Marine microbial populations: Potential sensors of the global change in the ocean

Animal and plant populations have been extensively studied, which has helped to elucidate ecosystem processes and evolutionary adaptations. However, this has not been the case with microbial populations, due to the impossibility of isolating, culturing and analyzing the genetic content of the different species and their individuals in the laboratory. Therefore, although it is known that populations of microorganisms include a great diversity, it remains largely uncharacterized.