Effective number of different populations: A new concept and how to use it.

Widely used methods to assess population genetic structure and differentiation rely on independence of marker loci. Following the assumption, the common metrics, for example , evaluate genetic structure by averaging across loci. Common metrics do not use information in the associations among loci at the individual level and are often criticized for failing to measure true differentiation even when loci segregate independently.

A refactored biosynthetic pathway for the production of glycosylated microbial sunscreens.

Mycosporine-like amino acids (MAAs) are a family of water-soluble and colorless secondary metabolites, with high extinction coefficients, that function as microbial sunscreens. MAAs share a cyclohexinimine chromophore that is diversified through amino acid substitutions and attachment of sugar moieties. The genetic and enzymatic bases for the chemical diversity of MAAs remain largely unexplored.

Population genetic structure in a self-compatible hermaphroditic snail is driven by drift independently of its contemporary mating system.

Genetic drift, gene flow, and natural selection commonly influence population genetic diversity. In populations of self-compatible hermaphrodites, the mating system (e.g.

Identification of a homoarginine biosynthetic gene from a microcystin biosynthetic pathway in Fischerella sp. PCC 9339.

Microcystins (MCs) are a family of chemically diverse toxins produced by numerous distantly related cyanobacteria. They are potent inhibitors of eukaryotic protein phosphatases 1 and 2A and are responsible for the toxicosis and death of wild and domestic animals around the world. Microcystins are synthesized on large enzyme complexes comprised of peptide synthetases, polyketide synthases, and additional modifying enzymes.