Horizontal gene transfer among bacteria and its role in biological evolution

Abstract

This is a contribution to the history of scientific advance in the past 70 years concerning the identification of genetic information, its molecular structure, the identification of its functions and the molecular mechanisms of its evolution. Particular attention is thereby given to horizontal gene transfer among microorganisms, as well as to biosafety considerations with regard to beneficial applications of acquired scientific knowledge. © 2014 by the author; licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.