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Microbiology

Arms race in a drop of sea water

Nature volume 474, pages 582–583 (2011)Cite this article

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Marine cyanobacteria can shrug off viral assault by inactivating the genes involved in virus attachment. But this strategy has a cost: it may affect cell fitness or even favour infection by other viruses. See Article p.604

The oceans are teeming with viruses — typically, there are 100 billion viral particles per litre of water in the top 50 metres of most marine ecosystems1,2. With an average of ten viruses for each bacterial cell, these parasites impose a tight control over the composition of marine microbial communities. The 'arms race' hypothesis holds that the selective pressure exerted by viruses continuously triggers adaptive mutations in the bacterial genomes, with counteracting genetic adaptations occurring at a similar pace in the parasites3. On page 604 of this issue, Avrani and colleagues4 contribute to a better understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying this process of co-evolution.

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Figure 1: Transmission electron micrograph of a marine podovirus.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Frédéric Partensky and Laurence Garczarek are in the Department of Adaptation and Diversity in the Marine Environment, UMR 7144 CNRS & UPMC-University Paris 6, Station Biologique, 29680 Roscoff, France.,

    Frédéric Partensky & Laurence Garczarek

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  1. Frédéric Partensky
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  2. Laurence Garczarek
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Correspondence to Frédéric Partensky.

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Partensky, F., Garczarek, L. Arms race in a drop of sea water. Nature 474, 582–583 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1038/474582a

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