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There is now a CONTENT FREEZE for Mercury while we switch to a new platform. It began on Friday, March 10 at 6pm and will end on Wednesday, March 15 at noon. No new content can be created during this time, but all material in the system as of the beginning of the freeze will be migrated to the new platform, including users and groups. Functionally the new site is identical to the old one. webteam@gatech.edu
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The cryptic prophage puzzle by Prof. Lindi Wahl.
Gene sequencing in bacteria has revealed an unexpected abundance of prophages, that is, DNA sequences from temperate viruses, integrated in the bacterial genome. Many of these prophages are cryptic and unable to induce lysis in their hosts. The frequency of cryptic prophages, however, is much higher than predicted if they were simply decaying by mutational degradation. What factors maintain prophage sequences at such high frequencies in bacterial genomes? Which genes are preferentially carried by cryptic prophages? We have used bioinformatics, mathematical modelling and computation to suggest some answers (and further questions!).
