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Evolution writ small: Study measures physical effects of evolution at molecular scale

Rice study measures physical effects of evolution at molecular scaleA unique experiment at Rice University that forces bacteria into a head-to-head competition for evolutionary dominance has yielded new insights about the way Darwinian selection plays out at the molecular level. An exacting new analysis of the experiment has revealed precisely how specific genetic mutations impart a physical edge in the competition for survival.The new research, which could lead to more effective strategies to combat antibiotic drug resistance, was the most downloaded article this month in the journal Molecular Systems Biology.The research builds upon an ingenious 2005 study involving bacteria called "thermophiles," which thrive at high temperatures. Researchers in the laboratory of Rice biochemist Yousif Shamoo "knocked out" a key gene that allowed the thermophiles to make energy at high temperatures. These crippled versions of the bacteria were then grown inside fermentors for several weeks. Each day, th

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