Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) poses a substantial threat to human health. The widespread
prevalence of AMR is, in part, due to the horizontal transfer of antibiotic resistance genes …

Plasmids have a key role in bacterial ecology and evolution because they mobilize
accessory genes by horizontal gene transfer. However, recent studies have revealed that …

Since the first genome-scale comparisons, it has been evident that the genomes of many
species are unbound by strict vertical descent: Large differences in gene content can occur …

Plasmids mediate the horizontal transmission of genetic information between bacteria,
facilitating their adaptation to multiple environmental conditions. An especially important …

Antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) are present as both intracellular and extracellular
fractions of DNA in the environment. Due to the poor yield of extracellular DNA in …

Plasmid persistence in bacterial populations is strongly influenced by the fitness effects
associated with plasmid carriage. However, plasmid fitness effects in wild-type bacterial …

Plasmids play an important role in bacterial genome evolution by transferring genes
between lineages. Fitness costs associated with plasmid carriage are expected to be a …

The'plasmid paradox'arises because, although plasmids are common features of bacterial
genomes, theoretically they should not exist: rates of conjugation were believed insufficient …

In the absence of antibiotic-mediated selection, sensitive bacteria are expected to displace
their resistant counterparts if resistance genes are costly. However, many resistance genes …

Evolution is the hallmark of life. Descriptions of the evolution of microorganisms have
provided a wealth of information, but knowledge regarding “what happened” has precluded …