Fusarium dry rot is a ubiquitous disease of potato affecting tubers in storage and at planting. A greater understanding of the current Fusarium species composition associated with Fusarium dry rot in the Pacific Northwest (PNW) will aid in refinement of current management strategies. In this study, the identity of 327 single-spore Fusarium isolates recovered from PNW tuber samples was confirmed using molecular phylogenetic analyses based on partial sequences of tef and pho loci.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFUnderstanding the factors that regulate microbe function and microbial community assembly, function, and fitness is a grand challenge. A critical factor and an important enzyme cofactor and regulator of gene expression is cobalamin (vitamin B). Our knowledge of the roles of vitamin B is limited, because technologies that enable characterization of microbial metabolism and gene regulation with minimal impact on cell physiology are needed.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe use of plant materials to generate renewable biofuels and other high-value chemicals is the sustainable and preferable option, but will require considerable improvements to increase the rate and efficiency of lignocellulose depolymerization. This review highlights novel and emerging technologies that are being developed and deployed to characterize the process of lignocellulose degradation. The review will also illustrate how microbial communities deconstruct and metabolize lignocellulose by identifying the necessary genes and enzyme activities along with the reaction products.
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