**Contents**



## **About the Special Issue Editors**

**Eduardo Santero** received a Ph.D. in biology from the University of Seville, Spain, in 1986. Full professor at the University Pablo de Olavide since 2003, he has been vice-chancellor for research at the same university (2003–2007), and deputy director (2007–2011) and director (2011–2015) of the Andalusian Center for Developmental Biology. This is a joint research center funded by the Spanish Research Council (CSIC), the Andalusian Regional Government Junta de Andaluc´ıa, and the Universidad Pablo de Olavide (UPO) in Seville, where he is currently principal investigator. His research group focuses on transcriptional and posttranscriptional gene regulation mechanisms in bacteria of environmental interest, mainly those regulating biodegradation genes, and the design and construction of regulatory circuits for environmental and biomedical applications. He has more than 80 publications, six patents, and countless communications in congresses. He is a member of the Editorial Board of Genes, a frequent reviewer for many journals, and a member of gran<sup>t</sup> evaluation panels for national and international institutions.

**Eduardo D´ıaz** received a Ph.D. in biology from the Complutense University of Madrid (Spain) in 1991. He is currently a research scientist at the Department of Microbial and Plant Biotechnology of the Biological Research Center Margarita Salas (CIB) of the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC); he heads its environmental microbiology group, which studies biochemical and genetic aspects of the bacterial metabolism of pollutants and their biotechnological applications (bioremediation, biosensors, bioconversions). He has more than 90 publications published in international peer-reviewed journals, one book, fifteen book chapters, eight patents, and more than 170 communications at congresses and workshops. He is a member of the editorial board of five highly reputed microbiology journals (*J. Bacteriol.*, *Curr. Opin. Biotechnol.*, *Environ. Microbiol.*, *Microb. Biotechnol.*, *Appl. Environ. Microbiol.*), a collaborator at the Bioscience and Biotechnology Area of the Spanish State Research Agency (AEI), and the cofounder of a biotechnology start-up.
