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Updated: Feb 2, 2026

Detection of Horizontal Gene Transfer Mediated by Natural Conjugative Plasmids in E. coli
Published on: March 24, 2023
Lateral gene transfer and the nature of bacterial innovation
H Ochman1, J G Lawrence, E A Groisman
1Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Arizona, Tucson 85721-0088, USA.
Abstract:
Unlike eukaryotes, which evolve principally through the modification of existing genetic information, bacteria have obtained a significant proportion of their genetic diversity through the acquisition of sequences from distantly related organisms. Horizontal gene transfer produces extremely dynamic genomes in which substantial amounts of DNA are introduced into and deleted from the chromosome. These lateral transfers have effectively changed the ecological and pathogenic character of bacterial species.
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