Bacteria come in a range of shapes, including round, rod-shaped, curved and spiral cells.
This morphological diversity implies that different mechanisms exist to guide proper cell …

The separation and segregation of newly replicated bacterial chromosomes can be
constrained by the formation of circular chromosome dimers caused by crossing over during …

Processes of molecular innovation require tinkering and shifting in the function of existing
genes. How this occurs in terms of molecular evolution at long evolutionary scales remains …

ABSTRACT DNA segregation ensures that cell offspring receive at least one copy of each
DNA molecule, or replicon, after their replication. This important cellular process includes …

Summary It was Barbara McClintock who first described the problems of segregation arising
from the circularity of chromosomes during her studies on maize variegation (1). The …

One of the serious public health concerns is food contaminated with pathogens and their
vital activity products such as toxins. Bacillus cereus group of bacteria includes well-known …

Antibiotic-resistant infections are a pressing clinical challenge. Plasmids are known to
accelerate the emergence of resistance by facilitating horizontal gene transfer of antibiotic …

Bacterial genomes typically consist of a single chromosome and, optionally, one or more
plasmids. But whole-genome sequencing reveals about ten per-cent of them to be …

One of the disadvantages of circular plasmids and chromosomes is their high sensitivity to
rearrangements caused by homologous recombination. Odd numbers of crossing-over …

Despite significant frequencies of lateral gene transfer between species, higher taxonomic
groups of bacteria show ecological and phenotypic cohesion. This suggests that barriers …