Transcript Introduction to Tree of Life

Microbial Diversity: (PLP329)
Microbial Diversity 329: Lecture Schedule
General Topic: Prokaryotic Microbes
August 29
L.S. Pierson
Introduction to Tree of Life; The Pseudomonads in Biological
Control
September 5
R. Maier
The Pseudomonads in Bioremediation
September 12
C. Rensing
Metal Processing in Prokaryotes (Reading 1)
September 19
C. Kennedy
Molecular Phylogeny of Microbes
September 26
C. Kennedy
Symbiotic Proteobacteria in Plants
October 3
G. Songer
Pathogenic Anaerobes
October 10
W. Nicholson
The World of Gram Positive Bacteria
October 17
N. Moran
Symbiotic Proteobacteria in Insects General Topic: Eukaryotic
Microbes (Reading 1, 2)
General Topic: Eukaryotic Microbes
October 24
C. Sterling
The Sarcomastigophora
October 31
M. Riggs
The Apicomplexa: selected members
November 7
M. Orbach
The World of Fungi General Topic: A Virus for Every Domain
General Topic: A Virus for Every Domain
November 14
B. Fane
The Microviridae of Bacteria
November 21
J. Collins
Animal Virus Diversity
December 5
J. Brown
The Geminiviruses of Plants and Insects
Microbial Diversity 329: Organization
Where, When:
Thursdays, 4:00 - 5:15PM, Marley 341H
Course Website:
http://ag.arizona.edu/PLP/courses/plp329/microbial_diversity.html
Grading:
Midterm: take-home essay
Final: take-home essay
Why study biodiversity?
1. Humans altering/degrading environment at accelerating rate.
2. New uses of biodiversity for reducing suffering & environmental destruction.
3. Much diversity being lost through extinction.
If estimate 5 million spp., then can calculate rate at ~17,500 spp. / yr.
Estimates of biodiversity
Kingdom/Major Division
Viruses
No. described species
1,000
Monera
Fungi
Bacteria, Myxoplasma, Cyanophycota
4,760
Zygomycota, Ascomycota, etc.
46,983
Algae
26,900
Plantae
248,428
Protozoa
30,800
Animalia (including Arthropoda)
989,761
Chordata (Tunicata, Vertebrata, etc.)
43,852
Total
1,392,485
Estimates of total diversity between 5-30 million species!!!!
(E.O. Wilson, The Current State of Biological Diversity, Nat. Acad. Sciences, 1988)
750,000
250,000
41,000
Why biodiversity important?
Knowledge of biodiversity will mean little to most humans.
Depend completely on < 1% living spp. for our existence.
Rest untested fallow.
Myers (1984) est. utilize ~ 7,000 kinds of plants for food.
> 75,000 edible plants in existence.
Barely touched upon organisms that are beneficial for:
Pharmaceuticals
Fibers
Petroleum substitutes
Pest and disease controls
Goals of course
1. Introduce diversity of prokaryotes, eukaryotes, and viruses.
2. Discuss microbial phylogeny/taxonomy.
3. Expose students to wide range of research at The University of Arizona.