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Fermentor technology and genome evolution
Course description
Experimental evolution is an approach to capture the processes of
mutation, drift and selection in action in the laboratory, and to run
the evolutionary tape over and over again. We have set up an
experimental facility that allows us to study how genes, populations and
communities interact across the levels of biological organization to
produce the patterns of genomic organization and change, adaptive
radiation, biotic interactions and biodiversity patterns we can observe
in nature. The critical equipment required for this approach is a large
set of advanced fermentors for growing microorganisms (yeast and
bacteria) in which experimental conditions can be carefully controlled
and maintained during long periods of time, and analytical tools, such
as HPLC, gas analyser and pulsed field gel electrophoresis.
Course organization
In this one-week course you will learn how to use fermentors and associated analytical tools like HPLC and gas analyzer (to follow the growth of microorganisms). The course is appropriate to molecular biologists who want to learn how to run fermentors (for example, to produce larger amounts of recombinant proteins) and for biologists interested in evolution and ecology, who would like to learn how to run laboratory experimental evolution experiments. In more detail: we will study yeast and their ability to grow without oxygen and to produce ethanol. We will also follow possible genome rearrangements during longitudinal studies.
This course is given jointly by GENECO and the Lund University Programme of Postgraduate Courses in the Life Sciences.
Literature
Piskur, J., Rozpedowska E., Polakova, S., Merico, A. and Compagno C. (2006) How did Saccharomyces yeasts evolve to become a good brewer? Trends Genet 22: 183-186.
Time period
December 15-19, 2008
Last modified 6 Jun 2010
Jure Piskur
professor
Molecular Cell Biology
Phone:
+46 46-2228373
E-mail:
Jure.Piskur@biol.lu.se