| Comments |
P.3 right column 2nd paragraph: "A theoretical approach has been taken towards defining a minimal gene set [primary source]. This study derived a minimal genome by comparing what at the time were the only two fully sequenced microbial genomes (Haemophilus influenzae and M. genitalium). An all-against-all whole-genome comparison was performed in order to identify genes held in common by both organisms. The reasoning behind this comparison was simple but powerful and starts with a straightforward assumption: genes conserved across large phylogenetic distances are likely to be essential. Thus, if one compares two genomes that have diverged from a common ancestor a very long time ago (1,500 million years ago in this example), the genes in common will be highly enriched for those that carry out the most basic cellular functions common to all organisms." Primary source p.10268 right column 3rd paragraph: "M. genitalium and H. influenza belong to Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria, respectively (ref 5), and are likely to be separated from their last common ancestor by at least 1.5 billion years of evolution (ref 6)." |