Virtually all plants and animals, including humans, are home to symbiotic microorganisms.
Symbiotic interactions can be neutral, harmful or have beneficial effects on the host …

The evolution of a mutualism requires reciprocal interactions whereby one species provides
a service that the other species cannot perform or performs less efficiently. Services …

The evolution of life on earth has been driven by a small number of major evolutionary
transitions. These transitions have been characterized by individuals that could previously …

Plants and their arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal symbionts interact in complex underground
networks involving multiple partners. This increases the potential for exploitation and …

Microorganisms communicate and cooperate to perform a wide range of multicellular
behaviours, such as dispersal, nutrient acquisition, biofilm formation and quorum sensing …

Natural selection favours genes that increase an organism's ability to survive and reproduce.
This would appear to lead to a world dominated by selfish behaviour. However, cooperation …

Across animals and plants, numerous metabolic and defensive adaptations are a direct
consequence of symbiotic associations with beneficial microbes. Explaining how these …

Why the DNA‐containing organelles, chloroplasts, and mitochondria, are inherited
maternally is a long standing and unsolved question. However, recent years have seen a …

The capacity of beneficial microbes to compete for host infection—and the ability of hosts to
discriminate among them—introduces evolutionary conflict that is predicted to destabilize …

Host-adapted bacteria include mutualists and pathogens of animals, plants and insects.
Their study is therefore important for biotechnology, biodiversity and human health. The …