Bacteria spend their lives buffeted by changing environmental conditions. To adapt to and
survive these stresses, bacteria have global response systems that result in sweeping …

Increased mutation rates under stress allow bacterial populations to adapt rapidly to
stressors, including antibiotics. Here we evaluate existing models for the evolution of stress …

Under stressful conditions mechanisms that increase genetic variation can bestow a
selective advantage. Bacteria have several stress responses that provide ways in which …

Evolutionary theory assumed that mutations occur constantly, gradually, and randomly over
time. This formulation from the “modern synthesis” of the 1930s was embraced decades …

Our concept of a stable genome is evolving to one in which genomes are plastic and
responsive to environmental changes. Growing evidence shows that a variety of …

Mutagenesis is often increased in bacterial populations as a consequence of stress-induced
genetic pathways. Analysis of the molecular mechanisms involved suggests that …

Comparative biochemistry demonstrates that the metabolites, complex biochemical
networks, enzymes and regulatory mechanisms essential to all living cells are conserved in …

Microbial cells under growth-limiting stress can generate mutations by mechanisms distinct
from those in rapidly growing cells. These mechanisms might be specific stress responses …

The neo-Darwinists suggested that evolution is constant and gradual, and thus that genetic
changes that drive evolution should be too. However, more recent understanding of …

Microorganisms are exposed to constantly changing environmental conditions. In a growth‐
restricting environment (eg during starvation), mutants arise that are able to take over the …