title: Dividing oceans into pools: strategies for the global analysis of bacterial genes.
abstract: In bacterial pathogenesis, it is often easy to accept the results of large-scale screens without independent verification of the results. How can one critically read this literature? Here we review issues inherent in genome-wide screens in bacteria, focusing on experiments that attempt to comprehensively identify genes required for bacterial growth under specific conditions. Our analysis suggests that the methodologies employed undoubtedly shape the results. It is clear, however, that the question is not which method is better but which provides the data most suited to a given question.
authors.affiliation: Division of Immunology and Infectious Diseases, Harvard School of Public Health, 665 Longwood Avenue, Boston, MA 02115, USA. sfortune@hsph.harvard.edu
authors.forename: Sarah M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Fortune
authors.forename: Michael R
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Chase
authors.forename: Eric J
authors.initials: EJ
authors.lastname: Rubin
mesh_terms: D001419:Bacteria / Q000235:genetics*; D002874:Chromosome Mapping / Q000379:methods*; D004251:DNA Transposable Elements; D015723:Gene Library; D020043:Genes, Essential; D016680:Genome, Bacterial; D016254:Mutagenesis, Insertional / Q000379:methods
chemical_list: D004251:DNA Transposable Elements