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Encyclopedia of Metagenomics pp 1–6Cite as

Abyssal Zone, Metagenomics of

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Synonyms

Environmental genomics of the deep sea; Metagenomics of the piezopsychrosphere

Definition

The set of tools and methods used to characterize entire communities of deep-sea organisms by extracting and sequencing their DNA without isolation and culturing. In oceanography “abyssal” is defined as the zone of the cold deep sea at depths between 4,000 and 6,000 m, but the term is used here in a less strict sense to include any sample taken at >4,000 m, including the hadal zone.

Introduction

In recent years rapid advancements in DNA sequencing technology have allowed the characterization of the collective genome sequence of entire communities of organisms. This has opened new avenues for understanding the genetic basis for environmental adaptations. This is particularly relevant to the study of organisms living in extreme or difficult-to-sample environments, where individual members of the community are often difficult or impossible to grow under laboratory conditions. Metagenome...

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Biotechnology and Biomolecular Sciences, The University of New South Wales, Kensington, 2052, Sydney, NSW, Australia

    Federico M. Lauro & Timothy J. Williams

Authors
  1. Federico M. Lauro
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  2. Timothy J. Williams
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Federico M. Lauro .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. J. Craig Venter Institute (JCVI), Rockville, Maryland, USA

    Karen E. Nelson

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© 2013 Springer Science+Business Media New York

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Lauro, F.M., Williams, T.J. (2013). Abyssal Zone, Metagenomics of. In: Nelson, K. (eds) Encyclopedia of Metagenomics. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-6418-1_33-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-6418-1_33-6

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, New York, NY

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4614-6418-1

  • eBook Packages: Springer Reference Biomedicine and Life SciencesReference Module Biomedical and Life Sciences

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