title: Strategies and approaches in plasmidome studies-uncovering plasmid diversity disregarding of linear elements?
abstract: The term plasmid was originally coined for circular, extrachromosomal genetic elements. Today, plasmids are widely recognized not only as important factors facilitating genome restructuring but also as vehicles for the dissemination of beneficial characters within bacterial communities. Plasmid diversity has been uncovered by means of culture-dependent or -independent approaches, such as endogenous or exogenous plasmid isolation as well as PCR-based detection or transposon-aided capture, respectively. High-throughput-sequencing made possible to cover total plasmid populations in a given environment, i.e., the plasmidome, and allowed to address the quality and significance of self-replicating genetic elements. Since such efforts were and still are rather restricted to circular molecules, here we put equal emphasis on the linear plasmids which-despite their frequent occurrence in a large number of bacteria-are largely neglected in prevalent plasmidome conceptions.
authors.affiliation: Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos-Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas , Tucumán, Argentina ; Institut für Molekulare Mikrobiologie und Biotechnologie, Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität Münster , Münster, Germany ; Instituto de Microbiología, Facultad de Bioquímica, Química y Farmacia, Universidad Nacional de Tucumán , Tucumán, Argentina.
authors.forename: Julián R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Dib
authors.affiliation: Institut für Molekulare Mikrobiologie und Biotechnologie, Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität Münster , Münster, Germany ; Institut für Biologie und Biotechnologie der Pflanzen, Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität Münster , Münster, Germany.
authors.forename: Martin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Wagenknecht
authors.affiliation: Planta Piloto de Procesos Industriales Microbiológicos-Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas , Tucumán, Argentina.
authors.forename: María E
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Farías
authors.affiliation: Institut für Molekulare Mikrobiologie und Biotechnologie, Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität Münster , Münster, Germany.
authors.forename: Friedhelm
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Meinhardt
keywords: circular plasmid; episome; extrachromosomal DNA; linear plasmid; metagenomics; plasmidome