Horizontal gene transfer via plasmids could favour cooperation in bacteria, because transfer
of a cooperative gene turns non-cooperative cheats into cooperators. This hypothesis has …

Bacteria frequently exhibit cooperative behaviors but cooperative strains are vulnerable to
invasion by cheater strains that reap the benefits of cooperation but do not perform the …

Many bacterial species are social, producing costly secreted “public good” molecules that
enhance the growth of neighboring cells. The genes coding for these cooperative traits are …

Many of the genes responsible for the virulence of bacterial pathogens are carried by mobile
genetic elements that can be transferred horizontally between different bacterial lineages …

Cooperation exists across all scales of biological organization, from genetic elements to
complex human societies. Bacteria cooperate by secreting molecules that benefit all …

Background Microbes engage in a remarkable array of cooperative behaviors, secreting
shared proteins that are essential for foraging, shelter, microbial warfare, and virulence …

Plasmids are nucleic acid molecules that can drive their own replication in a living cell. They
can be transmitted horizontally and can thrive in the host cell to high‐copy numbers. Plasmid …

Plasmids carry a wide range of genes that are often involved in bacterial social behaviour.
The question of why such genes are frequently mobile has received increasing attention …

Horizontal gene transfer by conjugative plasmids plays a critical role in the evolution of
antibiotic resistance. Interactions between bacteria and other organisms can affect the …

Horizontal gene transfer (HGT) is one of the most important processes in prokaryote
evolution. The sharing of DNA can spread neutral or beneficial genes, as well as genetic …