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Many named species in bacterial taxonomy correspond to species complexes, in which the species boundaries and inter-species relationships are uncertain. Such uncertainties hamper research, as well as impact pathogen identification and policy-making for quarantine regulations. To solve this challenge, a team led by Dr.Chih-Horng Kuo at Institute of Plant and Microbial Biology, Academia Sinica, utilized the Agrobacterium tumefaciens species complex as the study system, devised strategies for genomic analysis, and investigated the evolution of secretion systems and virulence plasmids. The findings reveal a complex history of evolution processes shaping the diversity of effectors and provide explanation on the differences in virulence against various plant hosts among these strains. The results were published in BMC Biology.