Where there's muck there's microbes.

Seth-Smith, Helena; Bentley, Stephen

Human activity over the past century has caused large-scale environmental pollution. By characterizing bacteria indigenous to these polluted niches, microbiologists can identify mechanisms by which bacteria degrade contaminants, either to detoxify their habitat or for use as food and energy sources. Detailed analyses of the completed genomes of these degraders have produced many insights into their biology.

BACTERIA; OXYGENASES; POLLUTION; ECOLOGICAL niche; BIOTIC communities; GENOMES; MICROBIOLOGISTS

Nature Reviews Microbiology, 2006, Vol 4, Issue 9, p646

1740-1526

Academic Journal

10.1038/nrmicro1497