Environmental Microbiology

Environmental microbiology is the study of those microorganisms which exist in natural or artificial environments. Molecular biology has revolutionized the study of microorganisms in the environment and improved our understanding of the composition, phylogeny, and physiology of microbial communities. The current molecular toolbox encompasses a range of DNA-based technologies and new methods for the study of RNA and proteins extracted from environmental samples. Currently there is a major emphasis on the application of “omics” approaches to determine the identities and functions of microbes inhabiting different environments. Environmental microbiology is a growing niche area related to environmental biology, but dealing with the biology of lifeforms too small to see with the naked eye. Environmental microbiologists examine microbes as they relate to the environment – their effects on the landscape and how they are affected by it. This will include the spread of viruses and bacteria, and the distribution of algae, fungi and parasitical organisms. Some of these have profound implications to human health and others provide vital services to the environment. Every form of life that shares the ecology with us performs a function for local ecologies. Soil microbiology is the scientific discipline that is concerned with the study of all biological aspects of the microorganisms (bacteria, archaea, viruses, fungi, parasites and protozoa) that exist in the soil environment. This is a subdiscipline of environmental microbiology. An ecosystem is a community held together by complex interactions between the biotic and abiotic factors in a given area. The biotic factors of an ecosystem are the living portions such as plants, animals, bacteria and fungi. The abiotic factors include the soil, water and other nonliving items present in an environment. This book is an area of science that studies of physiology, genetics, interactions and functions of microorganisms in the environment, and makes use of this knowledge with the ultimate goal of maintaining environmental quality and contributing to the sustainable development of modern society.