Nathalie Bason

TL;DR: A proteome-based phylogeny shows that the amoebozoa diverged from the animal–fungal lineage after the plant–animal split, but Dictyostelium seems to have retained more of the diversity of the ancestral genome than have plants, animals or fungi.

TL;DR: The authors' analysis indicates that B. parapertussis and B. pertussis are independent derivatives of B. bronchiseptica-like ancestors; host adaptation seems to be a consequence of loss, not gain, of function, and differences in virulence may be related to loss of regulatory or control functions.

TL;DR: The crucial role that accessory elements play in the rapid evolution of S. aureus is clearly illustrated by comparing the MSSA476 genome with that of an extremely closely related MRSA community-acquired strain; the differential distribution of large mobile elements carrying virulence and drug-resistance determinants may be responsible for the clinically important phenotypic differences in these strains.

TL;DR: The complete genome sequence of Clostridium difficile strain 630, a virulent and multidrug-resistant strain, is determined; it indicates that a large proportion (11%) of the genome consists of mobile genetic elements, mainly in the form of conjugative transposons.