marine microbiology
01 november 2002 publication
the lead articles of the november 2002 issue of microbiology today are on how fish need doctoring too!; marine microlights; the important of marine snow; giant algal viruses; fossilised records of past seas; trouble ahead in uk bathing waters; red tides in the sunset; and marine biotechnology.
fish need doctoring too! (p. 171)
fish may become infected with any of a wide range of bacterial and viral pathogens and eukaryotic parasites. brian austin reveals the background to some of these fascinating diseases.
marine microlights: the luminous marine bacteria (p. 174)
luminous marine bacteria can cause fish to glow and seas to shine. how do they do it? how can we use this amazing phenomenon in biomedical science?
the importance of 'marine snow' (p. 177)
macroaggregates containing a wide range of phyto- and zooplankton held together in a sticky matrix are known as 'marine snow'. carol turley describes the importance of these sinking particles to the ecology of the oceans.
giant algal viruses: lubricating the great engines of planetary control (p. 180)
many viruses have been isolated that infect marine eukaryotic phytoplankton. willie wilson explains how some of these have the largest virus genomes known.
fossilised records of past seas (p. 183)
the planktonic foraminifera are an important part of the zooplankton, and their calcific shells, preserved in the ocean sediments, form one of the most complete fossil records on earth. chris wade and kate darling explain how they can be used as indicators of climate change.
uk bathing waters: a success story, but... 'there may be trouble ahead...' (p. 186)
pressure groups believe that sewage entering the sea is dangerous to the health of bathers and to the marine environment. keith jones explains the current measures to protect water quality and describes some problems that may prove difficult to solve.
red tides in the sunset (p. 190)
'red tides' are one type of harmful algal bloom. robin raine describes how the blooms are formed and the unpleasant effects they can have on marine life and its human consumers.
putting marine biotechnology on the map (p. 194)
there is great potential to exploit the marine environment to the benefit of us all. graham shimmield and david green explain how the new european centre for marine biotechnology aims to achieve this objective.
gradline (p. 204)
the winners of the promega prize are announced.
schoolzone (p. 206)
dariel burdass reports on the sgm post-16 summer school at the university of reading.
comment - fighting infection - the creation of a new uk health protection agency (p. 224)
geoffrey schild takes a look at the new uk government strategy to combat infectious disease.
