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G eomicrobiology & E nvironmental M icrobiology S tudies
	Epsilonproteobacteria from Terrestrial Springs and Cave Louisiana State University, Geomicrobiology & Environmental Microbiology Studies Group Louisiana State University Dr. Annette Summers Engel Department of Geology and Geophysics E235 Howe-Russell Geoscience Complex Louisiana State University Baton Rouge, LA 70803 office: 225-578-2469 fax: 225-578-2302
	The Epsilonproteobacteria class is the most poorly characterized division within the Proteobacteria, despite ongoing attention given to pathogens. In 2002, the International Committee on Systematics of Prokaryotes and subcommittee on the taxonomy of Campylobacter and related bacteria recognized the growing number of unclassified 16S rRNA belonging to the -Proteobacteria. The subcommittee suggested that future studies should deal with the growing problem. The unclassified sequences have been retrieved from diverse, sulfur-rich marine and terrestrial habitats (some considered ‘extreme environments’), as well as from symbiotic associations with metazoans. Compared to marine-affiliated lineages, most genetically-defined lineages from terrestrial settings are overwhelmingly underrepresented and are still without cultured representatives. In a recent publication (see below), Dr. Engel and her colleagues proposed the classification of the family Thiovulgaceae fam. nov. for a large group of terrestrial and marine, environmentally-retrieved sequences. Until the taxonomic diversity of the terrestrial lineages is better established, fundamental phylogenetic questions remain unanswered, including how are the terrestrial -Proteobacteria related to marine taxa? What distinguishes terrestrial and marine groups from each other? Are terrestrial groups derived from a marine group or are several ancestral lineages represented?
	Funding provided by (link to project description): Inquire with Dr. Engel if you are interested in the work.	Related Publications Campbell, B.J., Engel, A.S., Porter, M.L., and Takai, K. (2006) The versatile Epsilonproteobacteria: Key players in sulphidic habitats. Nature Reviews Microbiology. 4: 458-468. Webpage link; pdf link; Supplementary Information S1, S2 DATA LINKS: click for more info • Additional publication data & sequence database Research PIs Annette Engel, Louisiana State University Barbara Campbell, University of Delaware Research Collaborators Megan Porter, University of Maryland Ken Takai, Japan JAMSTEC
	Dr. Megan Porter collecting mat samples from Pah Tempe Mineral Hot Springs, UT. Photo by Dr. K. de la Cruz Dittmar.
	Sequence Alignment Database: NMR review final Alignment file of all Epsilonproteobacteria-affiliated 16S rRNA sequences (as of May, 2005) MR_ARCO_final.nex (alignment file for Arcobacter sequences) NMR_deep_final.nex (alignment file for deeply-branching clades) NMR_ENV_final (alignment file for Thiovulgaceae fam. nov.) NMR_SSpirillium_final.nex (alignment file for Sulfurspirillium) Sequence Database: Alignment file of Epsilonproteobacteria-affiliated 16S rRNA sequences (as of April, 2007) from terrestrial springs around the world (Download here) Microbial mats in culvert at Warm Springs, UT. Photo by A.S. Engel.		White Sulphur Springs, LA. Foot in upper- left for scale. Photo by A.S. Engel. Microbial mats in Big Sulphur Cave, KY. The flashlight is ~4 in long! Photo by A.S. Engel.

	GEEK club members and friends after caving in Dante's Cave, Slovenia. The club was in Slovenia to assist with sampling sulfidic springs. Photo by B.J. Campbell. Stay tuned for more data and research results!		Researchers sampling geochemical parameters in the sulfidic stream water in the Pozzo di Cristali, Frasassi Caves, Italy. Photo by A.S. Engel.

Please contact Dr. Annette Engel for more information regarding the research or photographs. Call (225) 578-2469 or email.
Address: Department of Geology and Geophysics, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA 70803.