A theory for the evolution of cellular organization is presented. The model is based on the (data supported) conjecture that the dynamic of horizontal gene transfer (HGT) is primarily determined by the organization of the recipient cell. Aboriginal cell designs are taken to be simple and loosely organized enough that all cellular componentry can be altered and/or displaced through HGT, making H...

Enterobacteriaceae with blaNDM-7 are relatively uncommon and had previously been described in Europe, India, the United States, and Japan. This study describes the characteristics of Enterobacteriaceae (Klebsiella pneumoniae [n = 2], Escherichia coli [n = 2], Serratia marcescens [n = 1], and Enterobacter hormaechei [n = 1] isolates) with blaNDM-7 obtained from 4 patients from Calgary, Canada, f...

It has been suggested that horizontal gene transfer (HGT) is the "essence of phylogeny." In contrast, much data suggest that this is an exaggeration resulting in part from a reliance on inadequate methods to identify HGT events. In addition, the assumption that HGT is a ubiquitous influence throughout evolution is questionable. Instead, rampant global HGT is likely to have been relevant only to...

Many bacterial and archaeal lineages have a history of extensive and ongoing horizontal gene transfer and loss, as evidenced by the large differences in genome content even among otherwise closely related isolates. How ecologically cohesive populations might evolve and be maintained under such conditions of rapid gene turnover has remained controversial. Here we synthesize recent literature dem...

There is an error in the Materials and Methods section of this paper. Section 6, “Identification of Horizontal Gene Transfer (HGT) -derived Genes in Foc1 and Foc4,” should not appear. In addition, Lijia Guo is incorrectly designated as the corresponding author. The correct corresponding authors are: Junsheng Huang ([email protected]), Ming Peng ([email protected]), and Xiaodong Fang (fangxd@g...

Genetic control programs for scrapie in sheep build on solid knowledge of how susceptibility to scrapie is modulated by the prion protein genotype at the level of an individual sheep. In order to satisfactorily analyze the effectivity of control programs at the population level, insight is needed at the flock level, i.e., how the grouping of sheep in flocks affects the population-level transmis...

Hexagrid structural system is an innovated system with structural behavior which is similar to a tubular system. In this paper, a numerical study is conducted to estimate the seismic performance of horizontal hexagrid concerning the combined horizontal and vertical hexagrid, tubular and diagrid structural systems. First 30 and 50 story buildings are modeled using ETABS, then pushover and nonlin...

In theory, plasmids can only be maintained in a population when the rate of horizontal gene transfer is larger than the combined effect of segregational loss and the decrease of fitness associated with plasmid carriage. Recent advances in genome sequencing have shown, however, that a large fraction of plasmids do not carry the genes necessary for conjugation or mobilization. So, how are so-call...

Summary In this study, the seismic performance of hexagrid structures which are composed of horizontal and vertical hexagrid by using a transitional story, has been investigated. To this end, 10 models of 50-story hexagrid structures were designed. 9 models with horizontal hexagrid cells which transited to vertical cells using a transitional story, and a model of completely horizontal hexagrid ...