Tosato V, Bruschi C V
Microbiology Group, International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, AREA Science Park, Padriciano 99, 34012 Trieste, Italy.
Appl Microbiol Biotechnol. 2004 Mar;64(1):1-6. doi: 10.1007/s00253-003-1513-2. Epub 2003 Dec 12.
The advent of genomics has greatly influenced fundamental and applied microbiology. This has become paradigmatic in the case of Bacillus subtilis, a primary model bacterium for research and biotechnology. Indeed, mining its genome has provided more fruitful information than classical approaches would have yielded in a longer period of time. Through advanced analysis of its genome and transcriptome, fundamental discoveries dealing with the informational architecture of the B. subtilis chromosome, as well as with the elucidation of its pathway-level regulation of gene expression, have been achieved. The possibility of performing a complete metabolic manipulation of the secretory pathway of Bacillus is promising important biotechnological fallouts. Similar emphasis exists for the possibility of controlling the cell in the formation of biofilms with specific physical and chemical characteristics. At the theoretical level, the new concept of genetic superinformation has been formulated and its analytical approach implemented, while the understanding of the minimal genetic requirements for the existence of a reproducing bacterial cell is being tackled. In summary, the impact of the B. subtilis genome has philosophically revolutionised the way that basic knowledge is translated into applied microbiology and biotechnology, making this bacterium the workhorse of post-genomic microbiology.
基因组学的出现极大地影响了基础微生物学和应用微生物学。这在枯草芽孢杆菌的案例中已成为典范，枯草芽孢杆菌是研究和生物技术领域的主要模式细菌。事实上，挖掘其基因组所获得的信息比传统方法在更长时间内所能产生的信息更有成效。通过对其基因组和转录组的深入分析，已经取得了关于枯草芽孢杆菌染色体信息结构以及其基因表达途径水平调控的基本发现。对枯草芽孢杆菌分泌途径进行完全代谢操纵的可能性预示着重要的生物技术成果。对于控制具有特定物理和化学特性的生物膜形成过程中的细胞的可能性，也有类似的关注重点。在理论层面，已经形成了遗传超级信息的新概念并实施了其分析方法，同时正在探讨对一个能自我繁殖的细菌细胞存在所需的最小遗传要求的理解。总之，枯草芽孢杆菌基因组的影响在哲学层面上彻底改变了将基础知识转化为应用微生物学和生物技术的方式，使这种细菌成为后基因组微生物学的主力军。
