Introduced by Crafoord Prize winner Carl Woese, this volumecombines reviews of the major developments in archaeal researchover the past 10–15 years with more specialized articlesdealing with important recent breakthroughs. Drawing on majorthemes presented at the June 2005 meeting held in Munich to honorthe archaea pioneers Wolfram Zillig and Karl O. Stetter, the bookprovides a thorough survey of the field from its controversialbeginnings to its ongoing expansion to include aspects ofeukaryotic biology. The editors have assembled articles from the premier researchersin this rapidly burgeoning field, including an account by CarlWoese of his original discovery of the Archaea (until 1990 termedarchaebacteria) and the initially mixed reactions of the scientificcommunity. The review chapters and specialized articles address theemerging significance of the Archaea within a broader scientificand technological context, and include accounts of cutting-edgeresearch developments. The book spans archaeal evolution,physiology, and molecular and cellular biology and will be anessential reference for both graduate students and researchers.

Sugar chains (glycans) are often attached to proteins and lipids and have multiple roles in the organization and function of all organisms. "Essentials of Glycobiology" describes their biogenesis and function and offers a useful gateway to the understanding of glycans.

Archaea represent a third domain of life with unique properties not found in the other domains. Archaea actively compete for environmental resources. They perceive themselves and can distinguish between ‘self’ and ‘non-self’. They process and evaluate available information and then modify their behaviour accordingly. They assess their surroundings, estimate how much energy they need for particular goals, and then realize the optimum variant. These highly diverse competences show us that this is possible owing to sign(aling)- mediated communication processes within archaeal cells (intra-organismic), between the same, related and different archaeal species (interorganismic), and between archaea and nonarchaeal organisms (transorganismic). This is crucial in coordinating growth and development, shape and dynamics. Such communication must function both on the local level and between widely separated colony parts. This allows archaea to coordinate appropriate response behaviors in a differentiated manner to their current developmental status and physiological influences. This book will orientate further investigations on how archaeal ecosphere inhabitants communicate with each other to coordinate their behavioral patterns and whats the role of viruses in this highly dynamic interactional networks.

The book summarizes the achievements of the past decade in the biochemistry, bioenergetics, structural and molecular biology of respiratory processes in selected genera of the domain Bacteria along with an extensive coverage of the redox chains of extremophiles belonging to the Archaean domain. The volume is a unique piece of work since it contains a series of chapters dealing with metabolic features having important microbiological and ecological relevance such as the use of ammonium, iron, methane, sulfur and hydrogen as respiratory substrates or nitrous compounds in denitrification processes. Particular attention is also dedicated to peculiar groups of prokaryotes such as Gram positives, acetic acid bacteria, pathogens of the genera Helicobacter and Campylobacter, nitrogen fixing symbionts and free-living species, oxygenic phototrophs (Cyanobacteria) and anoxygenic (purple non-sulfur) phototrophs. The book is intended to be a long-term source of information for Ph.D. students, researchers and undergraduates from disciplines such as microbiology, biochemistry and ecology, studying basic and applied sciences, medicine and agriculture.

In the last 10 years, considerable information has accumulated on the biochemistry of archaea. In this volume, the subject as a whole is treated in a comprehensive manner. The book brings together recent knowledge concerning general metabolism, bioenergetics, molecular biology and genetics, membrane lipid and cell-wall structural chemistry and evolutionary relations, of the three major groups of archaea: the extreme halophiles, the extreme thermophiles, and the methanogens.Subjects included are: the evolutionary relationship of these microorganisms to all other living cells; special metabolic features of archeaea; protein structural chemistry; cell envelopes; molecular biology in archaea including DNA structure and replication, transcription apparatus, translation apparatus, and ribosomal structure; and a final chapter on the molecular genetics of archaea. This comprehensive scope ensures its usefulness to researchers, and stimulates further study in this rapidly developing field.

This volume provides an overview of well-established methods optimized for diverse archaeal model organisms and is a source of protocols facilitating access to the molecular and cellular biology characterization of these fascinating organisms. Chapters are divided into five parts detailing available genetic tools, molecular and cellular biology methods, strategies to study the ecophysiology of archaea, and classroom protocol. Each main thematic part is also introduced by future-oriented and authoritative primers. Written in the format of the highly successful Methods in Molecular Biology series, each chapter includes an introduction to the topic, lists necessary materials and reagents, includes tips on troubleshooting and known pitfalls, and step-by-step, readily reproducible protocols. Authoritative and cutting-edge, Archaea: Methods and Protocols aims to be a foundation for future studies and to be a source of inspiration for new investigations in the field.

The Archaea constitute the fifth kingdom of living organisms and were probably the first life forms. Their discovery in extreme environments has provided a unique vantage on the principles of life.

Some Archaea thrive in extreme places such as in thermal pools, hot vents at the bottom of the sea, extremely salty water, and even in underground oil reserves. This book examines the diverse Archaea kingdom and the division of these organisms by their unusual biology into three main groups. It also explains why little in general is known about them, and why further classification of Archaea is so difficult.

Welcome to the wonderful world of microbiology! Yay! So. What is microbiology? If we break the word down it translates to "the study of small life," where the small life refers to microorganisms or microbes. But who are the microbes? And how small are they? Generally microbes can be divided in to two categories: the cellular microbes (or organisms) and the acellular microbes (or agents). In the cellular camp we have the bacteria, the archaea, the fungi, and the protists (a bit of a grab bag composed of algae, protozoa, slime molds, and water molds). Cellular microbes can be either unicellular, where one cell is the entire organism, or multicellular, where hundreds, thousands or even billions of cells can make up the entire organism. In the acellular camp we have the viruses and other infectious agents, such as prions and viroids. In this textbook the focus will be on the bacteria and archaea (traditionally known as the "prokaryotes,") and the viruses and other acellular agents.

This book focuses on the regulation of transcription and translation in Archaea and arising insights into the evolution of RNA processing pathways. From synthesis to degradation and the implications of gene expression, it presents the current state of knowledge on archaeal RNA biology in 13 chapters. Topics covered include the modification and maturation of RNAs, the function of small non-coding RNAs and the CRISPR-Cas defense system. While Archaea have long been considered exotic microbial extremophiles, they are now increasingly being recognized as important model microorganisms for the study of molecular mechanisms conserved across the three domains of life, and with regard to the relevance of similarities and differences to eukaryotes and bacteria. This unique book offers a valuable resource for all readers interested in the regulation of gene expression in Archaea and RNA metabolism in general.