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OPEN COMMUNICATION CHANNELS. "Although animals and bacteria have different forms and lifestyles, they recognize one another and communicate in part because, as described above, their genomic “dictionaries” share a common and deep evolutionary ancestry." http://www.pnas.org/content/110/9/3229.full View in LinkedIn

METABOLIC BOLT-ONS. "Many invertebrates have intracellular bacterial symbionts whose genes encode metabolic capabilities lacking in animals, such as the synthesis of essential amino acids, photosynthesis, or chemosynthesis. Certain marine invertebrates that feed on algae maintain algal plastids as photosynthetically active symbionts, a behavior that allows the host to use photosynthate as a food source for extended periods." http://www.pnas.org/content/110/9/3229.full View in LinkedIn

GENOMIC EXPANSION. "The intertwining of animal and bacterial genomes is not just historical: by coopting the vastly more diverse genetic repertoire present in its bacterial partners, a host can rapidly expand its metabolic potential, thereby extending both its ecological versatility and responsiveness to environmental change." http://www.pnas.org/content/110/9/3229.full View in LinkedIn

“Many animal genes are homologs of bacterial genes, mostly derived by descent, but occasionally by gene transfer from bacteria. For example, 37% of the ∼23,000 human genes have homologs in the Bacteria and Archaea, and another 28% originated in unicellular eukaryotes." http://www.pnas.org/content/110/9/3229.full View in LinkedIn

SHARED GENES. "Analysis of the large number of full genome sequences presently available reveals that most life forms share approximately one third of their genes, including those encoding central metabolic pathways." http://www.pnas.org/content/110/9/3229.full View in LinkedIn

ANIMAL-BACTERIAL SYMBIOSIS. "How have bacteria facilitated the origin and evolution of animals; how do animals and bacteria affect each other’s genomes; how does normal animal development depend on bacterial partners; how is homeostasis maintained between animals and their symbionts; and how can ecological approaches deepen our understanding of the multiple levels of animal–bacterial interaction." http://www.pnas.org/content/110/9/3229.full View in LinkedIn

TRADITIONAL VIEW. "Animal development has traditionally been viewed as an autonomous process directed by the genome." https://lnkd.in/dbY8TYa View in LinkedIn

FRAGMENT FROM NATURE this next two weekend focuses on a brilliant and inspiring paper by Professor Jennifer J. Wernegreen and her team. It is widely rooted in a biological context, deeply illustrative on a case by case basis, clinical, ecological and touches on the new thinking that is emerging in life sciences. Specifically, it focuses on the ecological intimacy of bacteria and their hosts including humans. And it could equally be rewritten to star the same role of viruses. View in LinkedIn

BACTERIAL TRANSMISSION. "Many animals, including a wide variety of insects, have transovarial (i.e., via the egg to the embryo) transmission of bacterial partners. Whereas developmentally important symbioses have been documented throughout the postembryonic (larval and juvenile) stages of vertebrate and arthropod life cycles, the roles of symbiotic microbes during normal embryonic development are just beginning to be studied." http://www.pnas.org/content/110/9/3229.full View in LinkedIn

SUPERORGANISM. "A colony of ants, however, is a sophisticated complex system, a “superorganism” in which the components work together to accomplish difficult and complicated goals." http://natureofcode.com/book/chapter-6-autonomous-agents/ View in LinkedIn