Though more than 5,000 bacterial and archaeal genomes have been sequenced worldwide, the great majority are of rather limited phylogenetic diversity. Through the Microbial Dark Matter Project targeted 200 representatives of candidate phyla belonging to 29 major uncharted branches of the tree. The findings provided a first glimpse into the coding potential and the phylogeny of candidate phyla. Building upon the previous work, this project targets 1,000 genomes from candidate phyla to be sequenced through single cell genomics. The findings are expected to impact DOE–relevant research, including bioenergy, biogeochemistry and carbon cycling, by providing missing phylogenetic anchors for metagenome datasets.
Proposer’s Name: Ramunas Stepanuskas