Status: Kick-off meeting
Bacteria use diverse strategies to defend themselves against bacteriophages, including DNA methylation-based systems that chemically mark and protect their own genome. Diversity-Generating Retroelements (DGRs) are bacterial genetic cassettes that can rapidly mutate specific target genes. We have identified a DGR system potentially associated with methylation-related genes, raising the possibility that DGR activity may influence bacterial DNA methylation. To test this, I have cloned the system into Escherichia coli and will use SMRT sequencing to compare its methylation profile to a control strain, identifying which DNA sites are methylated and how.
Submitted: 2026-04-24 09:32 · Last updated: 2026-04-24 09:32