Biotechnology of Extremophiles:

Over the last decades, the study of extremophiles has providing ground breaking discoveries that challenge our understanding of biochemistry and molecular biology. Although the molecular strategies developed for survival in extreme environments are still not fully clarified, it is known that these microorganisms have adapted molecules, as well as different and peculiar biochemical pathways, which are of great interest for biotechnological purposes. The diversity of environments to which different extremophiles have adapted offers many exciting opportunities for a variety of industrial, environmental, biomedical and pharmaceutical applications. The stability and activity of extremozymes and extremolytes under extremes of temperature, salinity, pH, and solvent conditions make them useful alternatives to conventional biotech processes which use mesophilic biomolecules. Indeed, the application of extremophiles and their biologically active compounds has opened a new era in biotechnology. Furthermore, innovative culturing approaches and the recent advent of high throughput next generation sequencing methods have provided new opportunities for the biotechnological exploration of extremophiles. In this book, leading scientists in the field will present the most recent and novel applications of extremophiles in different areas of biotechnology.