Extracellular or “relic” DNA is one of the largest pools of nucleic acids in the biosphere. Relic
DNA can influence a number of important ecological and evolutionary processes, but it may …

One of the long-standing mysteries of evolutionary genomics is the source of the wide
phylogenetic diversity in genome nucleotide composition (G + C versus A + T), which must be a …

Microorganisms are strongly influenced by the bottom-up effects of resource supply. While
many species respond to fluctuations in the concentration of resources, microbial diversity …

Microorganisms commonly inhabit energy-limited ecosystems where cellular maintenance
and reproduction is highly constrained. To gain insight into how individuals persist under …

Imbalances in C:N:P supply ratios may cause bacterial resource limitations and constrain
biogeochemical processes, but the importance of shifts in soil stoichiometry are complicated by …

Much of Earth's biodiversity has the capacity to engage in dormancy, a reversible state of
reduced metabolic activity. By increasing resilience to unfavourable conditions, dormancy …

Auxotrophy, or an organism's requirement for an exogenous source of an organic molecule,
is widespread throughout species and ecosystems. Auxotrophy can result in obligate …

The movement of organisms across habitat boundaries has important consequences for
populations, communities, and ecosystems. However, because most species are not well …

Every seed germinating in soils, wastewater treatment, and stream confluence exemplify
microbial community coalescence—the blending of previously isolated communities. Here, we …

Background Plants are found in a large percentage of indoor environments, yet the potential
for bacteria associated with indoor plant leaves and soil to colonize human skin remains …