title: The Significance of Mutualistic Phages for Bacterial Ecology and Evolution.
abstract: Bacteria and phages have traditionally been viewed as 'antagonists'. However, temperate phages can transfer genes, which can broaden their bacterial hosts' metabolic repertoire, confer or enhance virulence, or eliminate competing organisms, and so enhance bacterial fitness. Recent evidence shows that phages can also promote biofilm formation leading to population-level benefits for their bacterial hosts. Here, we provide a perspective on the ecological and evolutionary consequences for the bacteria interacting with phages, when phage and host interests are aligned. Furthermore, we examine the question whether bacterial hosts can lower immune barriers to phage infection, thereby facilitating infection by beneficial phages. Taking recent evidence together, we suggest that in many cases temperate phages are to be considered as being mutualistic as well as parasitic, at the same time.
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbial Ecology, Microbial Ecology - Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, University of Groningen, Nijenborgh 7, Groningen, AG 9747, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Nancy
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Obeng
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbial Ecology, Microbial Ecology - Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, University of Groningen, Nijenborgh 7, Groningen, AG 9747, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Akbar Adjie
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Pratama
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbial Ecology, Microbial Ecology - Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, University of Groningen, Nijenborgh 7, Groningen, AG 9747, The Netherlands. Electronic address: j.d.van.elsas@rug.nl.
authors.forename: Jan Dirk van
authors.initials: JDV
authors.lastname: Elsas
mesh_terms: D001419:Bacteria / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism / Q000821:virology*; D001435:Bacteriophages / Q000235:genetics / Q000472:pathogenicity / Q000502:physiology*; D018441:Biofilms / Q000254:growth & development; D000073930:Biological Coevolution; D064113:CRISPR-Cas Systems; D004463:Ecology; D019143:Evolution, Molecular; D016679:Genome, Viral; D054884:Host-Pathogen Interactions / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D010641:Phenotype; D013559:Symbiosis; D014774:Virulence
keywords: CRISPR-Cas; arms race; biofilm; co-evolution; mutualism; phage