Data from: Distinguishing causes of virulence evolution: reply to Alizon & Michalakis

In a recent study of the symbiosis between bacteria and plasmids, the available evidence suggests that experimental evolution of plasmid virulence was primarily driven by within-host competition caused by superinfection. The data do not exclude the possibility, however, that a trade-off between virulence and infectious transmission to uninfected bacteria also played a minor role.

在一项针对细菌与质粒（plasmid）共生关系的最新研究中，现有证据表明，质粒毒力的实验演化主要由超感染（superinfection）引发的宿主内竞争所驱动。不过，该研究数据并未排除另一种可能性：即毒力与向未感染细菌进行感染性传播之间的演化权衡，同样发挥了次要作用。