The development of civilization entails the need to find new technological solutions leading to products with new properties. Allies in these efforts are microorganisms that have developed skills to synthesize products with properties of interest to the industry, environmental remediation or water treatment. The evolution of the omics approaches brought new tools to explore the microbial diversity and microorganisms' potential. These new methodological approaches are readily used in both industrial and environmental microbiology. This Special Issue collects research papers as well as review articles addressing recent advances on applied and environmental microbiology. The review articles critically discuss the importance of biopolymers, specifically xanthan gum, to improve soil properties and the importance that microorganisms of poorly explored environments, such as caves, may have in the production of new bioactive compounds. The microbiological aspects of wastewater treatment and occurrence of antibiotic resistance genes in wastewater and sludge are studied in two research papers. These works demonstrate the effect that treatment conditions may have in the modulation of the water bacterial communities and how treated wastewater may impact the receiving environment in terms of pollution with antibiotic resistance genes. Additionally, the influence that an invasive species (alligator weed) may have on wetlands organic matter accumulation and bacterial communities was studied, being demonstrated that the presence of the invasive weed affects the wetland microhabitat both in terms of organic matter content and bacterial communities structure.

Addresses a Global Challenge to Sustainable DevelopmentAdvances in Biodegradation and Bioremediation of Industrial Waste examines and compiles the latest information on the industrial waste biodegradation process and provides a comprehensive review. Dedicated to reducing pollutants generated by agriculturally contaminated soil, and plastic waste fr

Exploring Microorganisms: Recent Advances in Applied Microbiology, contains a selection of papers presented at the VII International Conference on Environmental, Industrial and Applied Microbiology - BioMicroWorld2017 (Madrid, Spain). This book offers the outcomes of completed and outgoing research works and experiences of several microbiology research groups across the world. The volume is divided into the following sections: * Agriculture, Soil, Forest Microbiology * Environmental, Marine, Aquatic Microbiology. Geomicrobiology * BBB - Biodeterioration, Biodegratation, Bioremediation * Microbiology of Food and Animal Feed * Industrial Microbiology * Microbial Production of High-Value Products: Drugs, Chemicals, Fuels, Electricity ... * Biotechnologically Relevant Enzymes and Proteins * Medical, Veterinary and Pharmaceutical Microbiology * Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy. Antimicrobial Resistance * Biofilms * Microbial Physiology, Genetics, Evolution and Adaptation Readers will find this book a useful opportunity to keep up with the latest research results, insights and advances in the microbiology field.

A comprehensive and consolidated account of how microorganisms can play a significant role in degrading and detoxifying toxic, carcinogenic, mutagenic, and teratogenic compounds is detailed in this book. Moreover, the volume deals with all aspects of microbial degradation, ranging from screening methods for the degradative microorganisms, processes of degradation, strain improvement for enhanced biodegradation, and elimination of undesirable compounds to improving health and environmental protection strategies.The book will provide an opportunity for scientists in the areas of microbiology, biochemistry, engineering, food science, biotechnology, and environmental science to obtain a clear understanding of microbial biotransformations of xenobiotics, as well as an interface between industry and the academic world. The first book of its kind, it will open new vistas of research in the field of Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology in general, and Biotransformations in particular.

This publication deals in depth with a limited number of culture media used in Food Science laboratories. It is basically divided into two main sections: 1) Data on the composition, preparation, mode of use and quality control of various culture media used for the detection of food borne microbes. 2) Reviews of several of these media, considering their selectivity and productivity and comparative performance of alternative media. Microbiologists specializing in food and related areas will find this book particularly useful.

Microbes in the Spotlight: Recent Progress in the Understanding of Beneficial and Harmful Microorganisms contains a selection of papers presented at the VI International Conference on Environmental, Industrial and Applied Microbiology - BioMicroWorld2015 (Barcelona, Spain). This book offers the outcomes of completed and outgoing research works and experiences of several microbiology research groups across the world. The volume is divided into the following sections: --Agricultural and environmental microbiology. Biodeterioration, biodegratation, bioremediation --Food microbiology --Medical microbiology. Antimicrobial agents and chemotherapy. Antimicrobial resistance --Industrial microbiology. Microbial production of high-value products --Biotechnologically relevant enzymes and proteins --Methods and technology development --Microbial physiology Readers will find this book a useful opportunity to keep up with the latest research results, insights and advances in the microbiology field.

This book presents a comprehensive collection of articles illustrating the importance of microbial community structure and function for ecosystem sustainability and environmental reclamation. It addresses a diverse range of topics, including microbial diversity, physiology, genomics, ecosystem function, interaction, metabolism, and the fruitful use of microbial communities for crop productivity and environmental remediation. In addition, the book explores issues ranging from general concepts on the diversity of microorganisms in soil, and ecosystem function to the evolution and taxonomy of soil microbiota, with future prospects. It covers cutting-edge methods in soil microbial ecological studies, rhizosphere microflora, the role of organic matter in plant productivity, biological nitrogen fixation and its genetics, microbial transformation of plant nutrients in soil, plant-growth-promoting rhizobacteria, and organic matter transformation. The book also discusses the application of microbes in biodegradation of xenobiotic contaminants. It covers bio-fertilizers and their role in sustainable agriculture and soil health, biological control of insect pests and plant pathogens, and the latest tools of omics in soil microbiology, i.e. genomics, proteomics, transcriptomics and metabolomics, which offer pioneering approaches to the exploration of microbial structure and function.