Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Concept Videos

Soil Microbial Ecology01:29

Soil Microbial Ecology

Soil microbial ecology is defined by highly diverse, spatially structured communities that drive nutrient cycling, organic matter turnover, and overall ecosystem stability. Although a gram of soil can contain thousands of bacterial and archaeal taxa, the ecological processes they mediate are even more crucial for sustaining terrestrial life.Microhabitats and NichesSoil is a heterogeneous mixture of minerals, organic matter, water, and air. Microbes inhabit distinct microhabitats formed by...
Evolutionary Processes in Microbes01:26

Evolutionary Processes in Microbes

Microbial evolution occurs rapidly due to short generation times and a variety of genetic processes, including horizontal gene transfer, mutation, recombination, and genetic drift. These mechanisms collectively enable microbes to adapt swiftly to changing environments.Horizontal gene transfer (HGT) allows genes to move between different species and occurs through three main mechanisms: conjugation, transformation, and transduction. Conjugation involves direct cell-to-cell contact for DNA...
Evolution of New Traits in Microbes01:24

Evolution of New Traits in Microbes

Microorganisms evolve rapidly due to their large population sizes and short generation times, often exhibiting measurable changes within days under laboratory conditions. Natural selection acts on standing genetic variation, enabling the retention and amplification of beneficial traits that confer fitness advantages in changing environments.Adaptive Pigment Regulation in RhodobacterIn Rhodobacter, a genus of purple non-sulfur bacteria, light-harvesting pigments such as bacteriochlorophyll and...
Deep Sea Microbial Ecology01:18

Deep Sea Microbial Ecology

The deep ocean and its underlying sediments represent vast, largely unexplored microbial habitats that extend far beyond the sunlit photic zone. The photic (euphotic) zone typically spans the upper ~100–200 meters of pelagic waters in the open ocean, but its depth varies geographically and seasonally, where sufficient light supports photosynthetic life. Below this lies the deep sea, spanning roughly 1000–6000 meters (bathypelagic to abyssal zones), with deeper hadal trenches extending beyond...
Introduction to Microbial Ecology01:28

Introduction to Microbial Ecology

Microbial ecology examines the complex web of interactions and diversity among microorganisms within various ecosystems. This field seeks to understand how microbial populations adapt to and influence their environments and how these interactions shape broader ecological processes. Microbes are integral to ecosystem function, participating in nutrient cycling, energy flow, and the maintenance of environmental homeostasis.An ecosystem represents a dynamic interaction between living organisms...
Evolution of Microbial Genome01:08

Evolution of Microbial Genome

Microbial genome evolution is a highly dynamic process shaped by continual gene gain and loss across species and strains. This genomic flexibility allows microorganisms to adapt rapidly to environmental pressures and interactions with other organisms. Central to understanding this diversity is the distinction between the core and pan genomes.The core genome comprises the genes shared by all sampled strains of a species, representing essential functions needed for fundamental cellular processes.

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Short-term antagonism between bacteriophages and macrophages decreases with bacteria-phage coevolution.

The ISME journal·2026
Same author

A novel method to simultaneously estimate bacterial respiration and growth from oxygen dynamics.

ISME communications·2026
Same author

To survive in the cold: the evolution of reduced decay rate in a bacteriophage.

Evolution; international journal of organic evolution·2026
Same author

Cheats can boost the success of an invading population.

Proceedings. Biological sciences·2026
Same author

Commodity risk assessment of <i>Vitis</i> spp. plants from Moldova.

EFSA journal. European Food Safety Authority·2026
Same author

Commodity risk assessment of <i>Castanea sativa</i> plants from the United Kingdom.

EFSA journal. European Food Safety Authority·2025
Same journal

Three-Dimensional Correlated Random Walks for Animal Movement and Habitat Selection.

Ecology letters·2026
Same journal

Higher-Order Interactions Can Promote Coexistence by Rewiring Intransitivities Into Competitive Networks.

Ecology letters·2026
Same journal

Plants That Evolved Under High Phylogenetic Diversity Have Higher Invasion Success, Particularly in Undisturbed Communities.

Ecology letters·2026
Same journal

Predictors of Food Web Resistance to Environmental Change.

Ecology letters·2026
Same journal

AI, Comparative Advantage, and the Next Decade of Ecological Research.

Ecology letters·2026
Same journal

Towards Key Principles of Host-Associated Microbiome Assembly.

Ecology letters·2026
See all related articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: May 13, 2026

Isolation and Analysis of Microbial Communities in Soil, Rhizosphere, and Roots in Perennial Grass Experiments
10:31

Isolation and Analysis of Microbial Communities in Soil, Rhizosphere, and Roots in Perennial Grass Experiments

Published on: July 24, 2018

Real-time microbial adaptive diversification in soil.

Pedro Gómez1, Angus Buckling

  • 1Biosciences, University of Exeter, Penryn, TR10 9EZ, UK. p.gomezlopez@exeter.ac.uk

Ecology Letters
|February 27, 2013
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Bacteria rapidly diversify in soil, especially when alone. This suggests established microbial communities may limit bacterial adaptive radiations in nature, impacting microbial dynamics in disturbed environments.

More Related Videos

Exploring the Root Microbiome: Extracting Bacterial Community Data from the Soil, Rhizosphere, and Root Endosphere
09:55

Exploring the Root Microbiome: Extracting Bacterial Community Data from the Soil, Rhizosphere, and Root Endosphere

Published on: May 2, 2018

Procedure for Adaptive Laboratory Evolution of Microorganisms Using a Chemostat
06:03

Procedure for Adaptive Laboratory Evolution of Microorganisms Using a Chemostat

Published on: September 20, 2016

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: May 13, 2026

Isolation and Analysis of Microbial Communities in Soil, Rhizosphere, and Roots in Perennial Grass Experiments
10:31

Isolation and Analysis of Microbial Communities in Soil, Rhizosphere, and Roots in Perennial Grass Experiments

Published on: July 24, 2018

Exploring the Root Microbiome: Extracting Bacterial Community Data from the Soil, Rhizosphere, and Root Endosphere
09:55

Exploring the Root Microbiome: Extracting Bacterial Community Data from the Soil, Rhizosphere, and Root Endosphere

Published on: May 2, 2018

Procedure for Adaptive Laboratory Evolution of Microorganisms Using a Chemostat
06:03

Procedure for Adaptive Laboratory Evolution of Microorganisms Using a Chemostat

Published on: September 20, 2016

Area of Science:

  • Microbial Ecology
  • Evolutionary Biology
  • Bacteriology

Background:

  • Adaptive diversification in bacteria is well-documented in laboratory settings.
  • The ecological relevance of rapid bacterial adaptation in natural environments remains largely unexplored.

Discussion:

  • This study observed real-time adaptive diversification of *Pseudomonas fluorescens* in its native soil environment.
  • Bacterial adaptive diversification was significantly enhanced in the absence of the resident microbial community.
  • This indicates that established microbial communities may inhibit, rather than promote, adaptive radiations.

Key Insights:

  • Natural environments can support rapid bacterial adaptive diversification.
  • Resident microbial diversity appears to suppress adaptive radiations.
  • Perturbations to microbial communities may foster rapid bacterial evolution.

Outlook:

  • Further research is needed to understand the mechanisms of inhibition by resident communities.
  • Investigating the role of adaptive diversification in perturbed ecosystems (e.g., agriculture, antibiotic-treated environments) is crucial.
  • This work has implications for predicting microbial community responses to environmental changes.