The microbial pan-genome

TL;DR: In this article, a metagenome-like de novo assembly strategy based on low-coverage (1-3×) sequencing data of 1483 cultivated rice (Oryza sativa L.) accessions was proposed to construct the dispensable genome of rice through a metagene-like assembly strategy.

TL;DR: It becomes important to evaluate population-wide measurements carefully in the light of single-cell individuality and genome heterogeneity, and the cell as a central unit for understanding processes on a community level is discussed.

TL;DR: In this article, the authors report chromosome-level, reference-quality assemblies of seven Arabidopsis thaliana accessions selected across the global range of this predominately ruderal plant, revealing between 13-17 Mb rearranged and 5-6 Mb novel sequence introducing copy-number changes in ∼5,000 genes including ∼1,900 genes which are not part of the current reference annotation.

TL;DR: The extended comparative genomics approach revealed a variable subset of genes and regulons that may contribute to the symbiotic diversity of S. meliloti strains AK83 and BL225C, suggesting that regulons polymorphism could also be a key determinant in the variability of symbiotic performances among the analyzed strains.

TL;DR: Over 1.2 million previously unknown genes represented in these samples, including more than 782 new rhodopsin-like photoreceptors are identified, suggesting substantial oceanic microbial diversity.

TL;DR: The genomic sequence of six strains representing the five major disease-causing serotypes of Streptococcus agalactiae, the main cause of neonatal infection in humans, was generated and Mathematical extrapolation of the data suggests that the gene reservoir available for inclusion in the S. agalactic pan-genome is vast and that unique genes will continue to be identified even after sequencing hundreds of genomes.

TL;DR: Mobile elements within genomes have driven genome evolution in diverse ways and are becoming useful tools for learning more about genome evolution and gene function.

TL;DR: The current review presents the available genomics and biological data on prophages from bacterial pathogens in an evolutionary framework to demonstrate that the chromosomes from bacteria and their viruses (bacteriophages) are coevolving.