BACKGROUND Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are small proteins with potent antibacterial,
antiviral, and antifungal activity. AMPs are ubiquitous among multicellular eukaryotes, with …

Most of the genetic, cellular, and biochemical diversity of life rests within single-celled
organisms—the prokaryotes (bacteria and archaea) and microbial eukaryotes (protists) …

Animals and microorganisms often establish close ecological relationships. However, much
of our knowledge about animal microbiomes comes from two deeply studied groups …

Amoebae are protists that have complicated relationships with bacteria, covering the whole
spectrum of symbiosis. Amoeba-bacterium interactions contribute to the study of predation …

Pelagic microbes have adopted distinct strategies to inhabit the pelagial of lakes and
oceans and can be broadly categorized in two groups: free‐living, specialized oligotrophs …

An evolutionary consequence of uniparentally transmitted symbiosis is degradation of
symbiont genomes. We use the system of aphids and their maternally inherited obligate …

Many insects depend on obligate mutualistic bacteria to provide essential nutrients lacking
from their diet. Most aphids, whose diet consists of phloem, rely on the bacterial …

Taxonomy is the science of defining and naming groups of biological organisms based on
shared characteristics and, more recently, on evolutionary relationships. With the birth of …

Forests form rich biodiversity hubs that act as large reservoirs of natural carbon. The spatial
and temporal heterogeneity of these complex habitats of forest floors provides ecological …

Endosymbiosis is an idea that provided a remarkable amount of explanatory power about
the origins of eukaryotic organelles. But it also promoted a number of assumptions that have …