Restriction–modification (RM) systems are composed of genes that encode a restriction
enzyme and a modification methylase. RM systems sometimes behave as discrete units of …

Metagenomics has become an indispensable tool for studying the diversity and metabolic
potential of environmental microbes, whose bulk is as yet non-cultivable. Continual progress …

Comparative genomics is the cornerstone of identification of gene functions. The immense
number of living organisms precludes experimental identification of functions except in a …

We compared nucleotide usage pattern conservation for related prokaryotes by examining
the representation of DNA tetranucleotide combinations in 27 representative microbial …

The replication of the chromosome is among the most essential functions of the bacterial cell
and influences many other cellular mechanisms, from gene expression to cell division. Yet …

In the absence of bias between the two DNA strands for mutation and selection, the base
composition within each strand should be such that A= T and C= G (this state is called Parity …

In the following, an overview is given on statistical and probabilistic properties of words, as
occurring in the analysis of biological sequences. Counts of occurrence, counts of clumps …

Pyoverdine is the primary siderophore of the gram-negative bacterium Pseudomonas
aeruginosa. The pyoverdine region was recently identified as the most divergent locus …

Mycoplasmas evolved by a drastic reduction in genome size, but their genomes contain
numerous repeated sequences with important roles in their evolution. We have established …

Horizontal DNA transfer is an important factor of evolution and participates in biological
diversity. Unfortunately, the location and length of horizontal transfers (HTs) are known for …