Systematic and Applied Microbiology deals with various aspects of microbial diversity and systematics of prokaryotes. It focuses on Bacteria and Archaea; eukaryotic microorganisms will only be considered in rare cases. The journal perceives a broad understanding of microbial diversity and encourages the submission of manuscripts from the following branches of microbiology:
Systematics: Theoretical and practical issues dealing with classification and taxonomy, i.e. (i) new descriptions or revisions of prokaryotic taxa, including in particular descriptions of not-yet cultured taxa in the category Candidatus, (ii) innovative methods for the determination of taxonomical and genealogical relationships, (iii) evaluation of intra-taxon diversity through multidisciplinary approaches, (iv) identification methods.
Applied Microbiology: polyphasic studies combining multiple methods yielding in-depth data on the diversity and function of particular clades of Bacteria and Archaea in all aspects of agricultural, food, and industrial microbiology, including water and wastewater treatment. Also these studies must have a focus on prokaryotic systematics.
Comparative biochemistry and genomics: studies concerning biochemical/metabolic and genomic diversity of cultured as well as yet-uncultured Bacteria and Archaea.
Ecology: polyphasic descriptions of the microbial diversity and community composition of natural and man-made ecosystems; studies quantifying the size, dynamics, and function of prokaryotic populations; innovative research on the interaction of Bacteria and Archaea with each other and their biotic and abiotic environments. The description of candidate taxa is highly encouraged but should be based on high quality metagenomic information, as well as the in situ identification of the target bacterial or archaeal populations.

Full-length papers
Short communications 

Executive Editors
Rudolf Amann
Max-Planck-Institute for Marine Microbiology, 28359, Bremen, Germany Email Rudolf Amann
Ramon Rosselló-Móra
Mediterranean Institute of Advanced Studies, 07190, Esporles, Spain Email Ramon Rosselló-Móra
Karl-Heinz Schleifer
Technical University of Munich Chair of Microbiology, Emil-Ramann-Str. 4, 85354, Freising, Germany Email Karl-Heinz Schleifer
Language Editor
Chris Rodgers
San Carlos de la Rapita, Spain Email Chris Rodgers
Editorial Assistant / Living Tree Project
Bartomeu Antoni Viver Pizà
Mediterranean Institute of Advanced Studies, 07190, Esporles, Spain Email Bartomeu Antoni Viver Pizà
Editors
David Ruiz Arahal
Valencia, Spain
Michael Blaut
Nuthetal, Germany
Hans Jürgen Busse
Vienna, Austria
Ralf Conrad
Marburg, Germany
Milton Da Costa
Coimbra, Portugal
Matthias A. Ehrmann
Freising, Germany
Margarita Gomila
Palma, Illes Balears, Spain
Peter Kämpfer
Gießen, Germany
Kostas Konstantinidis
Atlanta, United States
Milagros Léon-Barrios
La Laguna, Spain
Wolfgang Liebl
Freising, Germany
Wolfgang Ludwig
Freising, Germany
Mari Carmen Macián
Paterna, Spain
Esperanza Martínez Romero
Cuernavaca, Mexico
Rainer Meckenstock
Essen, Germany
Aharon Oren
Jerusalem, Israel
Ernesto Ormeño-Orrillo
Cuernavaca, Mexico
Alvaro Peix
Salamanca, Spain
Jakob Pernthaler
Zürich, Switzerland
Jesus Romalde
Santiago de Compostela, Spain
Siegfried Scherer
Freising, Germany
Michael Schloter
München, Germany
Andreas Schramm
Aarhus, Denmark
David A. Stahl
Seattle, United States
Michael Teuber
Zurich, Switzerland
Encarna Velazquez
Salamanca, Spain
Fanus Venter
Pretoria, South Africa
En Tao Wang
Ciudad de Mexico, Mexico
Fengping Wang
Shanghai, China
Anne Willems
Gent, Belgium