This book offers authoritative contributions by world experts actively working on different aspects of phototrophic prokaryotes. Providing up-to-date information in this rapidly advancing field, it covers the range of topics that are currently the focus of research with this group of organisms. As essentially single-celled organisms, phototrophic prokaryotes process many environmental signals and use this information to optimize their metabolism, growth rate, DNA replication and cell division.

Phototrophic prokaryotes are collectively of great interest for a number of different fundamental and applied perspectives and have long served as models for understanding such basic fundamental biological processes as photosynthesis and respiration. On an ecological/environmental level they are extremely important, being the most abundant photosynthetic organisms on earth and responsible for the majority of the primary productivity in the oceans. They also hold great promise as biotechnological catalysts, being able to couple solar energy conversion through photosynthesis and carbon fixation to the production of biofuels, commodity chemicals and neutraceuticals.

The book is recommended to advanced students and scientists dealing with life sciences, especially in genetics, microbiology and molecular biology.

Patrick C. Hallenbeck has a BSc in Physics and a PhD in Biophysics. He is a Full Professor in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology,Faculty of Medicine, Université de Montréal. Dr. Hallenbecks research focuses on microbial physiology, applied microbiology, biotechnology,biological energy production, anaerobic metabolism, nitrogen fixation,molecular genetics, and protein chemistry. 

Dr. Hallenbeck has conducted numerous projects in both fundamental and applied research, and teaches at both the undergraduate and graduate level. He is currently President of the Biohydrogen Division of the International Hydrogen Energy Association,and on the editorial boards of "Bioresource Technology","Frontiers in Microbiology" and "Marine Biotechnology". He is the editor of Recent Advances in Phototrophic Prokaryotes based on the proceedings of the 13th International Symposium on Phototrophic Prokaryotes and published by Springer

Section I: Phylogeny, taxonomy, and diversity.- Diversity of the cyanobacteria.- Diversity of the purple sulfur and non-sulfur bacteria.- A panoply of phototrophs: a photomicrographic overview of the thermophilic chlorophototrophs of the microbial mats of alkaline siliceous hot springs in Yellowstone National Park, WY, USA.- The Chlorobiaceae, Chloroflexaceae and Heliobacteriaceae.- Minireview on phototrophic Gemmatimonadetes.- Aerobic Anoxygenic Phototrophs: Four Decades of Mystery.- Section II: Environment and ecology.- Biological soil crusts.- Cyanobacteria in terrestrial symbiotic systems.- Ecology of phototrophic microbial mats.- Section III: Photosynthetic bacteria in hydrogen producing systems.- Cyanobacteria in hydrogen producing systems.- Development of photosynthetic bacteria as model organisms for biotechnology.- Phototrophic bacteria from extreme environments.