MICRO-C-OMICS #10: Lets Exchange Some Genes -Transformation
- G. Gulez
- Jan 20, 2019
- 1 min read
Microorganisms can exchange genetic information, a process commonly called Horizontal Gene Transfer (HGT). Microorganisms do it to adapt changing environments and to evolve so that they can survive. Yet, HGT can also affect our survival, both in a good and bad ways. While transfer of antibiotic resistance genes turns into s a major health crisis, transfer of pollutant degrading genes, for example, helps us to clean the environment. (And we can also make shiny bacteria in the lab to experiment with)
After introducing you conjugation and transformation in the previous posts, now it is time for the third HGT mechanism: Transformation. During transformation, bacteria incorporate DNA fragments that are present in the environment. These DNA fragments come from the dead cells or are secreted by the living cells.
