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04:04
Real-Time Quantification of the Effects of IS200/IS605 Family-Associated TnpB on Transposon Activity
Published on: January 20, 2023
Cooperation is fleeting in the world of transposable elements
1Department of Biochemistry, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland. aw@bioc.unizh.ch
Plos Computational Biology
|December 5, 2006
Summary
Cooperative transposition of bacterial insertion sequences (ISs) is not an evolutionarily stable strategy. Analysis of bacterial genomes shows that cooperation among mobile DNA is a temporary survival mechanism, not a long-term evolutionary outcome.
Area of Science:
- Evolutionary biology
- Genomics
- Molecular biology
Background:
- Composite transposons facilitate the spread of bacterial genes conferring resistance to toxic compounds.
- These transposons comprise two insertion sequences (ISs) flanking survival genes, with each IS capable of independent or cooperative transposition.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the evolutionary stability of cooperative transposition strategies in composite transposons using game theory.
- To test game-theoretical predictions by analyzing the genomic distribution of insertion sequences in bacteria.
Main Methods:
- Game theory modeling to assess the evolutionary stability of cooperative transposition.
- Bioinformatic analysis of insertion sequence distribution across over 200 bacterial genomes.
Main Results:
- Game theory suggests conditions for cooperative transposition as an evolutionarily stable strategy (ESS) are not biologically realistic.
- Genomic data analysis revealed that closely spaced ISs, characteristic of composite transposons, are not more abundant than expected by chance.
- Cooperative transposition is a transient state, observed during initial responses to selection pressures like antibiotic resistance.
Conclusions:
- Cooperative transposition is not a sustainable long-term strategy for mobile genetic elements.
- The observed cooperation in spreading antibiotic resistance genes represents a temporary evolutionary advantage.
- Game theory provides insights into the behavioral strategies of mobile DNA, including selfish genetic elements.
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