Handbook of Molecular Microbial Ecology I (PDF)

The premiere two-volume reference on revelations from studying
complex microbial communities in many distinct habitats

Metagenomics is an emerging field that has changed the way
microbiologists study microorganisms. It involves the genomic
analysis of microorganisms by extraction and cloning of DNA from a
group of microorganisms, or the direct use of the purified DNA or
RNA for sequencing, which allows scientists to bypass the usual
protocol of isolating and culturing individual microbial species.
This method is now used in laboratories across the globe to study
microorganism diversity and for isolating novel medical and
industrial compounds.

Handbook of Molecular Microbial Ecology is the first
comprehensive two-volume reference to cover unculturable
microorganisms in a large variety of habitats, which could not
previously have been analyzed without metagenomic methodology. It
features review articles as well as a large number of case studies,
based largely on original publications and written by international
experts. This first volume, Metagenomics and Complementary
Approaches, covers such topics as:

* Background information on DNA reassociation and use of 16 rRNA
and other DNA fingerprinting approaches

* Species designation in microbiology

* Metagenomics: Introduction to the basic tools with examples

* Consortia and databases

* Bioinformatics

* Computer-assisted analysis

* Complementary approaches--microarrays, metatranscriptomics,
metaproteomics, metabolomics, and single cell analysis

A special feature of this volume is the highlighting of the
databases and computer programs used in each study; they are listed
along with their sites in order to facilitate the computer-assisted
analysis of the vast amount of data generated by metagenomic
studies.

Handbook of Molecular Microbial Ecology I is an
invaluable reference for researchers in metagenomics, microbiology,
and environmental microbiology; those working on the Human
Microbiome Project; microbial geneticists; molecular microbial
ecologists; and professionals in molecular microbiology and
bioinformatics.