Nai Corrado, Magrini Boris, Offe Julia
Department Applied and Molecular Microbiology, Institute of Biotechnology, Technical University of Berlin, Gustav-Meyer-Allee 25, 13355 Berlin, Germany.
Federation of the European Microbiological Societies (FEMS), Delftechpark 37a, 2628 XJ Delft, The Netherlands.
Fungal Biol Biotechnol. 2016 Jul 21;3:5. doi: 10.1186/s40694-016-0023-9. eCollection 2016.
Microorganisms are of uttermost importance, yet in the eyes of the general public they are often associated with dirt and diseases. At the same time, microbiologists have access to and comprehensive knowledge of just a tiny minority of the microbial diversity existing in nature. In this commentary, we present these issues of public misconception and scientific limitations and their possible consequences, and propose ways to overcome them. A particular interest is directed toward the secondary metabolism of filamentous fungi as well as novel outreach activities, including so-called "science slams" and interactions between the arts and the sciences, to raise awareness about the relevance of microorganisms.
微生物至关重要，但在公众眼中，它们常常与污垢和疾病联系在一起。与此同时，微生物学家对自然界中存在的微生物多样性的了解也仅仅局限于极小一部分。在这篇评论中，我们阐述了这些公众误解和科学局限性问题及其可能产生的后果，并提出了克服这些问题的方法。我们尤其关注丝状真菌的次级代谢以及新颖的科普活动，包括所谓的“科学速讲”以及艺术与科学之间的互动，以提高人们对微生物重要性的认识。
