SeqCode News

September 2022
Two articles on the SeqCode have been published this month!

1. Hedlund, BP, M Chuvochina, P Hugenholtz, KT Konstantinidis, AE Murray, M Palmer, DH Parks, AJ Probst, A-L Reysenbach, LM Rodriguez-R, R Rossello-Mora, IC Sutcliffe, SN Venter, WB Whitman. 2022. SeqCode, a nomenclatural code for prokaryotes described from sequence data. Nature Microbiology, doi:10.1038/s41564-022-01214-9

2. Whitman, WB, M Chuvochina, BP Hedlund, P Hugenholtz, KT Konstantinidis, AE Murray, M Palmer, DH Parks, A J Probst, A-L Reysenbach, LM Rodriguez, R Rossello-Mora, I Sutcliffe, SN Venter. 2022. Development of the SeqCode: a proposed nomenclatural code for uncultivated prokaryotes with DNA sequences as type. Syst. Appl. Microbiol. 45:126305. doi:10.1016/j.syapm.2022.126305
 

August 2022
The SeqCode will be represented at ISME 18 Symposium in Lausanne, Switzerland:

Monday August 15; 18:00-19:30 - The Future of Microbial Taxonomy Under the SeqCode - Round Table

Tuesday August 16: 13:15 - 13:45 - Auditorium A - SeqCode Information Session
In this 30-minute session we will (i) introduce the SeqCode - a new prokaryotic nomenclature system that accepts DNA sequence as 'type' material to name species of Bacteria and Archaea, (ii) discuss plans for implementation, and (iii) discuss a path for community participation and engagement in the future of the SeqCode.
 

February 2022
The SeqCode is a new code of nomenclature that has been developed to allow naming of Archaea and Bacteria using DNA sequences as the nomenclatural types. The SeqCode will allow naming of the enormous uncultivated biodiversity discovered through metagenomic sequencing and single-cell genomics, fastidious prokaryotes that cannot reasonably be maintained and distributed by culture collections, as well as organisms that cannot be legally transferred between countries. 

It has been nearly a year since the online meetings on SeqCode and a great deal has since been accomplished.  

1. Based in part on the comments at the virtual “Path forward to implementation and adoption of the SeqCode” meeting, the SeqCode has been revised, and a paper announcing it has been submitted for publication. Preprints of the paper and the SeqCode are available here.  
2. We have established an agreement with the International Society of Microbial Ecology to host the SeqCode on their website. 
3. A Slack workspace was initiated last year following the workshop and will now be used for active public discussion of SeqCode. Please join us here. 
4. An outline for the governance of the SeqCode Committee has been drafted and is available on our Slack channel ‘seqcode-administration’.  Input is both welcome and needed.