Tuyển tập các báo cáo nghiên cứu về y học được đăng trên tạp chí y học Wertheim cung cấp cho các bạn kiến thức về ngành y đề tài: Metagenomics for studying unculturable microorganisms: cutting the Gordian knot. | Minireview Metagenomics for studying unculturable microorganisms cutting the Gordian knot Patrick D Schloss and Jo Handelsman Address Department of Plant Pathology University of Wisconsin Madison WI 53706 USA. Correspondence Jo Handelsman. E-mail joh@ Published I August 2005 Genome Biology 2005 6 229 doi gb-2005-6-8-229 The electronic version of this article is the complete one and can be found online at http 2005 6 8 229 2005 BioMed Central Ltd Abstract More than 99 of prokaryotes in the environment cannot be cultured in the laboratory a phenomenon that limits our understanding of microbial physiology genetics and community ecology. One way around this problem is metagenomics the culture-independent cloning and analysis of microbial DNA extracted directly from an environmental sample. Recent advances in shotgun sequencing and computational methods for genome assembly have advanced the field of metagenomics to provide glimpses into the life of uncultured microorganisms. The estimate that fewer than 1 of the prokaryotes in most environments can be cultivated in isolation 1 has produced a quandary what is the significance of the field of modern microbial genomics if it is limited to culturable organisms Until recently this limitation meant that the genomes of most microbial life could not be dissected because more than half of the known bacterial phyla contain no cultured representatives and the archaeal kingdoms are likewise dominated by uncultured members. The problem can be likened to the Gordian knot of Greek legend which was impossible to unravel. The knot which was constructed with interwoven strands with no ends exposed served as a source of great pride of the citizens of Gordium where it was displayed. It was Alexander the Great who finally cut the massive knot and called the act his greatest victory. One strategy to expose the rest of the microbial world to the eye of the microbiologist - analogous to attempting to
