Psychrophiles: From Biodiversity to Biotechnology

ISBN-13: 9783319570563 / Angielski / Twarda / 2017 / 685 str.

Rosa Margesin

Opis

Most scientists in the middle of the twentieth century would probably not have believed that life was possible at extreme values of environmental factors, such as pH values close to 0 (e. g. sulfurous environments) or to 14 (e. g. soda lakes), sali- ties of 6 M NaCl (e. g. Dead Sea), hydrostatic pressures approaching 0. 1 MPa (deep sea) and temperatures exceeding 100C (thermal vents or hot springs) or as low as -20C (e. g. polar regions). Of the current studies on extremophiles, approximately 30,000 articles by the year 2007, almost two-thirds have been performed on org- isms adapted to outstanding temperatures, but much more attention has been paid to thermophiles than to psychrophiles. However, over the past 10 years, scientific publications on cold-adapted microorganisms have increased by a factor of ten. If one considers the extent of cold habitats, psychrophiles, i. e. cold-loving organisms, should largely lead in this comparison with thermophiles because a great proportion of the Earth's biosphere never reaches temperatures above 5C. Nearly three-quarters of the Earth is covered by oceans whose deep water masses, irrespective of latitude, are constantly between 2 and 4C. The large continent of Antarctica also provides a permanently cold terrestrial environment as well as an aquatic niche in the surrounding ice that melts during the summer. Other examples of cold habitats are permafrost soils, high alpine soils, cold deserts, cold caves, marine sediments, snow, glacier and sea ice.

O autorze

Rosa Margesin is full professor at the Institute of Microbiology, University of Innsbruck, Austria. Her field of research are cold-adapted microorganisms, with the focus on alpine habitats, including ecology, biodiversity and taxonomy of psychrophiles, soil microbiology, and environmental microbiology (biodegradation and bioremediation). Rosa Margesin is (Co-)Editor of 10 books published by Springer, and of various Thematic Journal Issues. She (co-)authored more than 100 publications and reviews in international peer-reviewed journals.

Blurb

This completely updated and revised second edition presents the most recent developments and advances in the field of microbial life in the cold, as well as the latest insights into the psychrophilic lifestyle. It particularly focuses on the exploitation of psychrophiles as a source of cold-active enzymes and biopolymers, and their benefits in the fields of biomedicine and bioremediation.
Written by leading international experts, the book is intended for microbiologists, ecologists, molecular biologists, biochemists, environmental scientists and biotechnologists in academia and industry.