Outlook: Metagenomics and industrial applications

Different industries have different motivations to probe the enormous resource that is uncultivated microbial diversity. Currently, there is a global political drive to promote white (industrial) biotechnology as a central feature of the sustainable economic future of modern industrialized societies...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published inNature reviews. Microbiology Vol. 3; no. 6; p. 510
Main Authors Lorenz, Patrick, Eck, Jürgen
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published London Nature Publishing Group 01.06.2005
Subjects
Bacteria
Biotechnology
Economics
Enzymes
Genomes
Genomics
Metabolites
Online AccessGet full text

Cover

More Information
Summary:Different industries have different motivations to probe the enormous resource that is uncultivated microbial diversity. Currently, there is a global political drive to promote white (industrial) biotechnology as a central feature of the sustainable economic future of modern industrialized societies. This requires the development of novel enzymes, processes, products and applications. Metagenomics promises to provide new molecules with diverse functions, but ultimately, expression systems are required for any new enzymes and bioactive molecules to become an economic success. This review highlights industrial efforts and achievements in metagenomics.
ISSN:1740-1526
1740-1534
DOI:10.1038/nrmicro1161