r-nierobiologytodoy

vol35I moy08 quorterly mogozineof the society for generol microbiology

bugsget everywhere spoce bugs lifeon mors ontorctico:the lostfrontier lichensin the freezer how microbesfrovel the world vcl35(2) 54 News 84 Schoolzone 94 Coingpublic 60 Microshorts88 Cradline 98 Reviews 82 Meetings 92 Hotoff the Press102 Addresses

100 Obituary- ProfessorSir Howard Dalton FRS

62 Spacebugs I Antarcticlichens: LewisDartnell lifein the freezer Are there microbes outside our planet? lf so, how PaulDyer & PeterCrittenden do they get around? Lichenscan surviveand grow in the most harsh and inhosoitableconditions.

ls microbiallife on Sh ip ballasttan ks: Marspossible? how micro bes trave I CharlesCockell the world Micro-organismson the red planet- Fred do theyexist? - couldthey exist? C. Dobbs Asthe world'sshipping fleets travel across the * oceans,who knowswhat unseenmicrobial cargothey transport. Antarctica.a last frontierfor microbial 104 Comment:Fungi as exploration biologicalcontrols of insect BrentC. Christner& disease vectors JohnC. Priscu NancyBeckage Deep below the Antarctic ice lie microbial As our climate warms up, can fungi be used to prevent the ecosystemswaiting to be explored. spread of insect-bornedisease?

Looking through the clear, frozen surface of Lake Vanda, Antarctica. The liquid water 65 m below teems with bacterial life. 1eorge Steinmetz/ SciencePhoto Library The views expressed

Dr MattHutchings Dr Sue Assinder,Dr PaulHoskisson, Professor Bert Rima JanetHurst Lucy Coodchild & FayeStokes by contributors are not iri,, YvonneTaylor lan Atherton are alwayswelcome and should be addressedto the Editor c/o SCM HQ, Marlborough House, '18 necessarily those of the BasingstokeRoad, SpencersWood, Reading RC7 lAC Tel.011B9BB 1809 Fax01 9885656 emailmtoday6sgm.ac.uk webwww.sgm.ac.uk Society; nor can the ii.:r',' claims of advertisers

TheSociety for CeneralMicrobiology 1464-0570 LatimerTrend & CompanyLtd, Plymouth, Ul( hp ot tarenfeerl

.c MicrobiologyToday Ed itorial Board With the resignationof professorlain Haganfrom Councildue to pressuresof worl<,the his editorialboard has lost one of itsvalued members. We areall very grateful to lainfor on inputover the pastfew yearsand especiallyfor beingthe leadin the well-receivedissue 'microbesand cancer'.

ln hisplace we welcomepaul Hoskisson,a lecturerat the Universityof Strathclydewhose specialityis actinomycetesand who hasalready contributed an articleto the magazineon hisfavou rite micro-organ isms.

A new initiativein VirologY! www.g I a.ac. ul

TheUniversity of Clasgowis offering a new cross-facultyMasters programme for individuals who wishto pursueacareer in virologicalsciences. The one-year Masters of Researchin Virologyis largelyhands-on, with two researchprojects each lasting up to 20 weeks,in additionto advancedtaught modules.

Thisnew initiativeaugments the highlysuccessful Honours degree in Virology.These courses arethe onlystand-alone degrees in virologyon offerin the Ul(. Dr StephenDunham ([email protected])isthe courseco-ordinator of the MResdegree.

will be considered.Eminent international Microscopy and speakersinclude: Mark Jepson(Bristol), microbes UrsCreber (Zurich), Michelle Swanson (Michigan)and Timo Hyypia(Finland). SCM/RMS joint meeting 24 June2OOB, Excel London Theevent takes place at Microscience2008, Don't forgetto registerfor this exciting the RMS'sflagship microscopy conference one-dayevent which will focuson the and exhibition.The registration fee for the cellularaspects of infectionand the sessionis f45 for SCM and RMSmembers, importaqtrole microscopy has in furthering which will alsoentitle delegates to visitthe our knowledgeof thisfield. Both cell exhibition.For further details contact Paul A Colouredelectron micrograph of human invasionDrocesses and the tusslethat Monaghan(paul. monaghan @ bbsrc.ac.uk) papillomavlruses(ultrathin section) being rakesplace once a pathogenhas started to and to registersee www.microscience200S. shed from a human wart. 14ausBoller, Paul-Ehrlich-lnstitute,Langen, Cermany replicatewithin the host cell and fight back org.uk

An obituaryof Dr Norbert Pfennig,an he receivedmany honours, including People HonoraryMember who joined SCM foreignmembership of the Royal MichaelBushell, Professor of in 1958and who died in FebruarY, Society.Interestingly, in view of the Microbiology,U n iversity of Surrey, will be publishedin a futureissue of theme of this issueof the magazine, hasbeen appointedto the AdvisorY Microbiology Today. Lederbergwas a memberof the on NovelFoods and US NationalAcademy of Sciences Committee Well-knownAmerican scientist, of the Food Standards SpaceScience Board 1958-1974 Processes ProfessorJoshua Lederberg, has died Agency. and recommendedthat spaceships aged82. He won the 1958 NobelPrize should be sterilizedbefore takeoff in physiologyor medicinefor hiswork and astronautsquarantined on Deaths on the geneticsof bacteriathat laid returnfrom their missions. TheSociety notes with regretthe the foundationsfor modernmolecular deathof Dr Ken Sargeant(member genetics.His work waswide-ranging, ProfessorDennis L. Knudson(oined 2008. since1 964). he advisedseveral US Presidents and SCM in 1972)died on 2 March,

54 microbiologytoday SCMCou ncil FebruaryMeeting H ighlights SCM Journals Sir Howard Dalton, FRS Funder-mandatedopen accesspolicies continue to be monitoredand it appearsthat the earlierburst of author Councilheld a minute'ssilence to honourthe memoryof payments,mainly b JAV,has declined recently. Most of formerPresident Howard Dalton,who died on 12 )anuary. this moneyrelated to researchfunded by the Wellcome An obituaryappears on p"100. Trust.Overall, it appearsthat authorsare being placed in BovineTB confusingpositions by funders. ProfessorsBarer and Pennreported on the progressof SCM Finances the independentinquiry into bovineTB researchthat the Councilmembers heard that the auditof the SCM 2007 Societyis carryingout for Defra.The worlbacteriology were the old Croupsystem are in Edinburghand Dublinthis year raised.lt wasalso noted that the BBSRCDirector of Science and the ScientificMeetinss Officer reoorted that both are andTechnology, Professor Nigel Brown, is attending the nrnsrpccino r,4rell SCM'sforthcoming meeting in Edinburghin orderto talkto delegates,particularly those worl

Hedid a DPhilin virologyunder the B lbs 1 1 oz. Mum and baby are supervisionof TomTinsley in Oxford doingwell. Natalie's role on JCV AnnualCeneral between1970 and 1975 and wasa is beingcovered by Ashreena Meeting 2008 professorat ColaradoState University, Osman. specialisingin InfectiousDiseases, Welcometo new StaffEditor, TheAnnual Ceneral Meeting of Cenomicsand Bioinformaticsat the RachelWalker, who isjust the Societywill be held on Tuesday, timeof hisdeath. completingher PhDfrom Liverpool 9 September2008 at the Society Universityon the characterizationof Meetingat TrinityCollege Dublin. SCMstaff the roleand regulationof secreted Aocnda nancrq inrlrrdino rcnnrfc Congratulationsto Senior Staff Editor, proteinsof Enterococcusfaecal is. from Officersand Croup Conveners NatalieWilder, who gavebirth to Rachel'sfirst desrce was also at and the Accountsof the Societyfor babyAlexander John McCuire on 17 Liverpoolin Microbial 2007 will be circulatedwith the March.He weighed in at a bouncing Biotech nology. August issueof MicrobiologyToday.

microbiologytoday 55 SCM PnzeLectures and Awards

A rangeof prestigiousawards is madeby the Societyin recognitionof distinguishedcontributions to microbiology. Nominationsare now soughtfor the 2OO9prize lectures. The award panel will considerthe submissionsin the autumnand tal

Prizelecture rules and a nominationform areon the SCM website:www.sgm.ac.uk/about/prize-lectures.cfm

FlemingAward Thisis awarded annually for outstandingresearch in any branchof microbiologyby a microbiologistin the early stagesof his/hercareer.

Thewinner receives{1,000 and givesa lecturebased on his/herwork to a Societymeeting. The text is usually publishedin a Societyjournal.

Colworth PrizeLectu re Thisis awarded biennially for an outstandingcontribution in an areaof appliedmicrobiology. lt issponsored by the receivinga2OO7 ColworthLaboratory of UnileverResearch. A Nicola l(ennerley,University of EastAnglia, UndergraduateMicrobiology Prize earlier this year. Thewinner receivesf 1,000and givesa lecturebased on his/herworl< to a Societymeeting. The text is usually Und ergraduate Microbiology Prizes publishedin a Societyjournal. Theprizes aim to encourage choosesthe assessed excellencein the study microbiologicalworl< for of microbiologyby whichthe prizeis awarded. FredCriffith Review Lecture undergrad uate students Thesubmission should be Thisis awarded biennially in recognitionof longand andto promotescholarship supportedby formalmarks, distinguished service to microbiology. in,and awareness of not an informalassessment. microbiologyin universities. Winningstudents should Thewinner receivesf 1,000and givesa personaloverview Theprizes are awarded haveattained at least2(l) of an areaof microbiologyto a Societymeeting. The text is annuallyto the undergraduateoverall in theirdegree usuallypublished in a Societyjournal. studentin eachqualifying examinationsat the stageat institutionwho performs whichthe awardis made. in their Prizefor Microbiology bestin microbiology Universitiesare now invited PeterWildy yearof studyfor penultimate to nominatea studentfor a Education Each a Bachelor'sdegree. 2OOBPrize. Submissions can Thisis awarded annually for an outstandingcontribution will be winningstudent only be acceptedon the form to anyarea of microbiologyeducation. awardedf150, a certificate which hasbeen sent to all snA z lraa rrorr'c I lC Thewinner receives f 1,000and givesa lectureon a topic d.rru d rrss ysar ) u\l institutions.The full rulesand of his/herchoice at a Societymeeting. membershipof SCM. furthercopies of the form One prizeis availableto may be downloadedfrom eachuniversity in the Ul( the SCM websiteor obtained with the supporting Completednomination forms, together andRepublic of lreland from the CrantsOffice at c/o documents,should be sentto Dr UlrichDesselberger, offeringa degreecourse SCM HQ. Theclosing date SCM HQ. with a significantcontent of for nominationsis 29 August Theclosing date for nominationsis 30 September2008. microbiology.The university 2008.

microbiologytoday Crants Wellcome ScientificMeetings Travel Crants TrustInternational Thisscheme offers members who are earlycareer scientists limited grants to EngagementAwards presenttheir work at scientificmeetings. Applicants in the followingcategories www.weI lco me.ac. u k/doc_ are eligibleto apply:postgraduate students, resident and registeredfor a higher WTX035603 . htm I degreein a country in the EU; postdoctoralscientists within 3 yearsof their first appointmentin a countryin the EU,graduate scientists within 3 yearsof their Thesenew awardsof up to f30,000 firstappointment to a microbiologicalpost in the Ul( or Republicof lreland; supportprojects that aim to achieve universitylecturers (LA or equivalent)within 3 yearsof appointmentto their someor all of the following: firstoost in the Ul( or Reoublicof lreland. #to strengthenthe capacityof people in developingcountries to facilitate Internationalschemes me nt with h earth :.tl:i'*te International Development Fund Sto stimulatedialogue about health Thefund existsto providetraining courses, publications and other assistanceto researchand its impacton the public microbiologistsin developingcou ntries. in a rangeof communityand public President'sFund for ResearchVisits contextsin developingcountries Thefund enablesearly career scientists, as defined in the schemerules, to @to investigateand test new methods visitany other countryfor 1-3 monthsto carryout a definedpiece of of engagement,participation, microbiologicalresearch. Crants contribute towards travel, subsistence and communicationor educationaround someconsumables. healthresearch TheWatanabe Book Fund #to promotecollaboration on engagementprojects between Memberswho are permanentlyresident in a developingcountry may applyfor researchersand communityor public fundingto acquiremicrobiology books for their libraries.These annual awards organizations areavailable as a resultof a generousdonation from ProfessorT. Watanabe of )aoan. & to supportWellcome Trust-funded researchersin developingcou ntries Theclosing date for applicationsto theseschemes is 25 September2008. in engagingwith the publicand poliry makers. Studentschemes Applicantsmust be basedin certain Postgraduate Student Meeting developingcountries or in the Ul( Crants workingwith partnersin developing Crantscontribute towards travel countries.See the websitefor full andaccommodation expenses for details.The next deadlinefor receiptof attendanceat ONE SCM meeting applicationsis 24 October2008. eachyear. Applications for a grant to attendthe Dublin meeting(8-11 September)must be submittedby Sciencefor humanity 5 September2008. http :/ / scien cefo rh u m an ity. n etl CRADschoolCrants Thisnew initiative,supported by NESTA, Awardsto contributethe full course bringstogether scientists, international feesof a Ul( CRAD national(personal developmentagencies or careerdevelopment) residential and localsocial enterprises to develop workable, course.Applicants must be resident science-basedsolutions undergraduatesto work on to specificproblems andregistered for a PhD in the Ul(. in developing microbiologicalresearch projects in countries.Issues around water, energy, Electivegrants theirelective periods. The second diseasediagnosis and treatment, Theseenable Ul(/lreland medical, roundof applicationscloses on 25 environmental sustainabil ity and dentalor veterinaryscience September2008. agriculturewill be the main focus. microbiologytoday may 08 59

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-.ru'***%',a*"\ n Earth, mrcrobes get absolutely every- area, sleeping quarters and hygrene facilities.Widespread .f *', wherc.lndeed. there scem to bc ver; lcw ,fr'I s1 bat'terialculonization \\ as noted.but fungallcr cls Lypic..rlly J t completelysterile natural environments. remarned low throughout space mrssions, probably due tcr q *4But wha\ about micLobi.r\ colonization \\rc\rxr hunrrdit; rrlt\rr lrt; e\td .rir. \,, .tf rrllrrcelions " "'--./""'bevond [arth? In rhisarricle A uniquediscovery was madc in lu9B whena NASAmis- t,\*-***d"o "i well expl,)rethe realm ol spaccbugs. sionlo thesnace qtrti()n found several larsc'*.b..,*.,.,b,,," free-lltratinr hltrbs There is a great deal of interc)t i,r the microbiologl' of the of watcrcrrrpht behind lhe serr icc nrnels of one.rI the habrt- closed artificial environments createdfor human exploration ation modules. These had formed as water vapour tn the arr of the cosmos,such as the InternationalSpace Station (lSS), as condensedinttr tiny droplets and c,,,ales.cd in the micrograr ity wellat rn minimizingthc risksof inadvertentlytransp()rting environment of the s[atlon into sizeabledrops. Samplesfrom

terrestrialcontaminatron elsewhere, and even the possibility these frce-{loatinpcondensatcs \\erc svrinped, ,,,b. * inttr stelilc of a natural mechanrsrn spraylng life between worlds over h:os and relrrrned to the orr)und fnr nxtr-nsivc rnrlr ci* thehistor; ol thcsolar systcm. The condensatesamples were noted to be a clor-rdywhitc or brown colour, and culture studies were run to identlfy the -t,p., :qr.r'r rL3 '|!:'l,l ' :ril mir-r,r-,rro:nicmc.inhrhirino thic rrnit ) j, ..).....-...- .....b . ..,[uewet en\ lronmcnt.

' research Alrhorrph"'""*b' limirerl microhiolosit'al was cerried out The bacterial isolates were predominantll' Gram-negrtn-c and beforethe launch of thcApolld space craft that flew aslronautsto included many Enterobacteriaceae such as Escherichiocoli and the Moon and back in the laLe1960s and carll' 1970s,the first Yt,isttti,r"r---"''-""./snecies The>e c()ntaminants\\ crc rlmost ccrtrinlt 'i exl-ensnein-flipht studics trl microbialdrvcrsitv".'..-,.,/ werc crrried JUPPTTLUsttnnlied hvU)/ therllL hrr*^^rrurrldrluLLuParrr) ('l thetr,\ sLrtir'n.Alrrnssidc oul on thc Ru>sianspece station Mit. Mir washumanitys first the bactelirlbiota. fLrngi, amoebae and ciliaLcdprol,rz,'.r

lons-term.".^tr.'*tI,-'...."r*'..inhnlrited oulD()st in soace.launchrd in l9Boand were recoveredlrom the free-floatingcondensate, and even consistingoIr fire-port docking hub wirh ttrnnet'ted rcsupply dust mitcs.Pcrhaps most w()rr) ing. houe\cr. the reselrchels shinsand hahitatirrnmodules. Over the courseof the station's isolatedscveml '-' onnol'l'rr'' rrnist ic'' v-'n;ttltrrgens:rnd u hat thcr sus- almostl5;ears olscnice. numerous studies were ctrnducted pectedto be a Legionellaspecies, although this rdentrficauon on the biota suruiving rn drfferentregions, such as the dlning could not be confirmed as subculturing failed.Some specres

52 mirrnhinlnov fnd.rv ' 'l ,.1,

much older when sampled, and the to supply sufficient consumables from progression of microbial colonization Earth. Ingenious biologically based of the ISSwill be closelytracked. regenerative life support systems are The problems of microbial infection being proposed, relpng on plants are particularly acute aboard space and micro-organisms to provide food,

missions Prolonsed exnoqrrreL 1.,(U oxygen production, waste recycling cosmic radiation and microgravity and water purification. in this case, a is believed to have a negative effect microbial outbreak might nor only on the immune system, and disease affect crew health, but crash rhe life transmission is enhanced within the support systems and endanger the closed environment of recycled arr viabilityoi rhe enriremission. and water. Studies repoft that diseases, It is clear then, that wherever man mainly respiratory infections, occur in boldly goes his microbial fauna is sure a quarter of spaceshuttle flights.But to follow. As discussed above, if this the problem is not limited ro rhat of is allowed to get out of control it may infection, and adversemicrobial effects pose serious problems on long-term also include allergies, toxicity of air space missions. But in terms of our and water supply, and biodegradation responsibility as explorers, perhaps of critical spacecraftcomponents. even more serious is the possibility of For longer missions. such as the inadvertently spreading our terrestrial habitationof the Moon or a return rrip contamination to the extraterrestrial to Mars, ir will simply not be possible locations we visit.

.f lnternationalSpace Station (lSS),seen from the SpaceShuttle Discoveryas it leavestowards the end of mission STS-121. Photographedon 15 )uly 2OO5. NASA/ Sciencephoto Library

V Astronaut TerrenceW. Wilcutt transportsa water bag from the spaceshuttle Atlantisto the Kristallmodule of Russia'sMir spacestation. Photographedon mission STS-29 (6-26 September 1996). NASA/ SciencePhoto Librarv of this genus cause Legionnaires' disease,an often fatal infection. t More recently, the ISS has been samnled for mir-robial abundance. Many coniaminants from human occupation have been found, such as Staphylococcusepidermidis, which are also commonly found in other closed environmentslike nuclear submarines. On the whole, though. the ISScarries a much lower bioload than other space platflorms.This has a lot to do with the lessonslearned lrom previousmissions, suchas the installarionof HEPA filters on air handling sysremsand a robust housekeeping programme of weekly cleaning and biweekly drsinfection. Over its operational lifetime, Mir witnessed numerous crew exchanges, re-supply deliveries and bioiogical experiments.More importantly, Mirhad also suffered numerous malfuncttons that 1ed to raised temperatures and hish--^b-- --".^-^^-,humidirv: ',/' ideal conditions for microbial growth. Mir was also microbiologytoday be There are essentially three main hurdles that must PlanetaryProtection for life to be expelled from one world and life between worlds of the passed in order Preventing the spread of microbial is in arrive safely upon the surface of another' The first has been a top priority of NASA' and the other solar systJm home world. Encouragingly, stu-diesshow now' This effort is ejection from the space agencies of the world', for decades off a th^t lnrnp, of surface rock could quite easily be flung protection, and aims to not only iimit known as planetary its gravity by the shock wave of a places like planet fast enough to escape rhe possibliity of transporting terrestrial life to ,r"ar-by asteroid.strike. Secondly,microbial stowaways within accidenully bringing something back home' Mari, but also survive the ravishes of the space decidedly these exiled meteorites must Ahhough the risks of this back contamination are environment for an interplanetary voyage lasting perhaps not negligible, and even the Apollo 11 minimal, they are hazatds include desiccation after several million ye rs. The major as[ronauts were placed in quarantine for 3 weeks by the hard vaiuum, the sterilizing glare of solar ultraviolet returningfromthe.magnificentdesolation'oftheMoon. light and the constant trickle of cosmic radiation. But again, robotic probes before launch is a relatively simple SrerihJing modeliing and experimental researchsuggest Martian surface in cJmbinations of measure. {t'r" Vihing landers sent to the the that provided microbes are buried deep enough within thelate1970s*.'.buk.d.inanautoclaveforover2days. their host bouldel they could persist for however' and is protective interior of This is a prohibitively expensiveenrerprise, heat substantial periods of time. Finally, iife must survive the especiallyproblematicforthedelicatemoderninstruments, blast of re-entry into the atmosphere of the destination planet only the parts of spacecraft expected to come ,o in g.rr.iai into the ground, essentially the sterilized and the shock of slamming in con-tacrwith potentially inhabitabie regions are mirror image of the original ejection process' For example, NASAIslatest Mars probe' the so thoroughly. they have already found fossilized plains this Some researchersbelieve Phoena lander, will touch-down in the Arctic - microbial emigrants from another world signs of Martian beneath the frozen surface to hopefully make May and dig meteorite ALHB4001 - although this water and nanobacreria within the the first ever direct measurements of Martian remains a hotly contested ciaim' The theory of panspermia The robotic arm will excavate up to organic moiecules. and this cross-fertiliz^Lron of analysis is rapidly gaining suppon, 50"cm underground. and deliver samples to a suite mechanismmay even explain the apparentlyrapid emergence instrumentsatoptheland'er.Toguaranteethecleanliness of life upon our own planet as soon as conditions became the validity of any organic detection' of this urrn, utd thus Mars' - an appropriate, perhaps from Venus or it has been enclosed in a biobarrier bag effectively study has produced exciting results demon- - be unsheathed once one recent interplanetary condom and will only this srraring just how plausible panspermia real|y is. Earlier surface. on the Martian University in Berlin tested human r'.ur. ,.i.urchers at Humboldt Once the political will arises to send the fi'rst ihe feasibility of microbial cells surviving being ejected Mars, however, such biological containment will pioneers to the shock of a nearby asteroid humans and off a planel's surface by te nigh-on impossible. As we've seen already' lmpaci. Three t)?es of micro-organism, Baclllus spores' of our spaceshipsare inherently dirty, the inhabitable sections (i and Xanthona (a lichen), in the rusty Chroococcidroptit ryunobacterium) and once we arrive to plant flags and footprints were load.ed into p.11.$ of rock and fi.red from a specially .r,io,,'ug" will inevitably begin leaking soil, our microbial an enormous pressure pulse hazards adapted, gun. Thii generated oul onlo Mars. Terrestrial life may not survive the in the life-laden rock and temperatures briefly approaching for long, but it can be spread far and of the Martian surface oC - that microbes would planet' 1,000 recreating the conditions wide by winds. Once humans have visited the red bie subjected to if blisted off their home pTanet by a nearby hov+- cuzed

64 microbiologytoday rnay 0B The re are I t is not often apparent to microbiologists or members of I the public that we know for certain that there has been I life on Mars. Since the crash of the SovietsMars 2lander l probablyno or the surface of the planet in 197I (Fig. I 1), a diversity of landed and crashed probes of various kinds, many of I littlegreen men I them not sterilized, have been delivered to the surface of Mars by the worlds space-faringnations. Only the Vihing spacecraft(Fig. 2), which landed tn I976, were completely on Mars,but heat sterilized to kill spores. Many of these spacecrafthave delivered an inventory of sporesfound in spacecraftassembly CharlesCocl

A A true colour image from the panoramic camera on NASA'sMars exploration rover Opportunity of exposed rock in Victoria Crater. The ridge in the foreground is known as Cape Verde (28 September 2006). NASA/ JPL,/ Cornell/ SciencePhoto Library

) Fig. 1. A Soviet stamp from 1972 depicling the Mars 2lander. The first landeron Mars crashedon 27 November 1971, delivering its (unintended) inventory of microbial sporeswithin its interior equipment and wiring to the surfaceof Mars.

) Fig.2. A model of aViking lander.The US Viking 1 lander landed on Mars on 20 )uly 1976 and was the first spacecraft to be deliberately autoclavedto destroy its inventory of contaminant micro-organisms. NASA/ SciencePhoto Library

microbiolo gy today:'.' habitable conditions for indigenous life. Thisquestionisa about the biochemistry puzzte,which ;"ffi l,'.;,':,; "f::1 ?:,{:,,,'il1".","*Tlh.Til:::HTnecessaryfor Hj surface sulfate first.setf_repiicadn; hgacked by sensationalism, deposits. ,h;i. fe od-,#, ,o ciaims is emerge,it is and counterclaims phosphorusin the'tor_ not possibleto saywhether such that many Marswas peopie and the volcanic "i "irr,r., an environ_.rr,.orid;;;; are fearfui of engaging rocks .onruirr'riarry r" i.r^;"y potential an orrginof life.A meaningful discussio, micron secondpossibility rs of itJ urrlr*.r.-no* the transferof life Many remarkable rh.p,:,':i'#' f."_ E;;";;';urr. . facts u.. g:1.,.. :i'l;'"ilil Thepresence known reduced and oxidized of abunar", iiq"iJ,u,., about rhe planet Mars. iron o,r-lir. W. i."". surfaceshows Mi*.in its pasrcoincides ,T. Vihingorbiter that a hult ..u.tion fo. :i with a :iT ^"?rty images iron oxidation pcriod yh.l geobiologirrr tnat early Mars hosted and ..ar.tior. rt rrrtu^rt u, standing bod?es ."rr,, tttc O|I -r-L^--- ."..1tI Lafth Was emproihft of liquid warer. Empiricai acquisition,utrfrougfr-^,f,. fu.;:. potential-lo. good evide'.. for thesewater for electronacceptori r;*,i:; i',in"lffi bodies,," tfr. foil of *.i, about 3.5 ii sedimentary as nitratesand c billion rocks with weli_aennea proba stratigraph)I r,mit.i1v,;;:"'f,:;1.""'#' bry i ; J.'if. rT'n'#' has been fonh.ornrrrg Mars began",; Ti?i: fromthe most important limiting "f,T: to desic."r. l"J f;;;., recenrMars explo;;;;#, ,rut.i..rtr, suggesting (Figs although the that Mars and 3 and4). We alsoknow,frri atmosphere contains the fu.if. ,"fr" nitrogen gas. many environmerrruf surfaceof Mars, one ,slrared i.*ri, domi"";.; ;; rn commonat volcanicbasalts, a k< hi Possible E1nh,s . nurrienr..qri.*.T,r-i?t'i, sourcesof microbes 1.;; ;;;:: ffi::i.*ili"f Where It is known many volcanic r1r:51 would life come from that Earth una fUu., terrains on th.'furif,, to take are not isolated provide of any such with respe., ,o nutrient rich soils. ,avant]g! habitrb; ;; exchange ' ,h. Abundant One-answer of marerials. rra"a.ilrni carbon ls present ll,t::rt would of course suggesrc in the uc rvr?t-srtselt. thatabout half atonne As we know so httle M;;: landson the Earth eachyear;_;;;;;;;"f orl Mors posslb/e?

microbiologytoday will disappear into the oceansand uninhabited regions, but calculations show that the shortest duration trips for some some of this material is collected by meteoriticists. There are rocks travelling from Mars to Earth is a decade, with many over 20 rocks collected that are known to have a Martian taking millions of years. origin. Lessmaterial will reach Mars from the Earth because it must move againstthe Sun's gravity,but it seemsclear that Couldmicrobes exist on Mars? 'Is as occurs today, Mars and Earth exchanged a lot of rocky The title of this essaybelies yet another subtlety. microbial 'is material ejectedby asteroid and comel impact eventsin their life on Mars possible?'is a very different question from eariy history there life on Mars?' for the reason that it is quite plausible An intriguing question is whether rocks ejected by aster- to have a sterile planet that harbours habitable conditions. oid and comet impacts could transpoft life, or even complex On the Earth the vastly productive photosynthetic biosphere prebiotic molecules, from one planet to another. This is generatesso much organic carbon that not only are micro- an interplanetary extrapolation of an old question in bio- organismspervasive in most environments, but most bodres geography,which is coveredin some detail in Lewis Dartneil's of water, even the mosL transient ones, become colonizedby article on p. 62. Mineralogical evidence in the interior of organismsusing exogenouscontaminants. It is not difficult to Martian meteorites suggests that rocks can be ejected by imagine a situation on Mars, for instance, where an asteroid impact eventswhilst still retaining temperaluresin their or comet impact into its extensivepermafrost depositswould interior below 100'C. A vital question, however, is whether generatea transient body of liquid water which lacked any micro-organisms or organic compounds could survive the surrounding microbiota to take advantage of it (Fig. 5). interplanetary journey, with extremes of desiccation, low We would say of such a body of water that microbial life temperatures and cosmic radiation exposure. Modelling within it might be possible, but does not occur. lt is one

6B microbiology today { Fig.3.Martian sedimentary rock layers exposed on the'Payson'ledgeon the westernedge of ErebusCrater. Sedimentary rocks on Marsprovide evidence for sustainedbodies of liquid wateron Mars- were they sterile?This image was obtained by the Mars ExplorationRover opportunity on 3 March 2006. JPL/ cornell/ NASA/ Sciencephoto Library

{ Fig.4. An impactcrater at 70'N on Mars (VastitasBorealis) containing ice, lmmediatelyafter an impactthe heatgenerated from the collisionwould havemelted Martian permafrost generatingcirculating hydrothermal systems. Such environments could potentially represent locallyhabitable conditions on Mars. ESA/ DLR/ FU Bertin(6. Neukum),/ Sciencephoto Library

{ Fig.5.lnfrared and visible light composite image showingthe region south of the Mawrth Vallison Mars.This and the MawrthVallis area hold special interest because of the presence of phyllosilicateminerals. These phyllosilicates (orange) attest to a time when aqueousrocK weatheringoccurred on Mars. NASA/ JPL/ Univ.of Arizona,/Science Photo Library

{ Fig.6. Thepossibility of life on Mars hasattracted some unfortunate attention. A map drawn by astronomerPercival Lowell of canalswhich he thoughthad been constructed by a dying desiccatingcivilization. Science Photo Library

1Fig.7. A claimedMartian'microfossil'. These images, much loved bythe media,should not distractfrom the factthat the searchfor habitableconditions on Marsunderoins a fundamentallysound scientific question. NASA / Sciencephoto Library

a biota, even one related to life on life is pushed ro irs limits. This srare the Earth, would yield new research of affairs should not distract from the vistas in microbiology, biophysics, simple fact that on the surface of Mars biochemistry and other related fields. or in its deep subsurface,there remains Demonstrating that there is no life on an uncontroversial and empirical Mars is rather more difficult, but if all answer to a fundamentally sound piausible habitats were searched and microbiological question:'ls microbial no life was found, one might conclude life on Mars possible?' that Mars was and is lifeless. it would not only inform us rhat the Earrh is ProfessorCharles Cockell a biogeographical island and rhat the Ceomicrobiology Research cross-inoculationof planetswith micro- Croup,Planetary and Space organisms is unlikely, but it would also Sciences :,t 'what ResearchInstitute, raise the Question, was missing OpenUniversity, Milton l(eynes thing to have a planet that has Iocalized on Mars that allowed an origin of life MK7 6AA,Ut< (t 01908 652588; conditions where microbial life, from a on the Earth when both planets shared e c.s.cockell6open.ac. uk) thermod;mamic and kinetic point of very similar earlv conditions?' view, is theoretically possible, but it is Furtherreading quite another to have a planet where Realityand imagination Bibring,J.P& others(2006). Global there is actually a biota that can use The question of life on Mars reaches mineralogicaland aqueousMars history these conditions. Mars might be a beyond the purely scientific realm derivedfrom the OMEGA/MarsExpress sterile, but locally habitable world. and enters into sociological territory data.Science 3I2, 400404. The Siren-like draw of this question Grady,M.M. & others(1997). Theimplications of answering and the power it exefts over the Microfossilsfrom Mars:a questionof the question imagination of the public and scientists faith?Astronomy and Geophy sics 38, It is important to remember that the alike makes it an irresistible calling to 26-29. search for life on Mars is just a test of cranks, egotists and those just caught Kargel,J.S. (2004). Mars:A Warmer; a scientific hypothesis, and that either up in a tide of optimism. Percival WetterPlaneL. London: Springer. outcome will be quite stunning. The Lowell saw canals (Fig. 6), in their Tokano,T. (2005). discovery of life on Mars would open place some scientists see microfossils WateronMars andLije. London: Springer. up an entirelynew field of microbiologz (Fig. 7), which whether real or nor, As lerrestrial micro-organisms have neveftheless rest on controversial evi- occupied microbiologists for almost dence. So great is our desire to prove four centuries,a new planet harbouring we are not alone that the evidence for

microbiology todaymay CI8 69 A Microbialmats in ice from behind the SeussClacier near Lake Hoare.Amy Deepunder the Antarcticice lie huge Chiuchiolo,Montana State Un iversity

) A lake-icecore samplecontaining sediment bodiesof water.Brent C. Christnerand and ice bubbles.John Priscu JohnC. Priscubelieve that these lal

he rcahzation that there was thrive in environments previously life on the Antarctic continent, thought to be uninhabitable. Micro- other than that associatedwith biological investigations conducted the marine system, did not on deep ice cores and subglacial come to light until the seminal environmentsnow support the notion investigations initiated by the that the Antarctic cryosphere may International Geophysical Year (IGY) harbour some of the most unusual in the late 1950s and early 1960s. and exlreme microbial ecosyslemson These important pioneering studies our planet. reshaped our understanding of the potential for life in the coldest and Lal

70 microbiology today far, with a surface area of more than 14,000 km2, a depth Antarctic Expedition plans ro penetrare the lake within the -5,400 in excessof 800 m, and a volume of km3, making next 5 years.To date, all information on the microbiology of it one of the largest freshwater lakes on Earth. Despite Lake Vostok is basedon analysisof the basalportion of an ice -60 oC, surface air temperatures averaging the base of the core drilled at Vostok Station, which has provided seminal East Antarctic Ice Sheet is near the pressure melting point data to predict limnological conditions in the lake's surface (--: 'C) of water owing to rhe combined effect of Earthb waters. This ice, referred to as accretion ice. is comprised of outward heat flux, the insulating properties of the overlying waler from the lake that has frozen to the botrom of th. ,.. ice, and a reduced pressure freeztngpoint resulting from the sheet. weight of the overlying ice sheet. The first indication that a lake existed beneath the East Antarctic Ice Sheet was based Possiblemicrobial life in the lake on anecdotal reports in the early I960s by pilors wirh the While viable micro-organisms from the overlying glacial Soviet Antarctic Expedition, who noted an extremely flat ice and in sediment scoured from bedrock adjacent to the area rrearVostok Station that could representice floating on lake must be regularly seeded into the lake, the question wa[er. These airborne observations were later confirmed by remains whether theseor pre-existingmicro-organisms (i.e. seismic data, radar profiles, and ice cores collected from the organisms that existed before Antarctica became glaciated overlyng ice. about 13 million years ago) have established a flourishing The lake consists of a northern basin (water depth of community within Lake Vostok. Heterorrophic acriviry has -500 m) and a larger sourhern basin (-800 m), which been reported within melted samples of the accretion ice are separated by a bedrock sill. The variation in ice-sheet and amplification and sequencing of small subunit (165) thickness between the norrh (-4,200 m) and south basins rRNA genesfrom extracted DNA and isolated cultures imply (-3,900 m) of the lake produces a 0.3 "C difference in the the lake is inhabired by bacteria relared ro rhe Alpha-, Beta-, pressure melting point of water. This gradient results in Gamma- and Deltaproteobactena,Firmicutes, Actinobactena glacial ice melting into the lake in the north, and refreeztng and Bacteroidetes.The average concentration of dissolved (i.e. accretion) to the bottom of the ice sheet in the sourh, organic carbon, prokaryotic cells, and total dissolved solids which has important repercussionsto both horizontal and in surface waters of the shallow emba).rynentand open lake vertical circulation within the lake. Although lake warer are predicted to be 86 and 160 pM, 150 and 460 cells ml-l, fiom Lake Vostok has not been directly sampled, the Russian and I.5 and34 mM, respecrivelyThe inpur of organic carbon

microbiology today -4 from the ice sheet has been estimated to be insufficient to are polenlial biogeochemicalpathways lor the anaerobic support reproductivegrowth of the entirelake community. mineralization oI organic maiter. Thus. abiotic glacial and a sustainedecosystem would requirea supplemental geochemicalprtrcesses may be sufficientto providean energy r-h1'p.rir-rlpnpro\/-.,-.-./ qnlrae res,idino.b... in i11',y11...... sulluranO."1f"..-J J-,.1nyorogen .^-, source to mrcrobes existing in Lake Vostok. redox couples. There has been speculation regarding geothermal energy Meltwater that enters the lake from the overlying ice sheet input lromhigh-enthalpy mantle processes or seismotectonrc has about 10 times more gasthan the accretedice that leaves activlty,which could introduce significant amounts of thermal the lake. resultingin supersaturatedgas concentrations energyand supportan ecosystemsimilar to thosefound in within the lakewater itself. Calculations have revealed that deep-seahydrothermal vents. However, since documented Lake Vostok may have a dissolved oxygen concentration geophysical.glaciological processes could supply subglacial 50 timeshipher than rhat in the onen oceanand coniains lake ecosystemswith nutrient and redox couplesfor microbial much more oxygen in the form of air hydrates. Alternate metabolism, the search for viable subglacial communrtres electron accep[ors, such as nitrate, are continually intro- need not be exclusive [o environments with seotherma] fluid duced into the lake through the meltingo[ basalice and rlr o2q innrrf,''r ..'' sullate is produced through the chemicalweathering of sulfide minerais in the bedrock. Giacier flow results in the Recentfindings from subglacialenvironrnents comminution of mineral matrices in the underlying bedrock, Knowledge of microbial life in subglaciai ecosystems rs releasingcarbonate. sulfrde. iron and organic matLerinto limited due to sparsedata resultinglrom the technologica[.

thettrL JuuSrq\lqlsrrhsla,'ial \environment. l Ceochemical er"idenr-e ,.. imnlies ,,,,t/,, financial and environmental challenges assocr.atedwith

that the microbial oxidation of metal sulfides in glacial flour samnlins"*'''r,','b such cold and remote subsurfaceenvironments. occurs in oxic and anoxic glacier bed environments. Under Considerableprogress has been made over the last 10 years oxic condrtions, sulfi.deoxidation and heterotrophic activity in the explorationand study of subglacialenvironments. will consume oxygen, eventually creating anoxia. Sulfide permitting a glimpse of the microbial life that exists under oxidation with Fe(IlI) as an oxidant can occur in the absence conditions of high pressure,cold temperature,low nutrient ol oxygen. and sulfate reduction and methanogenesis input and no sunlight. Estimatesof the number of cells and

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microbiologytoday organic carbon content in the Anhrctic this entire strategy are environmenhl paleoclimatological, geological and ice sheets and subglacial environs concerns and the control of con- microbial records for Antarctica. The (4x1028cells and 1lx1015g C) exceed tamination in both forward and next decade should prove to be an that reported for the Earths surface return excursions into the lakes. As interesting time of microbial discovery freshwater lakes and rivers (1.3x1026 such, it is of prime importance that for Antarctic science, one that follows cellsand I.2xI015 g C). Thesetentative environmental stewardship precedes the Antarctic tradition of melding estimates imply that the deep cold all scientific endeavours. To this end. interdisciplinary and internarional sci- biosphere in Antarctica contains a the Scientific Committee on Antarctic ence. We can expect subglacial lakes previously unknown, but globally Research (SCAR) has establlshed an to be at the forefront of such discovery relevant pool of prokaryotic cells and international body of specialists ro since they remain one of the last associatedorganic carbon. outline a detailed plan for eventual unexplored fron[iers on our planet. Iake entry and sample return. This plan What next? calls for the establishment of a network BrentC. Christner Future research of microbial eco- instruments of that gather limnological Departmentof BiologicalSciences, systems in subgiacial lakes depends data continuously, collection of water LouisianaState University, Baton on a plan in which water samples are samples for return to the surface, Rouge,Louisiana 70803, USA collected and returned to the surface. and recovery of deep sediment cores ([email protected]) The overriding and limiting issues of that can be used to reconstruct

{ Radarsatellite image of the ice over LakeVostok, Antarctica.The ice smooths out overthe JohnC. Priscu lake (centre),contrasting with the rough terrain of the ice over the surrounding mountains. Departmentof LandResources The inset shows the approximate location of Lake Vostok. CanadianSpace Agency / Radarsat/ and EnvironmentalSciences, NASA / Science Photo Library (inset NASA) MontanaState U niversity, Bozeman, V Scanning electron micrograph (left, centre) and atomic force micrograph (right) of micro- erganisms from Lake Vostok accretion ice samples from a depth of 3590 m. John Priscu(left; Montana59717, USA (e jpriscu@ Bar, 1 pm); Brent Christner (centre; Bar, 1 pm);John Priscu (right; Bar,0.5 pm) montana.edu)

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Amongstthe sparselife that existsin Antarcttca,as PaulDyer and Feter Cnittenden explain, lichens show the mostamazing ability to surviveand grow in the harsh conditions.

74 microbiologytoday ntarctica is one of the most environmenLa[y extreme locations on Earth,being the coldest, driest and windiest continent. The vasl majority of Antarctica is covered by ice sheets, averaging over 1.6 km thick, which are effectively lifeless zones. However, approximately 2 o/oof mostly coastal terrestrial surface is annually ice-free, allowing the survival and growth of certain animal, plant and microbial life forms. And dominating the terrestrialvegetation, both in terms of biomass and biodiversity, are one of the ultimate examples of life in the freezer- the Antarctic lichens.

Livingtogether in the cold Lichens are symbiotic organismscom- posedof two microbial pafiners: a fungal partner, thought to recruil nutrients and water and provide environmental shelter, and a photosynthetic paftner, normally a green alga (or occasionally a cyanobacterium) that provides a carbohydrate source for growth. The partners come together to form a characteristic lichen'thallus', which may have a flattened (crustose), leafy (foliose) or shrubby (fruticose) growth form. The s).rynbiosrsallows lichens to survive and grow in environmentally stressed habitats where there is little competition for resources,with lichens found worldwide in areassubject to low nutrient supply, extreme temperatures and low water availability In the caseof the Antarctic, over 350 speciesof lichens have been reported from continental and marltime regions. Lichensare found particularly in coastal areaswhere they occur on various rock surfaces and skeletal soils, especially { Adelie penguin rookery at Cape Hallett, RossSea, EastContinental Antarctica. those near to bird colonies that receive nutrient input from aerosols. Certain A lrrp,Darkgrey-blackcolouredcrustosethalliof Buelliafrigida,togetherwithfolioseUmbilicaria deccusatagrowing on rocl

microbiology today record for the most soulherly discovery survive in a desiccatedshte, and then of macroscopic life on Earth, with thalli rapidly rehydrate when exposed lo of Carbonea, Lecidea and SarcogYne water such as snow melt or humid air. species found at a latitude of. 86" 29' SomeXanthona speciescan even begin South within continental Antarctica. to photosyrthesize within 5 minutes after rehydration! Furthermore as a Adaptingto the cold probable response to elevated W-B Conditions for survival and growth in levels and as a possible adaptation lo Antarctica are really not pleasant. The ailow warming, several lichens species Antarctic winler is bad enough. In have dark-coloured or black thalh. regions where lichens are found, there indeed, levelsof the pigment usnic acid are extended periods of darknessin the tn IJsnea species have been shown to depths of winter and temperaturesmay vary according to seasonand incoming plunge to between -20 and -50 "C. UV-B levels. This may be alleviated somewhat bY Nutrients such as nitrogen and *4i$ffi'el brl snow cover, which may buffer the most phosphorus are also in very short :#gs'"ryry extreme cold. However, even the brief supply over much of terrestrial Antarc- Antarctic summer provides its own tica, which can limit lichen growth. challenges.Air temperatures may rise Indeed, large animal colonies such to just above freezing during the day, as penguin rookeries have a major but substrata and their accompanFng influence on lichens. Recent work by lichens may become much warmer as the Nottingham group in collaboration they are heated by the sun and maY with CEH Edinburgh and Antarctica reach in excess of 30 "C. With night New Zealand has shown that ammonia temperatures dropping to well below released from the breakdown of pen- freezrng,lichens can be exposed to a guin faecal matter and other debris daily change of lemperature in excess can influence lichen chemistry and of 40 "C combined with a freeze/thaw physiology at distances up to tens of process. Quite a challenge to ^nY kilometres from a rookery Closer to physiology! In addition, lichens are rookeries, at dishnces of l0 to several exposed to potentially damaging levels hundred metres, is a highly eutrophi- of solar radiation, especially given cated zone in which distinct iichen the depletion of ozone cover over lhe ! communities are found, typified by Antarctic during the past 30 years, and yellow and orange speciesof Xanthona, significant areas of Antarctica are in Candelanellaand Caloplaca.Itis temp- effect deserts due to very low rates of ting to speculate that responses of precipitation. Antarctic terrestrial plant and micro- Given these extreme conditions, a bial communities to climate warming number of physiological adaptations will be most evident \Mithin the relative have been identified in Antarctic hot-spots of nutrient availabiiity sur- lichens which may allow them to rounding animal colonies. survive the harsh winter and sustain growth for brief periods during the Lifein the rocl(s- Antarctic summer when favourable extraterrestrialclues? A 1-opThe widespread and locallyabundant fruticose lichen lJsneasphacelata, growing occur. First, lichens are In addition some lichens hav e adapted a conditions near CaseyStation, EastContinental living able to survive extended periods of veryunusual lifestyle, resofting to Antarctica.Note the presenceof the freeztng in a dorman[ state. Second, within the surface of soft rocks such yellow pigment usnicacid. some lichens have been shown to as sandstone, thereby gaining shelter rock field near remain physiologically active aL from the harsh external environment. A Uottom Lichen-dominated Casey Station, East Continental Antarctica. freezing,with These'cryptoendolithic' have temperatureswell below $.'rnbionts Note especiallythe presenceof black- photosynthesis shown to occur at been found growing at depths up to coloured fruticose Usneasphacelata. oC, temperaluresas low as -24 albeit at about 2 cm within translucent, porous very slow rates. Third, they are able to rocks found in arguably the mos[ Ph otos Peter Critten d en

/o microbiology todaymay 08 Someunique features Antarctic lichens also have other specialized features. Some 'gigantism', speciesexhibit the phenomenon of refeffing to the presenceof unusuallylarge growth forms, often in stable but harsh environments. Exceptionally large thalli of Buellia and Placopsisspecies grealer than 50 cm in diameter have been discovered. Although little is known of their growth rates, it is estimated that these may be from 500-5,000 or more years o1d.Another unusual feature is the specificity of the symbiotic interaction. In many temperate enr,rronments the fungus-photobiont interaction is very specific, requiring the involvement of partlcular speciesof sl.rnbiont. However, in the Antarctic this specificity appears to be relaxed, wl.th the fungal partner able to establish a lichen qrmbiosis with a range of photosl'nthetic panners. This has been interpreted as an adaptation to ensure that the lichen s).'rnbiosis can occur given the restricted availabilrty of potential paftners. Pl. .'n:l&.. * -",}' Finally, lichens found in Antarctrc may represent a Tig,!;- ir-, key component of global lichen diversity Certain species, such as the widespread Buelliafnglda, are endemic to the Antarctic, meaning that they are only found in this region. Other Antarctic iichens have a bipolar or more widespread worldwide distribution. However, our ongoing work has revealed that although lichens such as Xanthona elegans and OcLtroloechiafngida from the Antarctic might ^ppe^r morphologically identical to other specimens from around the world, they in fact have distinct genetic and physiological features.Thus, they might representnovel ecotypes,adapted to the harsh environmental conditions of the Antarctic. Looking to the future, lichens are well established as biological monitors of environmental conditions. Given that the Antarctic appearsto be particularly r,rrlnerableto climare warming, changes in the populations of Antarctic lichens might provide a timely warning that we are defrosting the freezer at our own peril.

PaulS. Dyer& PeterD. Crittenden Schoolof Biology,University Park, University of Nottingham,Nottingham NC7 2RD, Ul( (t 0115 9513203;e Paul.Dyer@ Nottingham.ac.uk)

Furtherreading Hill, D. (200I). Lichens and co-ordination of the si,nnbionts. extremeenvironment on Earth - the intensely cold, ice-free 'McMurdo Microbiol Today 28, 124-127 . Dry Valleys'.Indeed, theseAntarctic erurronments Ovstedal, D.O. & Lewis Smith, R.I. (2001). Ltchensof Antarctica may provide the closest terrestrial equivalent to conditions and South Georga. A Guide to their ldentif,cation and Ecologt. on Mars. Intriguingly, the lichen Xanthoria eleganshas been Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. shown lo survive exposure to outer space,on a recenl space (2000). shuttle mission, and the predicted pressures of meteor Purvis, \M Lichens.London: Natural History Museum. impact. This has led to speculation that lichens may even be Sancho, L.G. & others (2007). Lichens survive in space:results able to colonize planets via transpor[ on meteorites. Could from the 2005 LICHENS expenmenL.Astrobiology 7,443-454. the fact that many lichens have the same orange colouration Se1'rnour,EA., Crittenden, PD. & Dyer, PS. (2005). Sex in the asMars be in any way connected? extremes:lichen-forming fungi. Mycologst 19, 51*58.

microbiologytoday \ { A cargo ship in port at Cuslavia,St Barts, West lndies. PhoLos.com/ Jupiter lmages

) Scientistssampling residual water insidea shin's emntied hallasttanl<. Fred C. Dobbs/ Old Dominion University

'coming suwived since on board' are contributed to regulations facing globa1 reported from ballast tanks include:

liable to be releasedwhen ballast water "'^^rr*"b'shinnino? enteroviruses, Eschenchiacoli, entero- is next discharged. Unfortunately, cocci, Cryptospondium paryum and we know all too well that many non- Micro-organismsin Giardia duodenalis.Reported harmful native (also called'non-indigenous') ballastwater - canthey algae species include: Pf.estena invertebrates and plants have been be'non-indigenous'? piscicida, P shumwayae, Altreococcus introduced to new environments in For more than 20 years, scientists anophagefferens,Microcystis spp and this manner. Some of these introduced have reported a varrety of large, Anabaenaspp. While to the best of our species proiiferate, their populations easily recognized phytoplankton (e.g. knowiedge, no outbreaks of disease released from control by predators, dinoflagellates and diatoms) and have been associated with ships' parasites or other factors. When they protozoa (e.g. ciliatesand foraminifera) ballasting activities, it is only on very, out-compete and deleteriously affect in ballast water. On the other hand very rare occasions that ballast tanks native organisms, we further classify the diversity of smaller, less readily are sampled for their microbiological 'invaslve them as specres'. In some discerne,d forms, especially bacteria inventories. spectacular cases, such as the zebra and viruses, is nearly unknown. We do Are there mlcrobes discharged with musselin North America and the comb know something, however, about their bailast water that could be classifiedas jelly in the Black Sea, invertebrates abundance. In lakes and oceans,every non-indlgenous species?The answer is introduced by ballast water have millilitre of surface water contains not asclear asit is for invertebrates,and fundamentally altered the ecosystem about 102 protists, 106 bacteria, and microbial ecologists debate the biogeo- to which they were delivered. Such between 107 and 1Oe viruses. It is graphic distribution of microbes. Some drastic ecological changes have also inevitable, therefore, that hundreds argue free-living bacteria and protists precipitated signifi.cant economic of trillions of micro-organismsenter must be distributed worldwide, simply expenditures, e.g. to remove attached a single ships ballast tanks during becausetheir small size facilitatestheir zebra mussels from industrial water- normal operations. dispersal.If micro-organismsindeed are cooling systems, and in the Black Sea Although the overwhelming maj ority ubiquitous in their distribution, then wholesalecollapse of fisheries. of these aquatic micro-organisms is they cannot be considered to be non- ln a parallel sense,are there inimical not harmful to humans, some species indigenous. Another school of thought consequencesto transporting and in ballast water do indeed represent disagreesand contends some microbes disseminatingaquatic micro-organisms potential risks to public health, notably clearly do have a biogeography Many in ships' baliast tanks? We are certain pathogenic bacteria such as Vibrio examples support this conten[ion, only that scenariosenvisioned by some cholerae,the aetiologic agent of human among them inter-oceanic transfers have been sufficiently of concern to cholera, and dinollagellates,some of marine phytoplankton species.The promulgate regulations concerning species of which are responsible for English Channel and coastalEuropean 'red ships' handling of ballast water. What harmful tides'. Other pathogens seas. for example, have in the past are those scenariosand how have they and laecal-indicatormicro-organisms centurv exoerienced introductions

microbiologytoday Odontella sinensisand Coscinodiscus A A rangeof phytoplanktonsuch as those found in shipballast of two diatom species, water.From left to right:unidentified chain-forming centric diatom; waelesii, phytoplankton previously known from the East pen diatom, Asterion el I o psi s glaci al i s (diatom) ; unidentifi ed nate China Seaand North Pacific coasts,respectively. If the second Skeletonemacostatum (diatom); Scenedesmus sp. (colonial green group of scientists is coffect, then aquatic micro-organisms alga).Lisa A. Drake/ lJnited StatesCoast Cuard Academy can be non-indigenous, are therefore potentially invasive, and their presence in bailast water is indeed of concern.

Regulationsand technological solutions While microbial ecologistshave not resolved the biogeography argument, many government and internationai agencies have, in a sense, akeady decided for themselves. Consider microbiological mandates proposed by the International Maritime Organization (IMO), which sets rules and stand.ards for the global shipping industry The iMO has 'International issued an Convention for the Control and Management of Ships' Ballast Water and Sediments', now being considered for ratifi.cation by its member stales. It 'Ships reads in part: conductingballastwater mandgementshall fuschargeless than 10 viable organismsper cubic metregreater than or equal to 50 pm in minimum dimensionandless than 10 viable organismsper mlless than 50 1tmin minimum dimension and greater than or equal to 10pm in minimum dtmension..i Numerous species of aquatic micro-organisms, notably fresh- and saltwater phytoplankton and protozoa, fall into these size-predicated limits, particularly the smaller one' While the IMO Convention has no specific cail-outs for total numbers of bacteria, it does stipulate maximum concentrations for V cholerae.E. coliand intestinal enterococci.

microbiology todaymay 08 BO In the United States, there are no to effect such low numbers of micro- ional and more sophisticatedstudies are similar federal regulations and in their organismsin enormous volumes of dis- performed, especiallythose emplopng absence, several states are enacting charged ballast waterl And what an the tools of modern molecular biology. their own. California, for example, has equally daunting challenge for scientists issued standards for dischargedballast to measure those numbers accuratelyt FredC. Dobbs water that call for orders-of-magnitude Professorand CraduateProgram reduction in total bacteia and totai Playiqg Joh n ny Appleseed? Director,Department of Ocean, virus numbers relative to lheir natural There is a folk legend in the US about Eafth& AtmosphericSciences, Old concenlrations. a character named Johnny Appleseed, Dominion Un iversity, Norfolk, How will ships reduce the number of who, as he roamed the mid-western Virginia23529, USA (t +1 757 683 micro-organisms discharged with their portions of the country in the first half 5329;e fdobbs6odu.edu) ballastwater? The past decadehas seen of the 19th century sprinkled apple a flurry of technological development seeds wherever he went. The result - Furtherreading in this regard, and a cornucopia of apple trees proliferated and the region Dobbs, FC. & Rogerson,A. (2005). techniques has been tested in the was characLefized by an abundance Ridding ships' ballast water of micro- laboratory and in full-scale,land-based of orchards. Are we playing Johnny organisms. Environ Sci Technol39, installations. In a few cases, [rea[men[ Appleseed with aquatic micro-organ- 2594-264A. units have abeady been installed on isms as global shipping inadvertently Ruiz, G.M. & others (2000). Global ships. Proposed technologies range spreads them around the world in spread of micro-organisms by ships. widely in their mechanisms, from discharged baliast water? And if so, Nature 408,49-50. filtration to blocides, ultrasound to need we be concerned that some of www. europe-aliens. org/index j sp ultraviolet irradiation, and more. It those microbes are harmful? Certainly DAISIE - Delivering Alien Invasive is imperative, of course, that the thesequestions are ones of conslderable Species Inventories for Europe. trea[menl does not corrode the steel interes[ tq microbial ecoiogists, bul Inventories of alien species in Europe, ballasttanks, and furthermore, it must given the context, are pertinent to wa[er- many of which represent ballast-water yield water that meets any chemical quality managers and regulatory agen- introductions. dischargestandards for harbours. What cies as well. Our understanding of the wwwimo.orglhome.asp - a challenge it will be for technologies issues involved will increase as addit- Intemational Maritime Organization microbiologytoday rtr*y C$ T

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P.Kolenbrander USA - Community Autur-nn08|frinity College Dublin compositionand communicationin biof lms - speciesinteractions N /lnzrtinr-r IV IUUIII I\I B-l I Sepier-nber2008 | I63'o D.A. Spratt London- Metagenomic Plenary J.Verran *J'.n.*. r - Resourcesfor analysisof bacterialcommunities biofilm education C. Seymour New Zealand- From Behaviour of biofilm dental plaque to periodontitisand Bacterial biofilm structure and bacteria.from cooperation cardiovasculardisease - why worry organization andcommunication to about bioflms? P.B.Rainey New Zealand- Evolution control -The of speciesinteractions in a biof lm M. GivskovDenmark future of 8-9 Seotember2008 community biof lm control usingquorum sensing inhibitors Organizers:C.M. Cadd, P.Stoodley USA- Forcesaffecting P.S.Handley, P.R. Langford, bioflm structureand organization P.Gilbert Manchester- Mechanisms H.M. Lappin-Scott,M.M. Tunney, K. Sauer USA- Temporalgene of bacterialbiofilm resistanceto M. Upton & J. Verran 'Persister' expressionin biofilms usingproteomic antimicrobialsand the theory of resistance Speakers approaches J. Webb Southampton- Dispersalin Bioflm basics biof lms Othersymposia J. VerranManchester - Prologue- H.K. FlemmingCermany - Extracellular setting the scene Innate immunity systems polymeilc substancesin biofilms H.M. Lappin-ScottExeter -The role 1O-11Seotember T.Tolker-Nielson Denmark - and significanceof biofilms in nature, Cells& CellSurfaces/Microbial ExtracellularDNA in bacterialbioflms infectionand industry InfectionCrouos Or8anizr:rs:l. Henderson & A. McBain Manchester- Laboratory Bi ofiI m com m u n i catio n, resistance A. Cunningham modelsfor biof lm maintenanceand and control growth-ratecontrol 5. Molin Denmark- Adaptationand Biofilminfection of medical M. Upton Manchester- Exploring evolutionof Pseudomonasaeruginosa devices biof lms usingmolecular techniques to a biof lm lifestyle in the CF lung 10 Seotember A.H. RickardUSA - Microscopic M.R. ParsekUSA - lntercellular ClinicalMicrobiology Croup analysisof biof lm community structure signallingand biof lm development Organizers:D. Mack& M.M. Tunney

Makeoverfor SCM Sprirrg0gHorrogote meeti ngs From 2009, Societymeetings will InternotionolCentre havea new look.The scientific sessionsover three and ahalf 30 Vlcrc^-2April2COq dayswill coverthe latesttopics - in modernmicrobiology, within Legacyof Fleming a framework of fewer parallel B0years since the discoveryof penicillin sessionsin the mornings, 80 yearsafter Alexander Fleming discovered penicillin, our scientificsessions standalonekeynote lectures and will considerthe latestdevelopments in the diagnosis,prevention, control and afternoonspacked with workshops, treatmentof infectiousdiseases. Topics include: lmpact of medicalintervention debates,demonstrations and on evolutionof microbes/ Multidrug-resistantTB/ Production, formulation mini-symposiacatering for all and deliveryof antimicrobials/ New antibiotics/ Infectioncontrol / Novel areasof microbiologicalscience. therapeutics/ Susceptibilityto infectionand disease/ Mechanismsof resistance/ Poster-viewingwill take placeover Staphylococci/ Bedside diagnostics / Molecularevolution of viruspathogens. a drinkin the evenings.Career developmentand microbiology Relatedevents are on: Lessonsin history- the microbiologyof war wounds/ educationwill alsobe covered. Thehuman microbiome Theever-popular Cala Dinner will Other sessionswill focuson: Molecularvirology / Environmentalmicrobiology / retainits Tuesdayevening slot. Metagenomics/ Food preservation.

B2 microbiologyIoday rnay fi8 Infective endocard itis i Physiology,Biochemistry & Molecular Registration 11 Seotember i CeneticsCroup / lrishBranch ', Registrationis throughthe SCM ClinicalMicrobiology Croup i)iii.;t(ti;:r:r,:.F.Sargent & C.M. Fraser website(www.sgm.ac. uk/meetings), ij;'r,,iiii":i:i!5. Lang& D.R.Ready Ann ual Ceneral Meeting Registrationfees per day (incl.all Industrialbioremediation: from refreshments, confe re n ce Iite ratu re, O (onl-amhar contaminationto clean-up J JWYLVtttUVI welcomereception) 1O-11Seotember EnvironmentalMicrobiology Croup / YoungMicrobiologist of lrishBranch the YEarCompetition I OrdinaryMembers* f.4O i Student/AssociateMembersxf.2O ly':t,:y1i,1,;t':C. Whitby & E.M.Doyle I (anfpmher 1 Non-members f.110 Packagingof nucleicacids ; Retired/HonoraryMembers Free 1O-ll Seotember Abstracts i itit, iI l-l i...,1:,'1;',', Eul

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SchoolsMembership costs only t10 a year.Benefits include MicrobiologyToday, advance copies of new teachingresources anddiscounted fees on SCMINSET courses. To join see www.sgm.ac.uk/membership.Enquiries: [email protected] or go to www.microbiologyonline.org.ukfor full details of resources and activities. tvreotelr nes froffi fung

Wednesday 9 April saw the judging of 77 schools took part with a total School in Southampton. Second prize the ever-popular annual competition of 584 entries (412 at Key Stage3 went to Nadia Fernandesof Sheffield run by the Microbiology in Schools and I73 atKey Stage4). A special High School whose fact file on statins Advisory Committee (MiSAC). This mention goes to the Vasile Alecsandri was professionallypresented. Robyn year it was sponsored by the British High School which submiued Lawrence of Diss High School was Mycological Societywith the theme students'work all the way from awarded third prize for his detailed 'medicines of from fungi'. It aimed to Romania. The overall standard of work on penicillin. Entries from Dawn increase awarenessof the wide range entries was pleasing, with work that Buchanan of Edgbaston High School, of pharmaceutical products that are was informative, imaginative and Jack Linley of Kirkham Grammar derived from fungi. beautifully illustrated (although some school and Alice Elliot of The The brief was to designa patient entries featured gruesome images of Mount School, York were all highly factsheetabout a drug of fungal fungal infections!). There are certainly commended. origin and the breadth of drugs somebudding sciencecommunicators The short listed Key Stage4 entries researchedwas impressive (even and medical writers in our midst. were ex[remely good and choosing some of the judges learned a thing Judging of the Key Stage3 category between them was demanding. First or twol). Penicillin was a popular was difficult and the first prize was prize was eventually awarded to Holly choice and many students showed thosen due to its clarity of information Emms of the King's School Ely for high levels of understanding of key combined with creativepresentation. her fact sheet on statins that was so concepts,including penicillin's mode This winning entry, a'Quiz the concise, accurateand well presented of action, antibiotic resistanceand the Doctor' factsheetabout the use of that it could easily have passedfor a ineffectiveness of antibiotics against ergot alkaloids to treat migraines, was real NHS patient leaflet! LizzieYale viral infections. createdby Sian Deasy of Hounsdown of St Nicholas' School was awarded

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second prtze for her eye-catching work N flLJX on the role of griseofulvin in treating athletes foot. Third prize went to www.q c a.or g.ukl qca_1 3 575. as px Ushna Qureshi of Rugby High School for her well organized work on statins. www. ltscotlan d .o rg.uk/ 5to14/ aboutltol 4/ The judges were all impressedby the curri cu I u mfo rexcel Ien ce lintrodu ctio n . as p work of BeaXu and Sandra Fahmy whose excellent cartoon strip was The whole UK education system has been experiencing a awarded a commendation for creative vast amount of change.In England and Wales the Key Stage design. The work of TessaGwart and 3 Nationai Curriculum has been under review and changes Kirsten Wilkinson of GeorgeHeriot's to it will be implemented from September.Current Year 11 School, Edinburgh and Vivek Murthy students, who will be sitting their GCSEs imminently, are of King Henry VIII School, Coventry the first cohort to complete the new GCSE sciencecourses was also highly commended. launched in September 2006, such as OCR'sScience in the 27st Centuryand Edexcels360" Science. The competition continues to be a great success,not only with themes This academicyear scienceteachers have been furiously that remain relevant to the science attending coursesto help them get up to speedwith the curricula, but with tasks that help changesto the new GCE AS and ,{2 sciencespecifications, students develop valuable skills, due for launch in September2008. In addition, Ed Balls, for example the ability to carry the Secretaryof Statefor Education, announced in October out independent research,select 2007 that a new ScienceDiploma would be introduced (a and explain appropriate scientific in 2011 decision originally rejected by his predecessor, information and present it irfa style AlanJohnson). Diplomas in other subjects,such as IT and appropriate for a Largetaudience. Engineering, will be iaunched in September2008 and are We look forward to next year's expected to be availablealongside GCSEsand A levels. It competition which will be sponsored is claimed that these new qualifications will allow studenb (for by SGM and focus on the role of to deveiop functional skills example in ICT and microbes in the topical issue of numeracy), thinking skills and enhance personal learning, climate change. as well as acquire subject-specificknowledge. Diplomas will also contain compulsory work experienceand project I GemmaSims, SCM work. It is not known what the conten[ of the new Science Diploma will be and at the time of writing the governmenl has no plans to replace GCSEsand A levels with diplomas, A Someof thisyear's judges inspecting although some education commentators are predicting the the entries. From left to right: Martin opposlte. Adams (SfAM), Maurice Moss (BMS), Anthony Whalley (BMS), Margaret Whalley In Scotland the 3-lB curriculum is also under a review (BMS), Lucy Coodchild (SCM) and Cemma called a Curnculum for Excellence. The Scottish Governmenl Sims(SCM). regardsscience education as important and is putting a 1ot of money into developing new resources. d Oprpositr-rp.'agr: l(53 winners (from left to right, 1st, 2nd and 3rd) and the l(S4 Whatever happens, these changeswill have an impact creativedesign award winner. on the transition from school to university and admisslons

{ Thispra;ic l(S4 winners (from top to tutors could find it hard going to stay up-to-date in the bottom, 1st, 2nd and 3rd). rapidly evolving scene. microbiologytoday B5 A website ProJeetir-rg to srrpport r-nierobiol 09Y prootieol www. nu ffi eI d fo un d at i o n .o rg/ go/ grants/n s b / p age_390 . h t mI biology The Nuffield Foundation offers I,450 funded places ayear, in two separate schemes,for aspiring young scientists.The schemesprovide summer project www. p ractical b i o Iogy. o rg oppoftunities in leading scientific industries, researchinstitutes and UK The SGM is providing sponsorship universities. The SGM has its own vacation studentship grants for microbiology for a project being initiated by undergraduates,but we are very pleasedto fund 10 Nuffield Schoolsand the BioSciencesFederation (BSF) Colleges Bursaries each year, which are aimed at students in the first year of in partnership with the Nuffield an advanced or higher level STEM course. They are able tojoin a real research Curriculum Centre (NCC). project with practising scientists.Projects run for 4*6 weeks in the summer vacation and students receivea L75 a week bursary In our case,once Nuffield The new websitewili support has received our sponsorship they contact the Regional Co-ordina[ors who teachers in delivering practical organ;rzethe placements and ask if they have any students specifically seeking a work in schools, along the lines of microbioiogy project. The SGM money then goestowards these placements. the already well-establishedsites the NCC runs with the Institute of After completing their projects, students attend local eventswhere they display Physics (www. practicalphysics. org) them to an invited audience of teachers,other students and representativesfrom and the Royal Society of Chemistry industry, universities and research institutes. Many receive prestigious BA CREST (www. practicalchemistry org). The Awards as a result and some go forward to compete in the BA CRESTNational site \Mill list practical ideas to suppofi ScienceFair. biologr teaching by topic, and it will Listed below are examples of some of the microbiology projects that students be easily searchabie.The activities carried out in 2007'. will be presented in a standard format, to include health and safety considerationsas well as suggested ClaxoSmith l(line Cloningand characterization of a fungalgene teaching approachesand questions Johnlnnes Centre Crystallizationof DNA gyrasefrom Mycobacteiumtuberculosis for the students. JohnInnes Centre Bionanoscience: explori ng the virus-chem istry i nterface ScottishAssociation for Marine Thevitamin requirements of two microalgalspecies The website is currently in Science development, but member Divisionof Infection& lmmunity,Producinginactive kinase enzymes to aidthe studyof organrzalons of the BSF will be Universityof Clasgow cytokinesisin Trypanosomabrucei invited to contribute practical DNA from harmfulbacteria in foodstuffs Agri-Foodand Biosciences Detectionof investigations, which will be Institute,Belfast moderated by the NCC and put into QueensUniversity, Belfast Foodmicrobiology the standard format if approved. MourneCountry Meats Limited Cooking/coolingagainst microbiological levels in cookedham SGM \Mill, of course, be submitting Deptof Civil& Environmental Sourcesand flux of microbiologicalpollutants in air in urban Engineering,UCL envlronments some tried and tested microbiology BPL Developinga methodfor the examinationof microbiological experiments for consideration. bio-burdenof detergentsolutions Further information will be provided NIMR How mousemalaria affects the stemcell progenitorsof blood in Schoolzoneonce the site is live. cells HealthProtection Agency Stabilizationof recombinantanthrax vaccine

The Nuffield Foundation is always seeking project supervisors,so if you are interestedin offering a placement, do contact the National Co-ordinator, Sharmila Banerjee([email protected]).

B6 microbiologytoday rr"ray 08 IUrlJr!rrl]

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If at all possible, take the initiative and write the first draft yourself, preferably pr,-Jbllshedbefore you dive into thesiswriting. If you leaveit too late.the papermight neverhappen. either because you move on to other things or someone it? Then you should look at the main your supervisor. It is always good to elsepublishes first. Supervisors do Iinesof evidence:identify the section aim for a journal with an excellent sometimes srt on drafts of papers for headings,select data for figures and reputationand high impactfactor weeks or months so you may need to tables,and decide on your discussion since it will probably result in a high drive things on wrth gentle reminders. points. You should also be looking for levelof citation.But you do needto But don't expect an immediate anygaps in the data.Il you can draft cast a realistic eye over your data. If turnaround either; your paper might or write someof the paperahead of thereis a realrisk ol rejectionby the be one of many items requiringinput. finishing the lab work it can give you big name journals and timings are an oppofiunity to generatedata to critical,it might be betterto Largeta For publicationin a journal (and to r-lnqp the oanc -'""- "'- b*r" lesshigh-profile publication where preventyour first dralt coming back you havea betterchance of being from an irate supervisorl), your writing Strategyis all accepted.In other words, don't waste should be clear, concise, easyto read time aiming for the impossible This and informative whilst not being too idea have publishing It is a good to a can be a dlfficult judgement to make speculative(i.e. don't read too much First what of paper strategy. of all. type and sometimes an objective eye from into the data).lt is importantnot to areyou writing? Do you have enough outside your group can be very useful. duplicate data - present them either (and data the time) to write a primary as a table or a figure. Sometimesit is researchpaper? Or do you have data Speedof'turn-a.ound is another appropriate to include the results in from piece that would a side of work consideration: somejournals publish the narrative rather than include too hehener suited to nublicationas a within a few months of initial many tablesand figures.Asking an note or letter? submission, whereas there are a few experiencedoutsider to cast a friendly Choiceof journal is alsoimportant where the editoriai processcan take but criticaleye over your writing can and this should be discussedwith over ayear. be very helpful at this stage.

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microbiologytoday Thefinished paper should have contributed meaningfully journals ask authors to suggest to the work. Common conventionis referees;this can be very helpful to First impressionscount, reierees that the main worker's name should the editors managing the peer-review and editors are at best irritated by a go first followed by significant helpers process.You may be asked if you wish poorly preparedpaper. At worst.the and the principal investigator'sname to exclude potential referees,this quality of your researchcould be should be at the end. Those who should not be done lightly and you undermined by the lack of attention to made a lesssignifi.cant contribution should always give good reasons. detail in the presentalion. You should tend to appear in the middle of the list aim for perfection - that means no After submissron, the editorial process Discussthis with your supervisor. spelling or grammalical errors and begins. The handling editor must send maintaining consistencyin fi.guresand the paper out for review and wait for tablenumbering. Using referencing Subm ission the refereesto return repofts. If the software will help you avoid errors Once you are readyto submit your reports are conflicting, editors may in your referencelist. Dont forgetto paper, read the journal's rules and need to take their own view or send include acknowledgments and thanks advice.You should pay particular the paperout for anotheropinion. to collaborators.Author inclusion atlentlon to the ethical and conflict Once all comments are in, the editor can be tricky; generally speaking all of interest statements.Sometimes usually composesan informative letter to authors requestingrevisions. They then considerthe revisedpaper, possiblysending it out again to referees.It is wise to remember that editors are usually unpaid and under pressure,so try not to upsel theml on the other hand you should expect a reasonablyprompt turnaround, so do remind them politelyif months pass and you don't hear anything.

Dealingwith the outcome If your paper is rejected, Lry aga:rrr with another journal. Decisions are not always fair and an element of luck can be involved. Many papers are acceptedfollowing revisions. If you are asked to do this you should respondconstructlvely to all points raised. If you can go along with recommendaltons you should do so, but you can argue your caseon sticking points - editors will compromise. Importantly, no matter how you feel, respond calmly to the referees'comments which can be painful to read after all your hard work Thejoy and satisfactionof having a paper acceptedis fantastic. But remember that many researchers experiencerejection during their careers,so do not be disheartenedif rt happens to you. Finally - good luck!

I JaneWestwell, SCM

With than'ltsto CharlesPennfor shanng his expenenceand'hnowledge .

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The 'eyes'have it start there. The researcherstherefore set out to discover whether this diseasecould be cauqht from virus landing in the Niesalla,H., McNeilly, T.N., Ross, M., Rhind,S.M. & animals'eyes. (2008). with Harkiss,G.D. Experimentalinfection of sheep After infecting sheep\Mith VMV the authors checked for visna/maedivirus via the conjunctivalspace. J 6en Virol89, any diseasesymptoms or signsof the virus over 13 months. 1329-1337. Virus was detectedcirculating in the blood in some of the Sheepand goatscan suffer a long-term and debilitating animals within 2 weeks of infection, and in all of them within inflammatory disease,affecting their lungs,joints, udders a month. The presenceof antibodies,termed seroconversion and brains, that is eventuallyfatal. The condition is caused meant that the virus was not only presentbut active,and by one of severalsmall ruminant lentiviruses, including the sheep'simmune system was attempting to counter any pathologicaleffects. All of the sheepinfected through the visna/maedi virus OnUV). The virus targetslymphoid tissue and the circulating macrophagesof the immune system.The windpipe seroconverted,but only one of the four infectedvia EU has been supporting evaluationof a vaccinationstrategy the eyesdid so, and then only 8 months after infection. A long virus not againstthis condition in sheep.As part of this, a team in delaybetween infection and evidenceof activity was Edinburgh havebeen checkingthe transmissionroutes of unexpectedbecause this is a well-known featureof infections VMV infection. The main ones are rhought to be through milk with \4\,IV and related r,rruses.Post-mortem examinations of for young animals,but via aerosolsfor adults. The infected the sheep showed that almost all the animals had inflammation animals exhale and cough a mixture of infected cells and free in their lungs, typical of the early stagesof the disease. viral particles into the air. This fits with the fact that the lung For a successfulvaccination programme it is important to and upper respiratory tract areefficient sites for contracting understandhow the diseaseis transmittedand the full range the infection. However,VMV infection has alsobeen found of sl.rnptoms.These tests showed, for the first time, that VMV in eyes.Even though the eye has severalnatural defences, can infect through the eyesas well as through inhalation, and including enzlrnes like lysozyme, many viral infections can from quite low numbers of viral particles.

Novelbacterium from the whale-carcassecosystem Miyazaki,M., Nogi,Y., Fujiwara, Y., Kawato, M., Kubokawa,K. & Horikoshi,K. (2008).Neptunomonas japonica sp. nov., an Osedaxjaponicus symbiont-like bacterium isolatedfrom sedimentadjacent to spermwhale carcasses off l(agoshima,lapan. lnt I SvstEvol Microbiol 58, 866-871.

Spermwhale carcasseson the deep-seafloor form unique biologicalcommunities. A novel genus of marine worm, Osedax,has recently been discoveredin such environments. Theseworms consistof a crown, trunk and root structure,and s)rmbioticbacteria exist in the root systems.Researchers from the Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Scienceand Technology have discovered a novel speciesof symbiotic bacteria in theseworms during an investigationof a sperm whale carcassecosystem off KagoshimainJapan.

After running a battery of identification testson the bacterium,it becameobvious that it was closelyrelated to other speciesof symbiotic marine bacteria,but different enough to warrant description as a novel speciesof the genus Neptunomonas,for which the name N. japonicawas proposed.The only other known member of this genushad been found in creosote-contaminatedsediment on the other side of the PacificOcean.

The genusOsedax is closelyrelated to tubeworms,and it is thought that rhe method of acquisitionof their s).rynbioticbacteria may be the same,i.e. horizontal transmissionfrom the environment. Osedaxworms are also known as zombie worms becauseof their ability ro devour bones.The qrmbiotic bacteriaare thought to help them digestthe oils and fats in the bones.

92 microbiologytoday may 08 Two pathogenswith one drug Justsay NO! Zeidner,N.S., Massung, R.F., Dolan, M.C., Dadey, Mills,P.C., Rowley, G., Spiro, S., Hinton, J.C.D. & E.,Cabitzsch, E., Dietrich, C. & Levin,M.L. (2008). Richardson,D.J. (2008). A combinationof cytochrome A sustained-releaseformulation of doxycyclinehyclate c nitritereductase (NrfA) and flavorubredoxin (NOrV) (Atridox)prevents simultaneous infection of Anaplasma protects Salm o n e I I a ente ri ca serovar Typhi m u ri u m again st phagocytophilum andBorrelia burgdorferi transmitted by tick killingby NO in anoxicenvironments. Microbiology 154, bite./ Med Microbiol57, 463-468. 1218-1228.

Ticks can transmit severaldiseases to wild and domestic Nitric oxide (NO) is a highly reactivegas encountered by animals,and people.The hard ticklxodesscapulans carries microbesin many environments.Some bacteria encouter NO Borreliaburgdorfenfrom its animal reservoirin the wild within animal tissues,where macrophagecells use it as a toxic Amencanwhite-footed mouse to people.This bacterium molecule to repel the invaders.For everynatural toxin, some causesLyme borreliosis(Lyme disease).There are 500-2,000 bacteriahave evolvedmethods to counter the effects.NO is no new casesof Lyme borreliosisin the UK eachyear, but it exception.It is known that bacteriacan have severaldefences is the most common vector-bornedisease in the USA with againstNO, but it has not been clearif they are aIIimportant. about 20,000 new casesannually. The effectson peoplevary Salmonellabacteria are ableto survive and evengrow and considerably,from mild to very severe.The symptomsare divide within macrophages.They have at leastthree enzymes numerous,ranging from feeiingunwell with flu-iike symptoms that can metabolizeNO. Scientistsfrom Norwich and Dallas through tirednesswith joint or muscle pains to a rash, have now clarifiedhow eachenzyme protects the bacteria. digestiveupsets, headaches and effectson the centralnervous They focusedon SalmonellaTyphimurium, which causes system.The best treatmentis antibiotics over severalmonths severefood poisoning. One enzyme,HmpA, was already to klll the bacteria,starting as soon as possibleafter receiving known to detoxify NO in aerobicconditions. Indeed, some an infectedtick bite. Short coursesof antibioticshave also studieshave indicated that it contributesto the virulence of beenused to successfullytreat Lyme disease. Salmonellatowards mice. There are two more enzymesthat However,I. scapulanscan harbour other pathogenicbacteria. can handle NO: NorV is found in the bacterialcytoplasm; Human granulocyticanaplasmosis, caused by Anaplasma NrfA lies betweenthe membranesand cell-wall polymers that phagocytophilum,wasfirst describedin 1990 from the surround and protect the cell. The advantagesof this position mid-westernUSA, but is now found increasinglyalong the are that the enzymecan detoxify NO beforeit entersthe cell north-easternseaboard and the upper mrd-westernstates. It properly,and it can also channelsome of the energyfrom this is thereforepossible to becomeinfected simultaneously with reactioninto the energy-conservingsystem of the cell. NrfA A. phagocytophilumand B. burgdort'eri.Doxycycline is the best thereforegives the cell the potential to use this toxin as fuel. antibioticfor treatingacute infections of A. phagocytophilum The researcherscarried out a carefulseries of tests,measuring and may alsobe effectiveagainst B. burgdort'eri,although the growth of S. Typhimurium in aerobicand anaerobic amoxicillin is usually the first choice. , conditions with different levelsof NO gasdissolved in the growth media. They compareda seriesof bacterialstrains that Researchersat the CDC in the USA, in collaboration lacked the genesfor one, two or all three of the enzymes.This, wlth QLT Laboratories,wanted to seewhether doxycycline for the first time, showed that under anaerobicconditions could alsobe used to prevent both infections.They NrfA protectedthe cells efficientlyfrom NO, with NorV comparedthe effectivenessof a singleoral doseof mopping up any NO that got into the cytoplasm.The cells doxycyclinewith one injection of a slow-releaseversion could evenboost the level of NrfA activity in responsero of the sameantibiotic. For the test, the researchersallowed NO in the growth medium. In addition, [he imporrance bacteria-infectedticks to bite mice and then treatedthem with of HmpA to counter NO under normal aerobicconditions the two antibiotic formulations.The health of the mice was was confirmed. By analysingthe growth characteristicsof monitoredfor 3 weeks.The slow-releaseinjection protected an 5. Typhimurium strain that lacked al1three proreins,the all the mice from both speciesof pathogenicbacteria. In researchersgot a strong hint that there was at leastone more comparison,over 70 o/oof the mice succumbedto infection NO-detoxifying systemwaiting to be discovered. when their therapywas a single oral doseof antibiotic, exactlythe sameresult as in untreatedmice. After this The advantageto the bacterium of thesemultiple methods to decisiveresult, the researcherswondered if this could be counteractone toxic moleculeis that they give flexibiliry in the developedinto a strategyto block or eliminatethe bacterial many environmentsin which the bacteriamay find themselves infectionsin the wild animalsand ticks, and as a basisto exposedto this gas.

developnovel platforms to deliver doxycyclineto people ) Atomic force microscopy image of Salmonellafyphimurium. Roy to preventinfection. As always,prevention of infectionsis Bongaerts & Patrick Cunning, lmaging Partnership, lnstitute of Food preferableto devisingcures. They are now evaluatingfield Research, Norwich (www.ifr.ac.u k)

trialsof novel doxycyclineformuiations to seewhether 1 Osedaxworms on a whale carcass.Masayuki Miyazuki, )apan Agency thisis possible. for Marine-Earth Science and Technology, Yokosuka,lapan

microbiologytoday SCMaims to promotemicrobiology to everyone.The latest Society meeting in Edinburghprovided agreat opportunity to showcasesome of the excitingnew sciencein the programmeto theworld. Behind the scenes, Lucy Goodchild, was beaveringaway as press officer for the event.Here is herdiary for the weel<.

Hits theHeadlines SGM onMRSA and ;::,'#ffiarricles Monday31 March

Thisyear's spring meeting, held at the Worl

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J Wednesday2 April Sciencewriter Bernard Dixon is dismayed to findthe I wasup with the sparrows,making sure I would be settlec levelof ignoranceabout microbiology displayed by on the sofato listento Ritaat 5.5Oam.Sure enough, John Humphreysinterviewed her with interest.Rita's research peopleon the streetsof Edinburgh intothe useof satelliteimaging to monitor seasurface temperatureand predictcholera outbreaks is fascinating, andcaught the attentionof everyonelistening (even causing a coupleof friendsand familyto callme and askquestions Pollingthe prrblie aboutit!) This kicked off the Hot Topicsession on microbes andclimate change perfectly. There was internationalinterest in AndrewThomas's research in the l(alahari,and a local Thereis widespread ignorance of one of the greatest paperreported John Bythell's findings: that microbescould achievementsof medicalmicrobiology - the eradication bethe keyto coraldeath. of smallpoxfrom the world over a quarterof a century ago.A pollsponsored by the SCM, in conjunctionwith the EdinburghInternational Science Festival, has revealed Achunk of feta thatSTo/oof 2OOScottish people interviewed in Edinburgh streetsdid not know that the diseaseis now extinct.lt is,of course,almost certain that a surveyconducted in Londonor keepstummieselsewherein the Ul( would haveproduced a similarresult. Thefinding inevitably prompts the questionof whether fettle opponentsof immunizationagainst today's other killer fine diseases,such as measles,are awareof the enormousimpact in upset FETAcheese can helP Prevent which vaccineshave made to our controlof infectious tf6i"Jcrts,a studYsuggests' disease.Smallpox killed 300-500 millionvictims during the 20th century(and left the facesof many'lucky'survivors Thursday3 April disfiguredby pockmarks).As recentlyas 1967,15 million peoplecontracted this vile infectionand 2 million of Ourtwo lastpress releases were a greatsuccess. Panagiotis them died.Yet the successiveachievements of 30 yearsof Chanoswas invitedto Creece,to be interviewedon TV vaccinationcampaigns, masterminded by DonaldHenderson aboutthe naturalanti-food-poisoning properties of feta and colleaguesin hisWHO team, meantthat by 1979 the cheesemade from raw milk.The story also appeared on diseasehad been consignedto history. page7 of the Daily Mail, the HeraldSun in Australiaand the Forthose of us fortunatenot onlyto be unthreatened lndependentin lreland.Jahangir Hossain was interviewedby by smallpoxbut alsoto havebeen immunized a radiopresenter at BBCAsian Network about the spread againstdiphtheria, poliomyelitisand other fearfulconditions, the of Nipahvirus through sweet food and domesticanimals in twin lessons are crystalclear. lmmunization is our most powerful Bangladesh.This story was very popularonline, appearing on and conclusiveweapon to deployagainst pathogens. newswebsites from manv differentcountries. And the risksof side-effecls- whether real,as in the caseof smallpox vaccine,or purelyconjectural - in no way detractfrom the LucyGoodchild I continuedimportance of immunizationagainst our I ExternalRelations Administrator (e l.goodchild6sgm.ac.uk) remainingkillers. The SCM/ESF survey points very clearly to anothercontinued need - to remindpeople, parents 'Virus' in particular,of the pastsuccesses of vaccinationand its dressings unceasingrelevance. On the positiveside, the Edinburghstudy did show that manymembers of the publicare conscious of the maybeat supeibugs wide rangeof activitiesof micro-organisms,rather than simplytheir capacityto causedisease. Three quarlers of intervieweesknew that microbesare usedto make medicines,while 650/oknew that bacteriacan live inside Warningover the suPerbugactivevolcanoes and 54o/othat they can attackNorth Seaoil platforms.About 44o/owere evenaware of the involvement thatresists safe antibiotics of microbesin chocolatemaking - one of their leastfamiliar roles,even for scientistsin other fields.

microbiologytoday may 0B Thesurvey, conducted in FebruarY 1.5o/o and March this year by Scotinform,an Edin bu rgh-based pol I i ng organization, was basedon a questionnairedesignec to assessthe levelof publicknowledge of micro-organismsand their functions Exoeriencedinterviewers used the ouestionnaireto obtainanswers from 201 individualsto multiplechoice 'true ouestionsand or false'statements. Bacteriacan Some bacteria Disinfectants Smallpox,Rrcthe Microbesare Microbesare Age and genderdata were also attackstructures live in active kill all known disease,has been usedto make essentialin the producti.onof collectedand the compositionof the tu.t ut North Sea volcanoes germs- eradicatedfrom medicines oil platforms the Earth chocolate samplewas adjustedto reffectthe A A small sample of the truelfalse questions used in the Edinburgh survey. l(ey: purple, true; of the general demographics green, false;brown, don't know. population.These data showed some significantdifferences in the knowledge Perhapsfeedback from familydoctors, the resultsof the surveywere of respondentsin differentage groups. in responseto mothersrequesting to be presentedin a sessionon antibioticsfor children'sconditions Comm unicati n g Microbiology d u ring Forexample, 80% of peoPleselected suchas sore throats, can account for the SCM'sSpring Meeting. When, in the true definitionof microbeswhen 'types very pronounceddifference. On 1942,journalistsheard rumours of givena choiceof of molecule', this 'invisible topic,the percentagesof correct the first,seemingly miraculous cures of 'parlsof a computer'and this repliesfrom both sexesamon g 16- to life-threaten ing infections by penicil lin, forms of life suchas bacteriaand 24-year-oldsand the 55+ group were they descendedon the 5ir William viruses'.In secondplace,15o/o 'tYPes only29 and 43%, respectivelY. Dunn Schoolof Pathologyin Oxford of respondentsselected of to interviewthe leaderof the team, molecule'.But whereas over 9Oo/o of Women tendedto be more aware Howard Florey.He immediatelysent 45- to 64-year-oldsanswered correctly, that viruses(rather than bacteria them packing.Florey did not likethe the percentagefell to70o/ofor people or'cold and dampweather') are o/o mediaor publicity. of 65 or older and to 52o/ofor 16- to responsible for commo n colds,79 24-year-olds.Does this reflectan selectingthis option asagainst 72o/o of Sothe journalists made a few phone educationaldeficit in this cohort? men. In termsof age,the ProPortion callsand found their way instead of correctanswers rose steadily from to St Mary's Hospital,Paddington. Therewas another age difference 53o/oamong 16- to 24-year-oldsto It wasthere, over a decadeearlier, when intervieweeswere askedwhether 'most 9Oo/oin the 65 or over categorY. that Fleminghad madethe original sunlight,microbes or waterwas observationof the inhibitoryeffect importantin makingcompost'. Overall, When askedwhether bacteriacan of somethinginPenicillium on 760/oplumped for microbes.But94o/o attackstructures such as North Sea staphylococcigrowing in a Petridish. of the 65+group chosethis answer, oil platforms,5To/oof men saidYes, 'l At St Mary's Hospital,Fleming gave the versusonly 560/oof those aged 6-24. comparedwith 52%oof women. (620/o) mediaa muchwarmer welcome than A generallyupward trend in correcl Overall, more participants they had encounteredin Oxford. answerswith increasingage presumably agreedwith the propositionthat some indicates growing awareness, bacteriacan live in volcanoesthan with And that wasthe originof the legend particularlyamong gardeners, of the the statementthat bacteriacan atlack which portraysFleming as the sole (54o/o). microbialbasis of comPosting. oil platforms heroof the storyof penicillin,with questionswas quite scarcelya mentionof Floreyand his l(nowledgeof the efficacyof antibiotics One of the 12 of the rest.lt asked Oxfordteam who purifiedthe product wasa secondarea where a significant differentfrom all 'Who penicillinas a life- and introducedit asa dramatically disparityemerged. In responseto the introduced of three effectiveantimicrobial drug. As the question'Do antibioticswork against savingdrug?', with a choice in Oxford, Edinburghsurvey shows, the legend viruses,bacteria or both virusesand names:Howard Florey CharlesRennie Mackintosh in Clasgow remainsalive and well. lt is basednot bacteria?', the percentagesof correct in London. on effectivecommunication, but on a repliesoverall were 21, 51 and25o/o, or AlexanderFleming perhaps,88olo of failureof communication. respectively.However, while 640/o Unsurprisingly, for FIeming. of women statedthat antibiotics respondentsopted act exclusivelyagainst bacteria, only Thisquestion was includedfor its I BernardDixon 40o/oof men selectedthis answer. bearingon communication,since | (e dixonadams6blueyonder.co.uk)

96 microbiologytoday may 08 lf youwould lil

Lifein the Universe: RNA, the importance of ATP and the A Beginner'sGuide final electron acceptor, respi ration. photosynthesisand plausible ByL. Dartnell alternativesto recognizableaspects of Publishedby OneworldPublications teffestrlalbiology. These ideas are put in (2007) conrexrand thev makesense. I couldn't span and luminescence of the star and t9 99 / US$14.95 pp 202 put the book down. lhe nresenceand sizeof the moon are lsBN1-85168-505-9 important. The search for extrasolar, As I read on, I got the wonderful habitable planets is considered, as It is difficult to describethis book. impressionthaL the authorwas just well as the investigation of potentially lnteresting?Undoubtedly. Well written? ca fA

9B microbiologytoday MicrobialLife, 2nd edn This compactvolume (it is about the Real-TimePCR in Microbiology: size of a Collins Field Guide) contains FromDiagnosis to Characterizailon ByJ.T. Staley, R.P. Cunsalus, a wealth of information on soil and the MedicalMycology Cellular and S.Lory & J.J.Perry life that lives in it, and is more than just MolecularTechniques Publishedby PalgraveMacmillan Ltd a gardensafari. In part 1, the exposition Effectsof Herbsand NaturalProducts (2007) on soil formation and typesin the on ClinicalLaboratory Tests f43.99pp.1056 introduction is masterly.Landscapes Ani mal Vaccination. Part'l : lsBN0-87893-685-4 from around the world are described: development,production and useof (from rockycrag to temperaLerain MicrobialLiJe represents a refreshing vaccines.Part 2: scientific,economic, changeof emphasisand style compared forest;desert to savannah)and the reguIatory and socio-ethi cal aspects relationshipbetween the soil type and to more standardmicrobiology Methi ci I I i n - Resistant Stap hylococcus structure,and the flora and faunathey textbooks.lt does,as its authors aureus(MRSA) Protocols suppoft, clearly explained.Part 2 gives claim, have an emphasis on evolution a fuller picture of life in and on the soil. PichiaProtocols, 2nd edn throughout,and has authorswho are 'litter Not just the usual critters'- the Pseudomonas: Geno m icsand Molecu Iar still at the cutting edgeof bacterial author startswith the microscopic,soil Biology researchandyet have found time to bacteriaandprotozoa, and finishes contributeto a text. This research CeneticVariation: A LaboratoryManual with the macroscopic;badgers and activityshows throughout the book, Poxviruses 'Research kangaroorats. Eachnew entry is andparticulariy in the MolecularBiology and Biotechnology: accompaniedby a'fact box'giving a Highlights'boxeswhich givea cuffent A Guide Teachers/C'uide Students quick referenceguide to the organism, for for topic in the style of a press-cutting its classification,place in the food web, Mims' MedicalMicrobiology, 4th edn relevantto chapters.Also in many of and impact on the garden.Part 3 turns Clinical Microbiology and l nfectious the illustrations,with the exceptionof to the gardenerand his impact on soil Diseases,2nd edn thebacterial flagellum, more detail is through the use (or not) of fertilizers shownthan is usual in text books. This SalmonellaMethods and Protocols and compost,and the introduction of givesa hint of the immensestructural Ch ro m oso m al Mutagen es is exotic snecies.There is an excellentfinal informationthat is now availablefor Reoviruses:Entry, assembly and chapteron collectingand observing microbialproteins. Examples of these morphogenesis life in the soil, with notes on the helpful diagramsinclude ribosome construction of observationchambers Myxob acte ri a: Mu lti ceII u I ar ity and andpilus structures,comparisons of and simple Berleseand Baermann Differentiation the chemistryof archaealand bacterial funnels.The book finisheswith a good EvolutionaryBiology of Bacterialand membranes,details of bacterial glossaryand an excellentreading list. FungalPathogens encounterswith the human immune The whole is illustrated wrth superb High PressureProcessing of Foods system.There is a good balancebetween colour phtotographsand beautiful line environmentally,industrially and TheMicrobiological Safety of Foodin drawings.Not just for gardenersand medicallyimportant micro-organisms HealthcareSettings naturalists:this book would be excellent in the book, and a very commendable Handbookof FermentedMeat and readingfor the first year ecologistor Chapter16 on microbial genomics Poultry environmentalscientist. which covers,in a conciseway, much Nidoviruses thatstudents need to appreciateabout A caveat:British readersshould note that the author is an American and FoodBiodeterioration and Preservation theway genomicsand transcriptomics 'robin'shown hencethe in photograph Molecular OralMicrobiology inform and drive modern microbiology 'Daddy research. 47 ts a thrush, and the longlegs' Epigenetics referredto on pages105 to 107 is a Conceptsin CeneticMedicine LizSockett, University of Nottingham harvestman(Class Arachnida, order MedicalMicrobiology the New Opiliones),not a cranefly. for CurriculumA Case-BasedApproach Kit Brownlee,University of Reading Lifein the Soil: TheOIE Clobalconference on Aquatic A Guidefor Naturalists AnimalHealth andGardeners Reviewson the web TheMycobacterial Cell Envelope ByJ.B. Nardi Reviewsof the following books are Health,Risk and News. The MMR Vaccineand Media Publishedby Universityof Chicago availableon the websiteat www.sgm. the Press(2007) ac.uk/pubs/micro_todaylreviews. cfm PioneeringWomen in PlantPathology f15.00 US$25.00pp.336 / I MycoAlbumCD lntroductory Samplingand Analysis of lndoor lsBN0-22656-852-0 I MycologyLaboratory Review Microorganisms

microbiologytoday may 08 99 &$i ffim$Tilffiilw

ProfessorSir F.loword Doltor-r FRS i ffiffiffiffi'

Howardwas born in New Malden,Surrey, the sonof alorrydriver' Hewas highly intelligent with an inquiringmind and his early interest in sciencewas evident from hismany exploits with cocktailsof chemicals,which often had explosive consequences. Having survived 'laboratory' manyescapades with theseearly experiments,Howard waseager to learnmore and hismother was extremely proud of him passingthe11+ examination and attending Raynes Parl< Crammar School.Howard was awarded a placeat QueenElizabeth College, Universityof London,Sraduating in 1965with a BScin Microbiology' involved in bacterial oxida- His research career started when he undertook a DPhil with pioneered work on [wo en4rrnes of melhane, a soluble, cytoplasmic me[hane mono-oxy- ProfessorJohn Postgate FRS at the ARC Unit of Nitrogen tion (MMO) distinct membrane-bound Fixation, University of Sussex,where he worked on nitrogen genase and a completely enz)'Tnescan convert fixation in the soil bacterrum Azotobacter and helped to particulate MMO. These remarkable into methanol. Howard elucidate how this aerobic soil bacterium protecls its nitro- methane, a rather inert compound, purify and charactetize them genase from oxygen damage by augmen[ation of respiration and colleagues were able to level, work which led to and conformational protection mechanisms. Howard then at the biochemical and molecular of lhe slructure and worked f.or2yearsas a postdoctoral fellow with ProfessorLen much of our current understanding MMOs. Howard also quickly Mortensen at Purdue University, Indiana, on the biochemistry catalytic mechanisms of these MMO had remarkable co-oxidation of nitrogenasein the anaerobicbacteritm Clostndium. reahzedthat the soluble longstanding interest in Ever resourceful, while in the USA he avoided the possi- properties, which stimulated a using MMO and other biliry of being drafred ro vietnam by his ordination into the biocatalysis and biotransformalions he also made extremely Universal Life Church, ironically on 1 April 19691 oxygenases. Through this research into the use of microbes Recognizing that electron spin resonance spectroscopic important contributions to research was to stimulate his later techniqueswere going to be of great importance in the study to produce chemicals, work which was consultant for the New of metaloproteins, Howard returned to the University of interests in biofuels. He Jersey joined the Scientific Advisory Sussexin 1970 to work with Dr Bob Bray in the Department company Celanese and then company Celgene, of Chemistry on two molybdenum-containing enzyrnes, Board for the spin-out biotechnology insight in[o chemical and nitrate reductase from Aspergillus nidulans and xanthine which gave him considerable that he used to good dehydrogenasefrom Veillonelloalcalescens. The following year, indusrrial aspects of microbiology All of this research Howard.married Kira Rozdestvensky,whomhe had metwhile effect in his biotransformation research. interna[iona] living in the USA, and when Professor Roger Whittenbury at Warwick brought him a much-deserved publications in a career persuaded Howard to take up a lectureship in Microbiology reputation, pelded many seminal papers and opened up at the Department of Biological Sciences, University of generating well over 250 scientifi.c microbiology of one carbon Warwick rn 1973, they settled in the village of Radford whole new research fields in the awarded a Personal Chair at Semele near Leamington Spa. Roger recalls that warwick in (Cl) compounds. Howard was career flourished, he those days was hardly a magnet for microbiologists, offering Warwick in 1983 and as his scientifi.c immenseiy proud of the accolades only an abandoned chemistry laboratory containing just two and his colleagues were as a Fellow of the Royal piecesof equipment, a broken piano and a dartboard! A brief he received, especiallyhis election as President of the Society chat about his background and a promise that he would work Societyin 1993, his appointment (1997-2000), the award of the on Roger'sbeloved methane-oxidizing bacteria and that was for General Microbiology the Royal Society in 2000 sufficient to initiate Howard's long and illustrious tenure at Leeuwenhoek Medal Lecture at .1 Honours list in 2007 fot warwlcK. and his knighthood in the NewYear Howard built up a Iarge research group at Warwick and his semces to science.

microbiologytoday rnay 0B 100 'Btohazard' Howard also made significant contributions to the life of performed with distincdon in the team thal the University of Warwick. He was Chair of the Department played a friendly match with the Saudi Arabia national team, of Biological Sciences(1999-2002) andheld many positions thereby adding to his illustrious international career.A great in the University deaiing with academic matters and other passion of Howard's was real tennis and he was a member of areas of University life. His enthusiasm for and extensive Leamington Real Tennis CIub where his competitive spirit, knowledge of Japanese gardens were also brought into play guile and ability won him marry tournaments. It was here, on campus, resuldng in the creation of two fine gardens at while playrng in a friendly doubles tournament, that he Warwick. tragically collapsed and died on 12 January 2008. He had In2002, Howard was secondedto become Chief Scientific just returned from a month in The Gambia assisting his wife Adviser to Defra, a role in which he sought to instil scien- Kira in her extensive humanitarian work, setting up new tific rigour into policy-making decisions based on sound schools and medical centres there. This work wrll now be scientific evidence. Howard led the scientifi,c advisory team assistedthrough generouscontributions made to the African generating the UK contingency plan for dealing with avian Oyster Tiust in his memory He was also excited by the influenza virus and was instrumental in raising the profile of prospect of advising the Gambian government on a number climate change as a significant threat, delivering lectures on of important environmental issues. this and other topics such as biofuels and GM crops atmany Howard was a down-to-earth, self-effacingman, outgoing national and international meetings. He was a greaLcommun- and witty and in the l980s was a'leading light'at gatherings icator and he wrote a highly entertaining and popular blog of the staff of Biological Sciencesat Warwick in weekly socials describing his 2 week visit to the British Antarctic Survey in at local pubs (code-named'Choir-Practice'!).He also enjoyed 'poker-night' 2006where he observedat firsthand the effectsof globalwarm- the occasional with selected colleagues who ing on ice fields in Antarctica. Throughout his time at Defra, invariably relieved him of his hard-earned cash. Howard's Howard maintained strong links with the University, return- penetrating questions and insightful comments at national ing each Friday to look after his researchgroup. He returned and international scientific meetings always made for lively full time to Warwick in October 2007 and in the short and stimulating debate and discussing science with him was time before his death had already delivered some insightful always immensely rewarding. He was extremely generous of and entertaining lectures on science policy to final year his time with well over 100 PhD studens and postdoctoral undergraduateswith his usual passion and engagingstyle. researchers,and it was a real privilege for me to work with hrm Howard had an immense zest for science and life in general as a PhD student and then as a colleaguefor nearly 30 years. and was a fine sportsman in every senseof the word. ln his Above ail else, he made science fun and was an inspirational early days at Warwick he was a regular in the Rowington mentor, a much-loved colleague and a dear friend. He Village cricket side; a fiery fast bowler and very useful lefr will be very sorely missed. Howard is survived by his wife handed batsman. He was a lifelong Spurs supporter and Kira and children (Christopher, Eric, Jeremy and Amber). a highly competitive member of the Biological S,ciences football team, aptly named'Biohazard'. In the 1970s Howard i Colin Murrell, Universityof Warwick

JohnCrainger writes.. . SomeSCM connections - Janet Hurst I first worked with Howard when he joined the committee of Howard was always a great supporter of the SGM, joining in the then SGM Teaching Group. We were full of trepidation 1964 whilst stiil an undergraduatestudent. He was an elected when we learnt that he was to become the next Council rep member of Council (1985-1989), the period alluded to by on the group, expecting by reputation for him to appear only John Grainger,before becoming President 10 yearslater. SGM occasionally at committee meetings and then bronzed and staff have fond memories of Howard - he was great to work with his leg in plaster from a skiing incident, or some similar with and chaired Council meetings humorously but well. He scrape. But we were tolaily wrong - he was absolutely was a bon viveur who always seemed to know a good restaur- excellent and put in 100 o/o attendance. I have an abiding ant in the locality of a scientific meeting, providing us with a memory after one of our meetings at an SGM conference of welcome change from university fare (but at a cos[ much to the him pushing his way to the bar and coming back with two treasurer'sdisapproval). Particularly memorable was a ceilidh handfuls of empty glasses.The Fermentation Group had had at Heriot-Watt, where Howard's anarchic refusal to follow the a s1'rnposiumsponsored by a drinks firm and their officers caller brought complete chaos to the dance. Howard was couldn't carry aIIthe unused bottles back to Scotland by train. involved with the Society right up to the end. He was a ke;mote Hearingof their predicament, Howard had taken the excess speakerin the plenary at the Edinburgh meeting in September off their hands for the sole benefit of the Teaching Group 2007 and instrumental, in his Defra role, in commissioning Committee! He was always very supportive of my work with SGM to carry out the independent inquiry into bTB research schoolsand particularly influential when he was President. currently being completed. He will be sadly missed.

microbiologytoday nray 08 101 Asour climatechanges, the threatfrom insect-borne diseasemay increase in the moretemperate parts of the world.Nancy Beckage and Anita Gordillodiscuss how. in the future,fungi may be used to controlthese insect vectors. has resultedin ma.1orproblems with developmentof vectorresistance to insecticides,environmental pollution and adverseeffects on non-targetedspecies. Moreover,changing rainfall pattems and increasedtemperatures associated with global warming are predicted to expand the rangeof many insectvectors that are currently confined to the tropics and subtropics,including the vectorsof malarta,dengue and yellow fever.Global health burden wrll assuredlyincrease as a resuit of predicted changesin climate and environmentalfactors that favour the successfulreproduction of insectvectors and the expansionof their ranges. Geneticallymodified M. anisopliae expressinginsect-specific toxrns further enhancestheir r,rrulenceto mosquitoes, but their utilization in field-based mosquito control is controversialdue to public concem regardinggenetica\ modified organismsand regulatoryissues. Regardless,the use of entomopathogenic fungi to control populations of adult mosquil"oesclearly olfers significant promiseas a novel biologicallybased strates/ to be integratedwith other control measuresto reduceglobal ratesof vector-bornedisease transmission.

AnitaR. Gordillo & NancyE. Beckage Departmentsof Entomology& CellBiology and Neuroscience, 382 EntomologyBuilding, University of California-Riverside,CA92521, USA (t+1 951827 3521;t+1 951827 3087;e nancy.beckage6ucr.edu) Furtherreading Blanford, S. & others (2005). Science308, i638-1641. Scholte,EJ.& others(2005). Science308. 164Vf642 / J InsectSci 4, 19. Scholte,EJ. & others (2007). ActaTrop 102,15r-158. Wang, C. & St Leger,RJ. Q007).Nat Biotechnol25, 145 5 -I 4 56. www.scienceinafrica.co.za/Green Muscle. htm Pleasenote that views expressedin Commentdo not necessarilyreflect offcial policy of the SCM Council.

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