CRISPR evolution and bacteriophage persistence in the context of population bottlenecks

Population bottlenecks often cause strong reductions in genetic diversity and alter population structure. In the context of host-parasite interactions, bottlenecks could in theory benefit either the host or the pathogen. We predicted that bottlenecking of bacterial populations that evolve CRISPR immunity against bacteriophages (phage) would benefit the pathogen, because CRISPR spacer diversity can rapidly drive phages extinct. To test this, we...