Current Opinion in Structural Biology 2005, 15:248–253
Evolutionary aspects of whole-genome biology
Russell F Doolittle
A decade of access to whole-genome sequences has been increasingly revealing about the informational network relating all living organisms. Although at one point there was concern that extensive horizontal gene transfer might hopelessly muddle phylogenies, it has not proved a severe hindrance. The melding of sequence and structural information is being used to great advantage, and the prospect exists that some of the earliest aspects of life on Earth can be reconstructed, including he invention of biosynthetic and metabolic pathways. Still, some fundamental phylogenetic problems remain, including determining the root — if there is one — of the historical relationship between Archaea, Bacteria and Eukarya.
Addresses
Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093-0314, USA
Corresponding author: Doolittle, Russell F (rdoolittle@ucsd.edu)
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