Bioinformatics Commons^™

Ecology, Evolution, And Gene Transfer Between Diatoms And Bacteria, Cory B. Gargas

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Although photosynthetic macro-eukaryotes (i.e., plants) make up the majority of organic biomass on earth, bacteria are the second largest taxonomic group, by biomass. Bacteria are ubiquitous in our environment, living on, and within, man-made surfaces, natural environments, and eukaryotes themselves. The relationship between bacteria and eukaryotes has existed from the very beginning of eukaryotic life in the form of bacterial endosymbioses that resulted in mitochondria and plastids. Other eukaryote–bacteria relationships have evolved since then, ranging from the beneficial (e.g., mutualistic) to harmful (e.g., parasitic or pathogenic). Understanding these eukaryote–bacteria relationships is key to understanding both the evolution of important ecosystem …