Molecular Genetics, Microbiology, and Prehistory JuL I4 w

Since the literature of molecular genetics a radical advance provided by bacterial has been growing explosively, it is small genetics : while classical genetics could xonder that those who were not present only count the various phenotypes in a at the creation of the field may have a limited population of progeny, approcloudy picture of its origins: events of priate selective media for bacteria, or only five years ago are already ancient selective hosts for their viruses, could be history. But a recent reprinting of the used to isolate even very rare mutants autobiography of Emil Fischer has or recombinants from an enormous i brought to light an even earlier prepopulation. The resolving power of j history, in which a remarkable specugenetic mapping was thus suddenly lation anticipated the possibility of refined by many orders of magnitude: genetic engineering. To appreciate this mutations and recombinations, precontribution we must first consider the viously localized only in terms of genes, obstacles that so long delayed the union could now be localized in terms of ( of biochemistry and genetics. individual nucleotides.