Cover photograph (Copyright © 2004, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.): Color-processed transmission electron micrograph of a cryofixed Deinococcus radiopugnans cell, depicting the toroid-like organization of its chromatin (blue). This organization is also detected in other radioresistant members of the family Deinococcaceae as well as in dormant and germinating spores. In conjunction with specific DNA repair enzymes, the toroidal DNA packaging is proposed to enable error-free repair of double-strand DNA breaks by nonhomologous end joining and RecA-independent annealing. (See related article on page 5973.)