The genetics of bacteria and their viruses : studies in basic genetics and molecular biology / by William Hayes.

  • Hayes, William
Date:
1968
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Licence: Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)

Credit: The genetics of bacteria and their viruses : studies in basic genetics and molecular biology / by William Hayes. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    20/994 page XIV
    xiv PREFACE genetic systems which have been found in microorganisms, and espe¬ cially in bacteria and their viruses, against the background of more classical behaviour. However, the most exciting and revolutionary aspect of microbial genetics has come from the integration of genetic studies with biochemical and physical analyses of the synthesis, struc¬ ture and function of nucleic acids and proteins, which are the main macromolecular constituents of cells. This collaboration has produced an explosion of new knowledge about the fundamental nature of gene¬ tic and other vital phenomena, in terms of the structure and behaviour of molecules. The molecular basis of the genetic code, its alteration by mutation, and its transcription and translation into specific protein synthesis are now well understood, not only in principle but also in considerable detail. Only the mechanism of genetic recombination has so far eluded analysis. The book describes and discusses these ad¬ vances in molecular biology, although my limited knowledge and experience of the methods of chemistry and physics has necessarily imposed a presentation which may appear unsophisticated to the general reader and naïve (though not, I hope, misleading) to the expert. I trust that at least the fundamental concepts of molecular biology have been set forth in a clear and understandable way. This book should have been completed three years ago. In many ways the delay has been fortunate, for otherwise large and important sections of it would now be out of date while I, instead of enjoying my new-won freedom, might well be back in prison rewriting it. As it is, the last three years have witnessed so many fundamental advances that the outlines of a rather clear picture are now beginning to take shape, while the book has grown to three times the size originally projected for it. Although there are still many problems to be solved and many details to be filled in, and although many of our current ideas may have to be modified as exceptions are discovered to the rules we now envisage, it seems probable that most of our present concepts will remain fruitful for some time to come. Apart from the mystery of recombination, I would hazard a guess that the fundamental advances of the future will probably spring from the application of these exist¬ ing notions to the complex problems of the regulation and coordination of biochemical processes, of differentiation, and of development. To keep the book within reasonable bounds, a high degree of selec¬ tion has been necessary with respect to the experiments chosen to illus¬ trate the development of various principles, and this selection is, of course, reflected in the bibliography. I make no claim that my choices
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