The field of industrial microbiology involves a thorough knowledge of the microbial physiology behind the processes in the large-scale, profit-oriented production of microbe-related goods which are the subject of the field. In recent times a paradigm shift has occurred, and a molecular understanding of the various processes by which plants, animals and microorganisms are manipulated is now central to industrial microbiology. Thus the various applications of industrial microbiology are covered broadly, with emphasis on the physiological and genomic principles behind these applications. Relevance of the new elements such as bioinformatics, genomics, proteomics, site-directed mutation and metabolic engineering, which have necessitated the paradigm shift in industrial microbiology are discussed.

Nduka Okafor holds a bachelor's degree from the University of London, England and a PhD from the University of Cambridge, England. He has taught and/or researched in Australia, Austria, the Netherlands, England and the USA. In the USA he has been at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI; Cornell University, Ithaca, NY; Furman University, Greenville, SC; the University of Northern Iowa, Cedar Falls, IA and Clemson University, SC. He has acted as external examiner (graduate and undergraduate) at the University of Zimbabwe, the University of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, the University of Poona, India and the University of New South Wales, Australia. His books include Modern Industrial Microbiology and Biotechnology (Science Publishers, Enfield, NH, USA), and Environmental Microbiology of Waste and Aquatic Systems (Springer, Dordrecht, the Netherlands).

Benedict C. Okeke is a Professor in the Department of Biology, Auburn University at Montgomery (AUM); where he is also a Distinguished Research Professor, Ida Belle Young Endowed Professor, Alumni Professor and the founding Director of the Bioprocessing and Biofuel Research Lab (BBRL). At AUM he received superior performance evaluations in all areas: research, teaching and service. Prof. Okeke received MS and PhD degrees from the University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, Scotland. He currently teaches industrial microbiology, environmental microbiology, special topics in biotechnology, general microbiology, and directed research. He has been an external examiner for numerous PhD students internationally. Professor Okeke did postdoctoral work at the University of California, Riverside; Gifu University, Japan; and the International Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, Trieste, Italy. He has 60 technical research papers in peer reviewed journals, three US patents, numerous conference abstracts and research grants from different organizations. He served as an Associate Editor for Journal of Environmental Quality and in the editorial board of Applied Biochemistry and Biotechnology. Prof. Okeke is a member of the Society for Industrial Microbiology and Biotechnology, American Society for Microbiology, Phi Kappa Phi, Sigma Xi and the Alabama Academy of Science.