"The finishing of S. baltica is being celebrated as a Los Alamos milestone for a couple reasons," said Chris Detter, leader of the JGI Sequencing Technology Team, "Not only is it our 100th completed genomic sequence, but it's also appropriate because S. baltica has shown potential for use in confining and cleaning up uranium-contaminated areas, such as the Laboratory's legacy waste sites. The microbe might someday be put to work right here at Los Alamos for the bioremediation of uranium contamination at nuclear waste sites because of its unique abilities."
While solid in most forms, uranium can break down over time in the natural environment leading to the possible contamination of groundwater. Taken from the depths of the Baltic Sea, the S. baltica microbe has a unique ability to convert uranium dissolved in groundwater into an insoluble form called uranium dioxide, or uraninite, which prevents the uranium from mixing with water and from migrating into and with groundwater flows.
Los Alamos specializes in developing techniques to take raw sequence data from the high-throughput JGI facility in Walnut Creek, California, and transform it into finished genomes. The Laboratory began finishing sequences for JGI in 2003. Making advancements in genome technology and chemistry over the years, more components of the process have become automated, speeding up finishing rates as a result.
In addition to Detter, other leaders in the JGI-LANL include David Bruce, Tom Brettin, and Cliff Han, and 35 exceptional scientists, technicians, and support staff.
The DOE Joint Genome Institute, supported by the DOE Office of Science, Office of Biological and Environmental Research, unites the expertise of five national laboratories, Lawrence Berkeley, Lawrence Livermore, Los Alamos, Oak Ridge, and Pacific Northwest, along with the Stanford Human Genome Center.
Los Alamos National Laboratory, a multidisciplinary research institution engaged in strategic science on behalf of national security, is operated by Los Alamos National Security, LLC, a team composed of Bechtel National, the University of California, The Babcock & Wilcox Company, and the Washington Division of URS for the Department of Energy's National Nuclear Security Administration.
Los Alamos enhances national security by ensuring the safety and reliability of the U.S. nuclear stockpile, developing technologies to reduce threats from weapons of mass destruction, and solving problems related to energy, environment, infrastructure, health, and global security concerns.