Wolbachia, genetics & genomics

Scientists identify the genes responsible for bacteria-controlled sterility in arthropods.

In the DNA of the WO phage, which infects arthropod-inhabiting Wolbachia, researchers find sequences related to a black widow spider’s toxin and other animal genes.

Bacteria inhabit most tissues in the human body, and genes from some of these microbes have made their way to the human genome. Could this genetic transfer contribute to diseases such as cancer?

Telomeres and disease; Wolbachia-infected mosquitoes may fight malaria; bat tongue mops nectar; newly sequenced genomes