Coloured scanning electron micrograph of a single Dictyostelium discoideum amoeba with bacteria. Eye of Science/Science Photo Library
researchers due to lack of time and expertise. Whilst modern omics technologies have allowed us to study communities, from molecules via species to the system level, they do not provide deep insights into the basic biology and ecology of protists. The strength of observations, that can be made with even the simplest microscopes like Leeuwenhoek developed and used, are not to be underestimated when it comes to understanding the biology and ecology of protists and should be a valid aspect in combination with new advanced technologies. With this Microbiology Today issue we would like to increase cross-sector awareness of the field of protistology, emphasising the role of protists in ecology, health, disease and evolution and their importance in the environmental and health sectors, including the benefits and challenges associated with their presence in certain niches.
Evolutionary biology. Protists are excellent models for understanding evolution. Their genomes often include evidence of lateral gene transfer, in particular from bacteria, archaea or other protists. This is no surprise in view of their intimate relationships with other micro-organisms. Genetic data strongly suggest protist–microbe symbioses, from the first studies identifying mitochondria, plastids and other organelles as products of early endosymbiosis of bacteria. Moreover, several protists, such as choanoflagellates, are used as models to understand the evolution of multicellularity. Modern technologies Over the last few decades, there has been an explosion of new technologies that have been used to understand the biology of all lifeforms. These ‘omic’ technologies have also revolutionised protistology research. Scientists have identified novel species at a rapid rate using a combination of single cell genomics, metabolomics and proteomics, and this has also increased knowledge of symbiotic relationships between protists and other microbes. Despite this tremendous progress in the field, the major challenge is to understand how protists survive, develop relationships with other microbes and adapt to new environments in a temporal manner. Traditional protistology includes cell culturing, single-cell isolations, staining and microscopy (from light to advanced electron microscopy), techniques that are slowly being ignored by
About the authors
Fiona Henriquez Professor of Parasitology, Infection and
Microbiology Research Group Leader, School of Health and Life Sciences, University of the West of Scotland, Lanarkshire Campus, G72 0LH, UK
Fiona.Henriquez@uws.ac.uk @FionaHenriquez
70 Microbiology Today October 2022 | microbiologysociety.org
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