Why is It Important to Use Cultivation-Independent Methods to Help

Question

Why is it important to use cultivation-independent methods to help understand microbial diversity?
A) It allows researchers to identify species that cannot be grown in culture.
B) It is the only way that phylogenetic trees can be constructed.
C) It must be used after bacteria are cultured to more fully sequence their DNA.
D) It is necessary to be able to examine ribosomal RNA.

Accepted Answer

Cultivation-independent methods are important because many microbial species cannot be grown in culture. These methods, such as metagenomic sequencing or PCR amplification of specific genes, allow for identification of microbial diversity without the need for culturing.

Answer: D
 One of the most common cultivation-independent methods is sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene, which is present in all bacteria and archaea. This method allows for identification and classification of microbial diversity, often to the species or even strain level, without the need to culture the organisms.