title: Global divergence of microbial genome sequences mediated by propagating fronts.
abstract: We model the competition between homologous recombination and point mutation in microbial genomes, and present evidence for two distinct phases, one uniform, the other genetically diverse. Depending on the specifics of homologous recombination, we find that global sequence divergence can be mediated by fronts propagating along the genome, whose characteristic signature on genome structure is elucidated, and apparently observed in closely related Bacillus strains. Front propagation provides an emergent, generic mechanism for microbial "speciation," and suggests a classification of microorganisms on the basis of their propensity to support propagating fronts.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physics and Institute for Genomic Biology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 1110 West Green Street, Urbana, IL 61801-3080, USA.
authors.forename: Kalin
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Vetsigian
authors.forename: Nigel
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Goldenfeld
mesh_terms: D001407:Bacillus / Q000235:genetics*; D003198:Computer Simulation; D019143:Evolution, Molecular; D022761:Gene Transfer, Horizontal / Q000235:genetics*; D014644:Genetic Variation; D016680:Genome, Bacterial; D008957:Models, Genetic; D017354:Point Mutation / Q000235:genetics*; D013045:Species Specificity