Desiccation does not drastically increase the accessibility of exogenous DNA to nuclear genomes: Evidence from the frequency of endosymbiotic DNA transfer

Although horizontal gene transfer (HGT) is a widely accepted force in the evolution of prokaryotic genomes, its role in the evolution of eukaryotic genomes remains hotly debated. Some bdelloid rotifers that are resistant to extreme desiccation and radiation undergo a very high level of HGT, whereas in another desiccationresistant invertebrate, the tardigrade, the pattern does not exist.