About this Research Topic
Extremophiles, organisms that thrive in Earth's most extreme environments, are not just survivors but pioneers of life at the edges of possibility. Found in environments like boiling springs, crushing deep-sea vents, and acidic lakes, these microorganisms possess extraordinary metabolic capabilities that allow them to convert toxic waste into valuable resources, produce biofuels under harsh conditions with challenging substrates, such as toxic waste or non-conventional feedstocks, and even create new materials that defy current engineering limitations. Their enzymes remain active at extreme temperatures and pressures, offering unprecedented opportunities for biomanufacturing, environmental remediation, and sustainable energy production. Additionally, their enzymes could be harnessed for ultra-efficient biocatalysis in high-pressure, low-temperature industrial processes. New applications of extremophiles that have yet to be fully explored include their potential in extraterrestrial biomanufacturing, where they could be used to produce essential materials in space missions due to their ability to thrive in extreme conditions.
Despite their promise, significant knowledge gaps remain, particularly in understanding their complex genetic and metabolic networks, how they interact with extreme environments, and how these can be harnessed to revolutionize multiple industries. These challenges are exacerbated by difficulties in cultivating extremophiles in laboratory settings, limited tools for genetic manipulation, and the lack of comprehensive databases or models for these organisms. These barriers hinder the ability to harness their vast biocatalytic functions. The goal of this research topic is to advance research on extremophiles by addressing critical knowledge gaps and overcoming barriers, thereby unlocking their vast biocatalytic potential for innovative industrial applications, sustainability, and environmental remediation.
This Research Topic welcomes articles on, but not limited to, the following topic areas:
• Bioremediation of pollutants and industrial wastes using extremophiles.
• Exploring the role of extremophiles in circular bioeconomy and waste valorization.
• Developing extremophiles for efficient production of biopolymers, biofuels, and biochemicals from non-conventional substrates.
• Advances in cultivating extremophiles: overcoming laboratory challenges.
• Genetic and metabolic engineering of extremophiles for biocatalysis in harsh environments.
• Bioinformatics and Meta-Omics technologies for extremophilic genome mining, industrial enzymes, and pathways discovery.
• Computational models for optimizing extremophile-based biomanufacturing pathways.
• Sustainability and environmental impact of extremophile-based bioprocesses.
Despite their promise, significant knowledge gaps remain, particularly in understanding their complex genetic and metabolic networks, how they interact with extreme environments, and how these can be harnessed to revolutionize multiple industries. These challenges are exacerbated by difficulties in cultivating extremophiles in laboratory settings, limited tools for genetic manipulation, and the lack of comprehensive databases or models for these organisms. These barriers hinder the ability to harness their vast biocatalytic functions. The goal of this research topic is to advance research on extremophiles by addressing critical knowledge gaps and overcoming barriers, thereby unlocking their vast biocatalytic potential for innovative industrial applications, sustainability, and environmental remediation.
This Research Topic welcomes articles on, but not limited to, the following topic areas:
• Bioremediation of pollutants and industrial wastes using extremophiles.
• Exploring the role of extremophiles in circular bioeconomy and waste valorization.
• Developing extremophiles for efficient production of biopolymers, biofuels, and biochemicals from non-conventional substrates.
• Advances in cultivating extremophiles: overcoming laboratory challenges.
• Genetic and metabolic engineering of extremophiles for biocatalysis in harsh environments.
• Bioinformatics and Meta-Omics technologies for extremophilic genome mining, industrial enzymes, and pathways discovery.
• Computational models for optimizing extremophile-based biomanufacturing pathways.
• Sustainability and environmental impact of extremophile-based bioprocesses.
Keywords: Extremophiles, Biocataysis, Genetic Engineering, Metabolic Networks, Industrial Applications
Important Note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.
