Deliberately breaking with the classical biology-centered description of marine organisms and their products, this reference emphasizes microbial technology over basic biology, setting it apart from its predecessors. As such, it systematically covers the technology behind high-value compounds for use as pharmaceuticals, nutraceuticals or cosmetics, from prospecting to production issues. Following a definition of the field, the book goes on to address all industrially important aspects of marine microbial biotechnology. The first main part contains a description of the major production organisms, from archaebacteria to cyanobacteria to algae and symbionts, including their genetic engineering. The remaining four parts look at commercially important compounds produced by these microorganisms together with their applications. Throughout, the emphasis is on technological considerations, and the future potential of these organisms or compound classes is discussed. A valuable and forward-looking resource for innovative biotechnologists in industry as well as in academia.

This open access book summarizes peer-reviewed articles and the abstracts of oral and poster presentations given during the YOUMARES 9 conference which took place in Oldenburg, Germany, in September 2018. The aims of this book are to summarize state-of-the-art knowledge in marine sciences and to inspire scientists of all career stages in the development of further research. These conferences are organized by and for young marine researchers. Qualified early-career researchers, who moderated topical sessions during the conference, contributed literature reviews on specific topics within their research field. .

A trillion different microbial species have been evolving for some 3.5 billion years, producing ever more complex active secondary metabolites. The sea is a cauldron of a great diversity of useful and valuable compounds. This Special Issue focused on studies of marine microbe natural products for discovering compounds useful to humankind. Papers were collected that provide up-to-date information regarding the characterization of marine microbes’ metabolic diversity and the evaluation of the therapeutic potential of marine microbes’ metabolites. Most of the articles in this book deal with marine fungi, biological and chemical diversity, and their active metabolites. This may be a sign that marine fungi have been under studied to date and are perceived by many researchers as an important source of discovery in this field. A best practices guide for the isolation of marine fungi from different matrixes and their conservation is also presented. The comparison of the phylogenetic and metabolomic profiles of microalgae from different lineages provides novel insights into the potential of chemotaxonomy in marine phytoplankton, showing a good overlap of phylogenetic and chemotaxonomic signals.