What makes a temperate phage an effective bacterial weapon?
M. J. N. Thomas,
M. A. Brockhurst,
K. Z. Coyte
Abstract:Temperate bacteriophages (phages) are common features of bacterial genomes and can act as self-amplifying biological weapons, killing susceptible competitors and thus increasing the fitness of their bacterial hosts (lysogens). Despite their prevalence, however, the key characteristics of an effective temperate phage weapon remain unclear. Here we use systematic mathematical analyses coupled with experimental tests to understand what makes an effective temperate phage weapon. We find that effectiveness is contr… Show more
Set email alert for when this publication receives citations?
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.