The revision of this classic textbook by David Freifelder has been rewritten and updated to include the numerous and recent advances in microbial genetics. The basic format, organization and style of the first edition has been retained.

In accordance with its predecessor, the completely revised and expanded Second Edition of Modern Microbial Genetics focuses on how bacteria and bacteriophage arrange and rearrange their genetic material through mutation, evolution, and genetic exchange to take optimal advantage of their environment. The text is divided into three sections: DNA Metabolism, Genetic Response, and Genetic Exchange. The first addresses how DNA replicates, repairs itself, and recombines, as well as how it may be manipulated. The second section is devoted to how microorganisms interact with their environment, including chapters on sporulation and stress shock, and the final section contains the latest information on classic exchange mechanisms such as transformation and conjugation. Chapters include: * Gene Expression and Its Regulation * Single-Stranded DNA Phages * Genetic Tools for Dissecting Motility and Development of Myxococcus xanthus * Molecular Mechanism of Quorum Sensing * Transduction in Gram-Negative Bacteria * Genetic Approaches in Bacteria with No Natural Genetic Systems The editors also cultivate an attention to global regulatory systems throughout the book, elucidating how certain genes and operons in bacteria, defined as regulons, network and cooperate to suit the needs of the bacterial cell. With clear appreciation for the impact of molecular genomics, this completely revised and updated edition proves that Modern Microbial Genetics remains the benchmark text in its field.

Fundamental Bacterial Genetics presents a conciseintroduction to microbial genetics. The text focuses on onebacterial species, Escherichia coli, but draws examples fromother microbial systems at appropriate points to support thefundamental concepts of molecular genetics. A solid balance ofconcepts, techniques and applications makes this book anaccessible, essential introduction to the theory and practice offundamental microbial genetics. FYI boxes - feature key experiments that lead to what we nowknow, biographies of key scientists, comparisons with other speciesand more. Study questions - at the end of each chapter, review and teststudents' knowledge of key chapter concepts. Key references - included both at chapter end and in a fullreference list at the end of the book. Full Chapter on Genomics, Bioinformatics and Proteomics -includes coverage of functional genomics and microarrays. Dedicated website – animations, study resources, webresearch questions and illustrations downloadable for powerpointfiles provide students and instructors with an enhanced,interactive experience.

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.

Our understanding of bacterial genetics has progressed as the genomics field has advanced. Genetics and genomics complement and influence each other; they are inseparable. Under the novel insights from genetics and genomics, once-believed borders in biology start to fade: biological knowledge of the bacterial world is being viewed under a new light and concepts are being redefined. Species are difficult to delimit and relationships within and between groups of bacteria – the whole concept of a tree of life – is hotly debated when dealing with bacteria. The DNA within bacterial cells contains a variety of features and signals that influence the diversity of the microbial world. This text assumes readers have some knowledge of genetics and microbiology but acknowledges that it can be varied. Therefore, the book includes all of the information that readers need to know in order to understand the more advanced material in the book.

This book describes techniques of microbial genetics and how they may be applied to biotechnology. The text is concerned largely with the application of these techniques to microbial technology. We have therefore utilised illustrative material that is given in our own courses in applied micro biology. The book assumes in the reader a basic knowledge of microbial will prove useful to under genetics and industrial microbiology. We hope it graduates, postgraduates and others taking courses in applied micro biology. We would like to thank various colleagues, including John Carter, Julian Davies, Gordon Dougan, David Hopwood, Gwyn Humphreys, Alan McCarthy, David O'Connor, Tony Hart, Steve Oliver, Roger Pickup, Hilary Richards, Bob Rowlands, David Sherratt, Peter Strike, Richard Sykes and Liz Wellington, all of whom provided information at various stages during the writing of this book. Many thanks are also due to Linda Marsh for patiently typing the many drafts of the manuscript. 1 Introduction Natural genetic variation has always been exploited by man to improve the properties of microbial strains. Spontaneous mutations that arise in micro bial populations and that have properties advantageous to man have been gradually selected over centuries of use. However, it is only since the development of modem genetic techniques that more rational approaches have been possible. Such newer technologies have permitted the tailoring of microorganisms, plant or animal cells to manufacture specific products of commercial or social benefit and to manage the environment.

Over the past several decades, new scientific tools and approaches for detecting microbial species have dramatically enhanced our appreciation of the diversity and abundance of the microbiota and its dynamic interactions with the environments within which these microorganisms reside. The first bacterial genome was sequenced in 1995 and took more than 13 months of work to complete. Today, a microorganism's entire genome can be sequenced in a few days. Much as our view of the cosmos was forever altered in the 17th century with the invention of the telescope, these genomic technologies, and the observations derived from them, have fundamentally transformed our appreciation of the microbial world around us. On June 12 and 13, 2012, the Institute of Medicine's (IOM's) Forum on Microbial Threats convened a public workshop in Washington, DC, to discuss the scientific tools and approaches being used for detecting and characterizing microbial species, and the roles of microbial genomics and metagenomics to better understand the culturable and unculturable microbial world around us. Through invited presentations and discussions, participants examined the use of microbial genomics to explore the diversity, evolution, and adaptation of microorganisms in a wide variety of environments; the molecular mechanisms of disease emergence and epidemiology; and the ways that genomic technologies are being applied to disease outbreak trace back and microbial surveillance. Points that were emphasized by many participants included the need to develop robust standardized sampling protocols, the importance of having the appropriate metadata, data analysis and data management challenges, and information sharing in real time. The Science and Applications of Microbial Genomics summarizes this workshop.