Microbial Ecology of Extreme Environments

Caroline Chénard is a viral ecologist with extensive knowledge and experience working with viruses infecting phytoplankton. Her main research interests include viral genomic and metagenomic as well as virus-host interactions. Some of her previous works include the discovery of a new lineage of viruses infecting polar cyanobacteria. She also has conducted many scientific cruises and field work in both polar regions. Federico Lauro is a microbial ecologist who pioneered the bioinformatic analysis of metagenomic data to study marine plankton ecology. He has substantial expertise in experimental and computational approaches, including the latest "omic" technologies to study microbial communities. His research has investigated the molecular basis of adaptations to low temperature and high hydrostatic pressure. He received the Ermanno Bellio prize in 2000 and the Lowell Thomas Award in 2015.

Introduction.- Ecogenomics of Deep-Ocean Microbial Bathytypes.- Adaptations of cold- and pressure-loving bacteria to the deep-sea environment: cell envelope and flagella.- Microbial electron transport in the deep subsurface.- Metagenomics of hyperthermophilic environments: biodiversity and biotechnology.- Crenarchaeal viruses of hot springs: diversity, ecology and co-evolution.- New insights into the microbial diversity of polar desert soils: a biotechnological perspective.- Exploring the viral ecology of high latitude aquatic systems.- The nature and relevance of solvent stress in microbes and mechanisms of tolerance.- Clouds: a transient and stressing habitat for microorganisms.