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Cover Horizontal gene transfer is one of the major evolutionary processes in phagebacteria systems, but its occurrence in eukaryotes has been less documented. In this issue, a clear case of gene transfer was identified between the cosmopolitan marine eukaryote Emiliania huxleyi, known for its beautiful exoskeletons made of calcium carbonate scales (“coccoliths”), and an icosahedral giant virus that lytically kills this microalga. The gene transfer involved not only one gene, but a series of genes coding for key enzymes of almost the entire sphingolipid/ceramide biosynthesis pathway. (Cover illustration by Miguel Frada and Glynn Gorick. [For details, see Monier et al., pp. 1441–1449.])