How to measure bacterial genome plasticity? A novel index helps gather insights on pathogens.

ABSTRACT: Genome plasticity can be defined as the capacity of a bacterial population to swiftly gain or lose genes. The time factor plays a fundamental role in the evolutionary success of microbes, particularly when considering pathogens and their tendency to gain antimicrobial resistance factors under the pressure of the extensive use of antibiotics. Multiple metrics have been proposed to provide insights into the gene content repertoire, yet they overlook the temporal component, which has a critical role in determining the adaptation and survival of a bacterial strain. In this study, we introduce a novel index that incorporates evolutionary distance to assess the rate at which bacteria exchange genes, thus fitting the definition of plasticity. Opposite to available indexes, our method also takes i

SUBMITTER: Bellinzona G 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12321203 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature