Extremophiles

Where It All Began

Koki Horikoshi (Autor)

Buch | Hardcover

172 Seiten

2016 | 1st ed. 2016
Springer Verlag, Japan
978-4-431-55407-3 (ISBN)

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Koki Horikoshi — discoverer of the alkaliphiles, microbes that thrive in alkaline environments — describes in his autobiography how the research on extremophiles started and developed. He is a pioneer in the study of these microorganisms that thrive in extreme conditions, and in his book he opens a new vista of the microbial world, pushing the field to expand from the surface of the Earth to the subsurface, to the deep sea and outer space.

All major developments in extremophiles research are covered, stretching back to the historical use of microbes in mixed fermentation, indigo dyeing and the pasteurisation of sake. Events in Horikoshi’s life provide many valuable insights into the life of a budding scientist, inspired by the Renaissance culture of Florence that led him to the discovery of the alkaliphiles. Our daily lives have been greatly affected by Horikoshi’s research, such as the extensive screening he conducted for enzymes produced by alkaliphiles, now applied in many industries from biological laundry detergents to pharmaceutics. The book also reflects on numerous milestone events and people who contributed to the establishment of this field, including colleagues from all over the world.

This book is a good read for all microbiologists, encouraging readers to reach out to new worlds and discoveries. It will be treasured by all those interested in a life of a real pioneer.

Koki Horikoshi is the founder of the international research journal Extremophiles and the International Society of Extremophiles. He was the first person in the world to isolate alkaliphiles and received many awards for his scientific work, including the Purple Medal (1987), the Gold Medal from the UK’s International Biotechnology Society (1991), the Honda Prize (1992) and the Japan Academy Prize (2006).

1 Prologue.- 2 Earlier Microbiology.- 3 The University of Tokyo and Purdue University.- 4 Alkaliphiles.- 5 The Ingham Family and Biosciences.- 6 Superbugs project.- 7 Medal Lecture at the Royal Society.- 8 JAMSTEC Deep Star.- 9 Samples From 10,898 Meters Beneath the Pacific Ocean.- 10 His Majesty the Emperor and the Deep Sea.- 11 New Scientific Journal Extremophiles and the International Society of Extremophiles.- 12 My Lifelong Friend Hubert Gottschling.- 13 Epilogue.

Erscheint lt. Verlag	7.4.2016
Zusatzinfo	38 Illustrations, color; 93 Illustrations, black and white; XX, 172 p. 131 illus., 38 illus. in color.
Verlagsort	Tokyo
Sprache	englisch
Maße	155 x 235 mm
Themenwelt	Literatur ► Biografien / Erfahrungsberichte
	Sachbuch/Ratgeber ► Natur / Technik ► Natur / Ökologie
	Naturwissenschaften ► Biologie ► Allgemeines / Lexika
	Naturwissenschaften ► Biologie ► Mikrobiologie / Immunologie
	Naturwissenschaften ► Biologie ► Ökologie / Naturschutz
	Naturwissenschaften ► Geowissenschaften
	Technik ► Umwelttechnik / Biotechnologie
Schlagworte	Alkaliphiles • Astrobiology • Autobiography • Biotechnology • Deep-sea microbiology • Enzyme • Extreme conditions • Industrial Applications • Serendipity
ISBN-10	4-431-55407-6 / 4431554076
ISBN-13	978-4-431-55407-3 / 9784431554073
Zustand	Neuware