Main description:

Cold adaptation includes a complex range of structural and functional adaptations at the level of all cellular constituents, and these adaptations render cold-adapted organisms particularly useful for biotechnological applications. This book presents the most recent knowledge of (i) boundary conditions for microbial life in the cold, (ii) microbial diversity in various cold ecosystems, (iii) molecular cold adaptation mechanisms and (iv) the resulting biotechnological perspectives.

Contents:

Boundary Conditions for Microbial Life at Low Temperatures.- The Climate of Snow and Ice as Boundary Condition for Microbial Life.- Limits for Microbial Life at Subzero Temperatures.- Microbial Diversity in Cold Ecosystems.- Bacteria in Snow and Glacier Ice.- Bacteria in Subglacial Environments.- Bacteria in the Deep Sea: Psychropiezophiles.- Bacteria in Permafrost.- Anaerobic Bacteria and Archaea in Cold Ecosystems.- Cyanobacteria in Cold Ecosystems.- Fungi in Cold Ecosystems.- Cold-Active Viruses.- Molecular Adaptations to Cold Habitats.- Membrane Components and Cold Sensing.- Cold-Shock Proteins.- Fundamentals of Cold-Adapted Enzymes.- Cryoprotectants and Ice-Binding Proteins.- The Role of Exopolymers in Microbial Adaptation to Sea Ice.- Genomic Analysis of Psychrophilic Prokaryotes.- Microalgae in Polar Regions: Linking Functional Genomics and Physiology with Environmental Conditions.- Metagenomics: Microbial Community Genomes Revealed.- Proteomic Studies of Psychrophilic Microorganisms.- Biotechnological Aspects.- Biotechnological Aspects of Cold-Adapted Enzymes.- Heterologous Protein Expression in Psychrophilic Hosts.- Cold-Adapted Fungi as a Source for Valuable Metabolites.- Natural and Stimulated Biodegradation of Petroleum in Cold Marine Environments.- Microbial Adaptation to Boreal Saturated Subsurface: Implications in Bioremediation of Polychlorophenols.- Biological Iron Oxidation and Sulfate Reduction in the Treatment of Acid Mine Drainage at Low Temperatures.