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Camilla L Nesbã
Marlena Dlutek
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doi:10.1534/genetics.105.049312
A more recent version of this article appeared on February 1, 2006.
REGULAR RESEARCH PAPERS |
Recombination in Thermotoga: implications for species concepts and biogeography
Camilla L Nesbã 1*, Marlena Dlutek 1 and Ford W Doolittle 1
1 Dalhousie University
* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: cnesbo{at}dal.ca.
Submitted on August 8, 2005
Revised on October 12, 2005
Accepted on 4 November 2005
Here we characterize regions of the genomes of eight members of the hyperthermophilic genus Thermotoga. These bacteria differ from each other physiologically and by 3 - 20% percent in gene content, and occupy physically distinct environments in widely disparate regions of the globe. Among the four different lineages (represented by nine different strains) we compare, no two are closer than 96 percent in the average sequences of their genes. By most accepted recent definitions these are different "ecotypes" and different "species". And yet we find compelling evidence for recombination between them. We suggest that no single prokaryotic species concept can accommodate such uncoupling of ecotypic and genetic aspects of cohesion and diversity, and that without a single concept, the question of whether or not prokaryotic species might in general be cosmopolitan cannot be sensibly addressed. We can, however recast biogeographical questions in terms of the distribution of genes and their alleles.
Key Words: biogeography, lateral gene transfer, recombination, subtractive hybridization
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