition is a new chapter on food hygiene. Microbial Food Poisoning, Second Edition, appeals to students studying a wide range of courses, including medical microbiology, food science, and technology, nutrition, general microbiology and environmental health. This book will also be of use to professionals in a range of disciplines including food science, medicine, health sciences and environmental and public health.

This text provides an account of the nature and applications of the Coliform Index. Since the beginning of the 20th century, indicator organisms, in particular the coliform group, have been used to ensure the microbial quality of drinking water. World-wide legislation to protect consumers is based on these out-dated and unreliable tests and while there is considerable concern among scientists over their use, the water industry and regulators continue to place near total reliance on the Coliform Index. This has serious implications for public health and necessitates the debate which this book enters.

Microbial Growth Kinetics opens with a critical review of the history of microbial kinetics from the 19th century to the present day. The results of original investigations into the growth of soil microbes in both laboratory and natural environments are summarised. The book emphasises the analysis of complex dynamic behaviour of microorganism populations. Non-steady states and unbalanced growth, multiple limitation, survival under starvation, differentiation, morphological variability, colony and biofilm growth, mixed cultures and microbial population dynamics in soil are all examined. Mathematical models are proposed which give mechanistic explanations to many features of microbial growth. The book takes general kinetic principles and their ecological applications and presents them in a way specifically designed for the microbiologist. This in itself is unusual but taken with the book's fascinating historical overview and the many fresh and sometimes controversial ideas expressed, this book is a must for all advanced students of microbiology and researchers in microbial ecology and growth.

A preventative medicine physician and staff writer for The Atlantic explains the surprising and unintended effects of our hygiene practices in this informative and entertaining introduction to the new science of skin microbes and probiotics.
 
Keeping skin healthy is a booming industry, and yet it seems like almost no one agrees on what actually works. Confusing messages from health authorities and ineffective treatments have left many people desperate for reliable solutions. An enormous alternative industry is filling the void, selling products that are often of questionable safety and totally unknown effectiveness.

In Clean, doctor and journalist James Hamblin explores how we got here, examining the science and culture of how we care for our skin today. He talks to dermatologists, microbiologists, allergists, immunologists, aestheticians, bar-soap enthusiasts, venture capitalists, Amish people, theologians, and straight-up scam artists, trying to figure out what it really means to be clean. He even experiments with giving up showers entirely, and discovers that he is not alone.

Along the way, he realizes that most of our standards of cleanliness are less related to health than most people think. A major part of the picture has been missing: a little-known ecosystem known as the skin microbiome—the trillions of microbes that live on our skin and in our pores. These microbes are not dangerous; they’re more like an outer layer of skin that no one knew we had, and they influence everything from acne, eczema, and dry skin, to how we smell. The new goal of skin care will be to cultivate a healthy biome—and to embrace the meaning of “clean” in the natural sense. This can mean doing much less, saving time, money, energy, water, and plastic bottles in the process.

Lucid, accessible, and deeply researched, Clean explores the ongoing, radical change in the way we think about our skin, introducing readers to the emerging science that will be at the forefront of health and wellness conversations in coming years.

Most plants rely on the co-existence with microorganisms: both groups benefit from these symbioses. It has been shown that a large number of specific genes in plants and microorganisms are only activated during these interactions. Of course, various microbes also act as pathogens.

Interactions between plants and microorganisms are often located on plant surfaces, such as leaf cuticles, seeds and mainly on the roots. The communication between plants and microbes is the main topic treated in "Plant Surface Microbiology," such as the signaling within a symbiosis, the molecular differences between symbiotic and pathogenic microorganisms, the role of microorganisms in the development of plants or in plant protection against deleterious agents. Further contributions are devoted to: the analysis of bacterial communities in the rhizosphere; microbial population genetics; aspects of mycorrhizal symbiosis; functional genomic approaches and the use of microorganisms as bio-indicator of soil disturbance.

The development of ocean sensors remains a ripe area for future investigation from science, policy and systemsengineering standpoints. Clearly, there are many options forrealizing integrated molecular analytical sensing systems. The definition of key target molecules, detection methodsand signal transduction models largely remain to be determined.Moreover, there remains ahuge challenge of merging this new class of instrument with different deployment platforms, and supplying necessarypower and data telemetry infrastructure for their operation. Molecular Biological Technologies for Ocean Sensing features methods papers on the application of ecogenomic sensors on autonomous platforms in the ocean. Topics include the use of ecogenomic sensors as a tool in whole-cell and cell-free based detection and monitoring a suite of pathogens and biotoxins that are of public health concern; documenting species diversity, evolution and metabolic function; identification and quantification of aquatic organisms; and inferring metabolic potential and activities of microorganisms in the ocean. Each contribution focuses on the (1) functional requirements for detecting specific microorganisms and the genes that they harbor and express;(2) examples of research activities that take advantage of molecular detection technologies;(3) some of the challenges faced when projecting development and use of novel instruments that will utilize molecular techniques onboard autonomous platforms;and future directions. Bringing these advancements on autonomous platforms, monitoring required sample collection and processing schemes will differ from those currently used (i.e. biomedical diagnostics). This book is the first of its kind to compile current technologies for studying organisms in situ. It will aid in transfer technology to oceanographers, ecologists, microbiologists, and environmental scientists with needs for a remote, in-water sensing capability and for integration with larger scale observatory operations. With this network in place, there is a potential to bridge the gap among regulatory agencies and academics about how this kind of technology can be used for research and monitoring purposes.

This comprehensive handbook provides up-to-date knowledge and practical advice from established authorities in aerosol science. It covers the principles and practices of bioaerosol sampling, descriptions and comparisons of bioaerosol samplers, calibration methods, and assay techniques, with an emphasis on practicalities, such as which sampler to use and where it should be placed. The text also offers critiques concerning handling the samples to provide representative and meaningful assays for their viability, infectivity, and allergenicity. A wide range of microbes-viz., viruses, bacteria, fungi and pollens, and their fragments-are considered from such perspectives.
Bioaerosols Handbook is divided into four parts, providing a wide-ranging reference work, as well as a practical guide on how best to sample and assay bioaerosols using current technology.

This Volume presents applications of hydrocarbon microbiology in the context of environmental pollutant degradation, covering pollutants such as petroleum and related wastes (i.e. oil sludge), biofuels, lipid-rich wastes, chlorinated solvents and BTEX, in several environments (marine, soil, groundwater). The approaches presented range from laboratory experiments and treatment in reactors to field applications. Two chapters highlight innovative approaches to address relevant questions in pollutant degradation, such as low environmental concentrations of pollutants, and the biodegradation of complex pollutant mixtures using biofilms. Rather than presenting the applications in the form of protocols, some of the chapters in this Volume include detailed practical information on the opportunities offered by and limitations of the different approaches, providing valuable information for researchers planning to perform bioremediation experiments. Hydrocarbon and Lipid Microbiology Protocols There are tens of thousands of structurally different hydrocarbons, hydrocarbon derivatives and lipids, and a wide array of these molecules are required for cells to function. The global hydrocarbon cycle, which is largely driven by microorganisms, has a major impact on our environment and climate. Microbes are responsible for cleaning up the environmental pollution caused by the exploitation of hydrocarbon reservoirs and will also be pivotal in reducing our reliance on fossil fuels by providing biofuels, plastics and industrial chemicals. Gaining an understanding of the relevant functions of the wide range of microbes that produce, consume and modify hydrocarbons and related compounds will be key to responding to these challenges. This comprehensive collection of current and emerging protocols will facilitate acquisition of this understanding and exploitation of useful activities of such microbes.

Bacteria and fungi are able to aggregate together or on surfaces in densely packed microcolonies, facilitated by extracellular polymeric substances for cell protection and stability. These biofilms have proven to be extremely hard to eradicate and remove once established. In chronic infections, this condition can result in a high degree of morbidity and mortality as regular antibiotic treatments are ineffective against biofilms. In industrial facilities, the formation of biofilms can ruin production and result in enormous financial losses. In this book, the current state of antibiofilm research is presented by experts from around the world. Novel, cutting-edge techniques and new optimized strategies based on established methods are discussed in chapters focused on biofilm prevention, treatment and control for the application in clinical, industrial and veterinary settings. Antibiofilm strategies, such as chemical and enzymatic treatments, surface modification and coatings, quorum sensing inhibition and dispersal induction, phage therapy, cold plasma treatment, hyperbaric oxygen treatment, and metal-based nanomedicine are covered, among many others. This book contributes to the UN's Sustainable Development Goal 3: Good Health and Well-Being and is a valuable resource for healthcare professionals, microbiologists, academics and for educators to inform curricula of universities and colleges.

Yeast is one of the most studied laboratory organisms and represents one of the most central models to understand how any eukaryote cell works. On the other hand, yeast fermentations have for millennia provided us with a variety of biotech products, like wine, beer, vitamins, and recently also with pharmaceutically active heterologous products and biofuels. A central biochemical activity in the yeast cell is the metabolism of carbon compounds, providing energy for the whole cell, and precursors for any of the final fermentation products. A complex set of genes and regulatory pathways controls the metabolism of carbon compounds, from nutrient sensing, signal transduction, transcription regulation and post-transcriptional events. Recent advances in comparative genomics and development of post-genomic tools have provided further insights into the network of genes and enzymes, and molecular mechanisms which are responsible for a balanced metabolism of carbon compounds in the yeast cell, and which could be manipulated in the laboratory to increase the yield and quality of yeast biotech products. This book provides a dozen of most comprehensive reviews on the recent developments and achievements in the field of yeast carbon metabolism, from academic studies on gene expression to biotechnology relevant topics.

Papers Presented at a Symposium held May 8--11, 1989, at the Beltsville Agricultural Research Center (BARC), Beltsville, Maryland, U.S.A.

This book illustrates the importance of microbiome interactions in sustainable agriculture and the environment. The chapters of the book provide information pertaining to the vast diversity of microbiomes in many ecosystems and their functional dynamics. The book also discusses bioremediation, space microbiomes, geo microbiomes, coral microbiomes, antibiotic resistomes, and rhizomicrobiome. It also sheds light on the complex syntrophic and other symbiotic interactions between bacteria, protists, plants, and certain animals in agricultural and environmental systems. The book, in turn, provides an understanding of the adaptation, resilience, and evolution of microbial ecosystems. Further, the chapters cover metagenomics analysis of microbiomes of a novel or extreme environments, microbial resilience or temporal fluctuations, symbiosis and co-evolution of the microbiome, and novel microbial interactions in agriculture and environment. Finally, the book elucidates a comprehensive yet representative description of complex structural and functional diversity within the plant and environmental microbiomes to reveal their immense potential. This book covers United Nations Sustainable Developmental Goal 2 towards Zero Hunger.

This book covers the wide set of well-regulated virulence factors and defense mechanisms of Pseudomonas aeruginosa focusing on stress responses and the evolution of this opportunistic human pathogen. Pseudomonas aeruginosa is responsible for one out of ten hospital infections. Additionally, this Gram-negative bacterium is accountable for persistent infections in immunocompromised individuals and the leading cause of chronic lung infections in cystic fibrosis patients. This book provides insight on the metabolic versatility of Pseudomonas aeruginosa and its mechanisms for biofilm formation that make this organism highly efficient in causing infections. The book invites the readers to learn more about the intrinsic ability of Pseudomonas aeruginosa to resist a wide variety of antimicrobial agents due to the concerted action of multidrug efflux pumps, antibiotic-degrading enzymes, and the low permeability of bacterial cellular envelopes. Particular focus is put on the evolutionary role of different types of protein-secretion systems in pathogenesis, flagella and their role in chemotaxis and surface sensing, and host-pathogen interactions. This book is a useful introduction to the field for junior scientists interested in the biology and pathogenesis of Pseudomonas aeruginosa. It is also an interesting read for advanced scientists and medical specialists working within this field, providing a broader view of the topic beyond their specific area of specialization.

This volume explores the latest techniques used to study environmental microbial evolution, with a focus on methods capable of addressing deep evolution at long timescales. The chapters in this book are organized into three parts. Part One introduces molecular dating approaches and time calibration ideas that allow for the determination of evolutionary timescales of microbial lineages. Part Two describes several advanced phylogenomic tools such as models for genome tree construction, a taxon sampling method, outgroup-independent tree-rooting methods, and gene family evolution models. Part Three covers techniques used to study trait evolution. Written in the highly successful Methods in Molecular Biology series format, chapters include introductions to their respective topics, lists of the necessary materials and reagents, step-by-step, readily reproducible laboratory protocols, and tips on troubleshooting and avoiding known pitfalls. Cutting-edge and comprehensive, Environmental Microbial Evolution: Methods and Protocols is a valuable tool for all researchers who are interested in learning more about this important and evolving field.

Orgnized in an A-to-Z format, this reference guide is designed to help users find their way in the vast--and sometimes bewildering--world of living things too small to be discerned with the naked eye. Entries cover environmental, industrial, and food microbiology, in addition to the microbiology of health and disease. Scientific techniques used for studying microorganisms are discussed, and biographies of key individuals are provided. A chronology of infections and disease epidemics from 430 B.C. to the present is included as an appendix.

Provides in-depth coverage of lectins and their interactions with micro-organisms and demonstrates how lectins function as probes for viral, bacterial, fungal and protozoal surfaces, as well as for blood group antigens.

This book brings together many of the world s leading experts in the fields of Antarctic terrestrial soil ecology, providing a comprehensive and completely up-to-date analysis of the status of Antarctic soil microbiology.

Antarctic terrestrial soils represent one of the most extreme environments on Earth.Once thought to be largely sterile, it is now known that these diverse and often specialized extreme habitats harbor a very wide range of different microorganisms.

Antarctic soil communities are relatively simple, but not unsophisticated. Recent phylogenetic and microscopic studies have demonstrated that these communities have well established trophic structuring and play a significant role in nutrient cycling in these cold and often dry desert ecosystems. They are surprisingly responsive to change and potentially sensitive to climatic perturbation.

Antarctic terrestrial soils also harbor specialized refuge habitats, where microbial communities develop under (and within) translucent rocks. These cryptic habitats offer unique models for understanding the physical and biological drivers of community development, function and evolution."

Bridging the gap between laboratory observations and industrial practices, this work presents detailed information on recombinant micro-organisms and their applications in industry and agriculture. All recombinant microbes, bacteria, yeasts and fungi are covered.