Genomics and Evolution of Microbial Eukaryotes

In Genomics and Evolution of Microbial Eukaryotes, editors Laura Katz and Debashish Bhattacharya guide the reader through an introductory overview of the vast world of protists. Immediately striking is the editors’ clear argument for studying protists: 1) Protists are complex organisms involved in all forms of biodiversity on Earth, from the oceanic diatom (Thalassiosira pseudonana) to the human malaria parasite (Plasmodium falciparum); and 2) Protists have inhabited the earth for hundreds of millions of years, which provides a wealth of evolutionary data to be analyzed upon sequencing their genomes.