Rafal Mostowy

TL;DR: It is argued instead that intragenomic conflict provides a coherent framework for understanding the evolutionary origins of HDT and is able to explain both common properties of MGEs, and the seemingly paradoxical bacterial behaviours of transformation and cell–cell killing within clonally related populations.

TL;DR: In this paper, a whole-genome sequenced 3233 invasive pneumococcal disease isolates from laboratory-based surveillance programs in Hong Kong (n=78), Israel, South Africa, Malawi, Nigeria, The Gambia, and USA were collected from children younger than 3 years.

TL;DR: A novel algorithm called fastGEAR is introduced which identifies lineages in diverse microbial alignments, and recombinations between them and from external origins, and provides insight into recombinations affecting deep branches of the phylogenetic tree.

TL;DR: It is found that micro-recombination was associated with major phenotypic changes, including serotype-switching events, and thus was a major driver of the diversification of the pathogen, and the process of homologous recombination was best described by a heterogeneous model of recombination.

TL;DR: It is argued that the high adaptive potential of poly Saccharide antigens should be taken into account in the design of polysaccharide-targeting medical interventions like conjugate vaccines and phage-based therapies.