Hi all,

I have a question regarding coding regions in bacterial genomes: **can genes be encoded on both strands like this ?**

![enter image description here][1]


  [1]: /media/images/fceb469c-9a40-47f9-969b-fdce9ddb


**If so, which one is considered as the sense strand ?**

Thank you so much for your help!

Yes genes can be encoded on both strands, not only in bacteria but also in viruses and eukaryotes. 

The "sense" strand is relative to each gene. So it will be the top strand for the genes on the top strand (also called the Whatson or "+" strand) and vice-versa for the genes on the bottom strand (also called the Crick or "-" strand). 