Microbial oceanography in a sea of opportunity.
Plankton use solar energy to drive the nutrient cycles that make the planet habitable for larger organisms. We can now explore the diversity and functions of plankton using genomics, revealing the gene repertoires associated with survival in the oceans. Such studies will help us to appreciate the sensitivity of ocean systems and of the ocean's response to climate change, improving the predictive power of climate models.
Bowler
Chris
C
CNRS UMR8186, Department of Biology, Ecole Normale Supérieure, 46 rue d'Ulm, Paris, France. cbowler@biologie.ens.fr
Karl
David M
DM
Colwell
Rita R
RR
D000818:Animals; D017753:Ecosystem; D020869:Gene Expression Profiling / Q000639:trends; D023281:Genomics / Q000639:trends; D017752:Greenhouse Effect; D006802:Human Activities; D006801:Humans; D008386:Marine Biology / Q000639:trends; D009791:Oceanography; D009792:Oceans and Seas; D010933:Plankton / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000378:metabolism; D012623:Seawater / Q000382:microbiology* / Q000821:virology; D014734:Vibrio cholerae / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000378:metabolism; D014871:Water Microbiology; D014876:Water Pollution / Q000009:adverse effects