Mollicutes From Evolution To Pathogenesis Volume Ii

Mollicutes: From Evolution To Pathogenesis, Volume II

The class Mollicutes (trivial name “mycoplasma”) encompasses a large group of bacteria having no cell-wall and a minute size genome (580 to 2,200 kb). From an evolutionary point of view, Mollicutes are derived from a common ancestor to Gram-positive bacteria with low G+C content and are considered as some of the most evolved prokaryotes. Despite their limited coding capacity, most Mollicutes can be cultivated in axenic media and thus include some of the simplest life-forms capable of autonomous replication. As such, these minimal bacteria have been used as a biological model to decipher cell functions and as blueprints for the synthesis of synthetic minimal genomes. Far from models, this monophyletic group is well known to include a broad range of important human, animal, plant and insect pathogens. In their hosts, these minimal pathogens usually establish persistent infections along with degenerative diseases which have a significant impact on human and animal health as well as on livestock and crop production.

Evolutionary mechanisms of infectious diseases, volume II

Insect Symbiosis, Volume 2

Summarizing current knowledge on symbiotic organisms in the biology of insects, Insect Symbiosis, Volume IIdescribes the diversity of symbiotic bacteria associated with pests such as whiteflies, aphids, mealybugs, psyllids, and tsetse flies. The book illustrates how symbiosis research has important ramifications for evolutionary biology, phy