Molecular genetics of thermophilic lactic acid bacteria has advanced in several directions: exploitation of the milk proteins and sugars; primary and secondary metabolism; stress response; and molecular ecology of bacteria and their phages. These have singularly contributed to open new avenues of scientific interest in the field: comparative phage genomics; horizontal gene transfer events in bacterial or phage populations; and genetics of external polysaccharide production.
Delcour, J., Ferain, T., & Hols, P. (2000). Advances in the genetics of thermophilic lactic acid bacteria. Current Opinion in Biotechnology, 11(5), 497-504. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0958-1669(00)00134-8 (Original work published 2000)