Neutral mutations and neutral substitutions in bacterial genomes.

Molecular evolutionary biologists usually assess the underlying spectrum of mutations within a bacterial genome by examining substitutions that occur at sites believed to be under no selective constraints. Alternatively, bacterial mutation rates can also be estimated in a variety of experimental systems. The two classes of changes occurring in DNA sequences-i.e., mutations and neutral substitutions-are, in theory, identical; however, the rates and patterns of mutations in bacteria, as inferred from sequence comparisons, often differ significantly from those derived experimentally. These differences have resulted in conflicting interpretations of the nonselective forces that affect mutation rates.