GO:0099018 / Biological Process

GO:0099018

symbiont-mediated evasion of host restriction-modification system

A process by which a symbiont evades the DNA restriction modification system of its host. This process occurs in phages to protein themselves from bacterial restriction enzyme systems. Some viruses encode their own methyltransferase in order to protect their genome from host restriction enzymes. Others directly inhibit restriction enzymes while some use unusual bases in their genome to avoid restriction.