Serological typing of the streptococcal M protein has recently been challenged by a number of unique molecular methodologies based on oligonucleotide recognition of allelic variations within the M protein (emm) gene. In these methods, stringent hybridization of an oligonucleotide probe to a polymerase chain reaction amplified emm gene is used as confirmation of specific M type identity. A sample of 17 isolates from 7 previously defined distinct genotypes were tested using a single M1 oligonucleotide probe. Isolates from only three of the genotypes hybridized with the probe. The results demonstrate that a single emm-specific oligonucleotide probe can not identify all members of M type 1, as defined by conventional serotyping using polyclonal antisera.

Cladograms for the same group of taxa derived using different datasets often agree extensively but are seldom identical. This disagreement may be due to the fact that cladograms are sampling estimates of the true phylogeny and as a result may differ only because of sampling error. A protocol is proposed to test the null hypothesis that two trees estimate the true or parametric phylogeny and are no more different than would be expected due to sampling error. In the event that the null hypothesis is rejected, the datasets are pruned to remove potentially confounding information, and the test of the null hypothesis is repeated. If the null hypothesis cannot be rejected, a method for combining the cladistic information from both datasets is proposed that takes account of the variability of the cladistic structure. The procedure is illustrated using morphological and molecular data from genera of the sponge Order Hadromerida (Porifera: Demospongiae).

IncH1 plasmids and the F plasmid of Escherichia coli display one-way compatibility. An entering IncH1 plasmid is incompatible with a resident F plasmid, but is compatible when it is the resident plasmid. There is little molecular homology between IncH1 plasmids and the F plasmid. A single 5 MDal EcoRI restriction enzyme fragment from digests of several IncH1 plasmids hybridizes with probes constructed from the primary replication region of F. Homology can be demonstrated only with the gene for the essential replication protein of F (gene E), but the expression of incompatibility behaviour appears to be associated with the presence of the secondary replicon of the F plasmid. Thus R27 and F are compatible under growth conditions allowing replication and maintenance of F by the secondary replicon. However, a mutant F plasmid which lacks the secondary replicon of F is incompatible with R27 in both directions, irrespective of the growth conditions used.