Linking species concepts to natural product discovery in the post-genomic era

A widely accepted species concept for bacteria has yet to be established. As a result, species designations are inconsistently applied and tied to what can be considered arbitrary metrics. Increasing access to DNA sequence data and clear evidence that bacterial genomes are dynamic entities that include large numbers of horizontally acquired genes have added a new level of insight to the ongoing species concept debate. Despite uncertainties over how to apply species concepts to bacteria, there is clear evidence that sequence-based approaches can be used to resolve cohesive groups that maintain the properties of species. This cohesion is clearly evidenced in the genus Salinispora, where three species have been discerned despite very close relationships based on 16S rRNA sequence analysis. The major phenotypic differences among the three species are associated with secondary metabolite production, which occurs in species-specific patterns. These patterns are maintained on a global basis and provide evidence that secondary metabolites have important ecological functions. These patterns also suggest that an effective strategy for natural product discovery is to target the cultivation of new Salinispora taxa. Alternatively, bioinformatic analyses of biosynthetic genes provide opportunities to predict secondary metabolite novelty and reduce the redundant isolation of well-known metabolites. Although much remains to be learned about the evolutionary relationships among bacteria and how fundamental units of diversity can be resolved, genus and species descriptions remain the most effective method of scientific communication

Bioinformatics for the human microbiome project

Microbes inhabit virtually all sites of the human body, yet we know very little about the role they play in our health. In recent years, there has been increasing interest in studying human-associated microbial communities, particularly since microbial dysbioses have now been implicated in a number of human diseases [1]–[3]. Dysbiosis, the disruption of the normal microbial community structure, however, is impossible to define without first establishing what “normal microbial community structure” means within the healthy human microbiome. Recent advances in sequencing technologies have made it feasible to perform large-scale studies of microbial communities, providing the tools necessary to begin to address this question [4], [5]. This led to the implementation of the Human Microbiome Project (HMP) in 2007, an initiative funded by the National Institutes of Health Roadmap for Biomedical Research and constructed as a large, genome-scale community research project [6]. Any such project must plan for data analysis, computational methods development, and the public availability of tools and data; here, we provide an overview of the corresponding bioinformatics organization, history, and results from the HMP (Figure 1).National Institutes of Health (U.S.) (NIH U54HG004969)National Institutes of Health (U.S.) (grant R01HG004885)National Institutes of Health (U.S.) (grant R01HG005975)National Institutes of Health (U.S.) (grant R01HG005969

Teaching OR using risk solver platform

Please help us populate SUNScholar with the post print version of this article. It can be e-mailed to: [email protected] En BestuurswetenskappeNagraadse Bestuurskoo

Spreadsheet solvers: A compariosn.

Ekonomiese En BestuurswetenskappeNagraadse BestuurskoolPlease help us populate SUNScholar with the post print version of this article. It can be e-mailed to: [email protected]

The role of artificial intelligence methods in the demand-side management activities of dynamic electricity pricing

Please help us populate SUNScholar with the post print version of this article. It can be e-mailed to: [email protected] En BestuurswetenskappeNagraadse Bestuurskoo

Risk budgeting in a mining house

Please help populate SUNScholar with the full text of SU research output. Also - should you need this item urgently, please snd us the details and we will try to get hold of the full text as quick possible. E-mail to [email protected]. Thank you.Ekonomiese En BestuurswetenskappeNagraadse Bestuurskoo

The South African e-commerce industry: customer centricity and dynamic pliancy characterising success

Please help us populate SUNScholar with the post print version of this article. It can be e-mailed to: [email protected] En BestuurswetenskappeNagraadse Bestuurskoo

Understanding the role of enterprise portals in knowledge management

Please help us populate SUNScholar with the post print version of this article. It can be e-mailed to: [email protected] En BestuurswetenskappeNagraadse Bestuurskoo

The role of a knowledge-centric capability in innovation: A case study.

Ekonomiese En BestuurswetenskappeNagraadse BestuurskoolPlease help us populate SUNScholar with the post print version of this article. It can be e-mailed to: [email protected]