Quasi-sexual gene transfer drives genetic diversity of hot spring bacteria

New work from a team including Carnegie's Devaki Bhaya and Michelle Davison used massive DNA sequencing of bacterial populations that grow in the hot springs in Yellowstone National Park to determine their genetic diversity and explore the underlying evolutionary dynamics. They found an unexpectedly high degree of sharing and exchange of genetic material between the tiny, green, photosynthetic cyanobacteria Synechococcus, which are abundant in these scalding, inhospitable environments.

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