BER Science Highlights
U.S. Department of Energy | Office of Science | Biological and Environmental Research Program

Environmental Microbiome

  • Illustration of a bacteria and mRNA.

    Expressing the Genome in Bacterial Cells

    Bacteria are prokaryotes—single-celled organisms that lack a nucleus. Because no nuclear membrane separates a bacterium’s genome from ribosomes and other cellular contents, protein synthesis can start before an mRNA transcript is complete. Bacterial genes do not have introns (noncoding regions of DNA). Thus editing mRNA transcripts, which involves removing introns prior to protein synthesis, is not needed.

  • Pseudomonas putida Under Electron Microscope

    Outer Membrane Vesicle (OMV) Secretion During Lignin Breakdown. Scanning electron microscopy image of Pseudomonas putida after 72 hours of cultivation in lignin-rich media showing OMVs blebbing from the outer membrane.

  • Clostridium thermocellum

    Clostridium thermocellum

    A model of Clostridium thermocellum engineered for greater ethanol tolerance during bioprocessing and licensed by the BioEnergy Science Center to Enchi Corporation.