Microbiology Monthly Newsletter for Microbiology at the Department of Cell & Molecular Biology Lundberg Laboratory, Göteborg University [ January 1999 ] [ February 1999 ] [ March 1999 ] [ April 1999 ] [ May 1999 ] [ June 1999 ] [ July-August 1999 ] [ September 1999 ] [ October 1999 ] October 1999 Scientific Contributions This month we have one new paper on our science display. Phylogenetic assessment of total biodiversity One of the most impressive aspect of the biological world is its astonishing diversity, which is manifested at the levels of individuals, populations, species, and higher taxa. It has been argued that we should work actively for the conservation of such diversity and two different approaches are usually discussed. One advocates for the preservation of species threatened by a small population size while the other for the preservation of habitats. As discussed by K. Pedersen and colleges, the former of these approaches easily becomes anthropocentric in that we tend to think that charismatic animals, such as koalas, whales, tigers etc, need more crisis management than less appealing organisms, such as snails, wasps, worms and fungi. The difficult task of the latter approach, on the other hand, is to choose localities for preservation of the largest proportion of biodiversity over long term. The major question, then, becomes how we define biodiversity. The authors suggest that the simplest and most rational view is that of Wilson (1992) who defines biodiversity as genetic information content, defined simply as the information contained in coding sequences. Thus, one could argue, the number of genes in any given species should be a factor in discussing biodiversity conservation. For example, mammals, harboring approximately 4 times the genes of insects should, at best, be given no more than four times the conservation priority of e.g. a fruit-fly. If gene duplication frequencies are taken into account, the priority ratio would be even less. In addition to the estimation of number of genes, a phylogenetic relationship analysis is crucial for evaluation of conservation priorities. The authors present an approach to phylogenetic assessment by using the bacterial communities from groundwater near the a natural fission reactor, Gabon, as a model system. The usefulness of the approach in higher eukaryotes is also discussed as is the a possible short-cut of using Higher Taxon Richness as a biodiversity assessment. Positions in Functional Genomics The applications for the Lector and Research Assistant positions in Functional Genomics are now in. I was positively surprised to see so many interesting applicants working with powerful genetic model organisms, such as E. coli, B. subtilis, yeast, arabidopsis, C. elegans and mouse. In addition, it is nice to see that quite a few foreign applicants are in the race and willing to go to the CMB. New Equipment The CMB is in the process of acquiring a number of useful equipment that hopefully will be here at the end of the year. These investments include, equipment for Microarray Analysis, a French Press, a Molecular Dynamics Storm, a Packard InstantImager, a Microscope, a GC/Mass Spec., a Bioscreen Analyzer, and a Beckman Sequencer. I think these "toys" have the potential for being very useful for our research at Microbiology. However, do not forget that: "Success in Science comes from people, not equipment" Peter Kapista Have a great month!