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Related Concept Videos

Mechanism of Conjugation01:19

Mechanism of Conjugation

Bacterial conjugation is a mechanism of horizontal gene transfer that enables the exchange of genetic material between bacterial cells through direct contact. This process is facilitated by a donor cell carrying a conjugative plasmid, which encodes genes necessary for pilus formation, DNA replication, and transfer. The conjugative plasmid plays a central role in initiating and executing the transfer of genetic material.The tra region of the conjugative plasmid encodes proteins responsible for...
Conjugation01:19

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Conjugation is a form of horizontal gene transfer that primarily occurs in bacteria and some archaea, promoting genetic diversity and adaptation. Bacteria can acquire resistance genes through conjugative plasmids, allowing them to survive antibiotic treatments that would otherwise be lethal. This process involves direct contact between cells through specialized structures such as the sex pilus and is mediated by conjugative plasmids, including the F (fertility) factor.Conjugation requires...
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Transduction

Among the three main modes of HGT—transformation, conjugation, and transduction—transduction is unique in that it is mediated by bacteriophages, or bacterial viruses.Transduction occurs in two ways. Generalized transduction occurs during the lytic cycle of a bacteriophage infection. In this process, bacteriophages infect bacterial cells, replicate within them, and ultimately cause cell lysis, releasing newly assembled virions. Occasionally, random fragments of the bacterial genome are...
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Types of Genetic Transfer Between Organisms

Genetic transfer occurs when genetic information is passed from one organism to another. It occurs via two mechanisms: vertical gene transfer and horizontal gene transfer. Vertical gene transfer occurs when genetic information is transferred from one generation to the next, which happens much more frequently than horizontal gene transfer. Both sexual and asexual reproduction are forms of vertical gene transfer, where one or more organisms pass some or all of their genome onto their progeny.
Chemotaxis in E. coli01:27

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Detection of Horizontal Gene Transfer Mediated by Natural Conjugative Plasmids in E. coli
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Catecholamines increase conjugative gene transfer between enteric bacteria.

Greg Peterson1, Amit Kumar, Elena Gart

  • 1Department of Diagnostic Medicine and Pathobiology, College of Veterinary Medicine, Kansas State University, K-246 Mosier Hall, 1800 Denison Avenue, Manhattan, KS 66506, USA.

Microbial Pathogenesis
|March 23, 2011
PubMed
Summary

Host stress hormones like norepinephrine enhance bacterial gene transfer, accelerating the evolution of multidrug-resistant pathogens. This finding reveals how host signals influence bacterial adaptation and virulence.

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Area of Science:

  • Microbiology
  • Bacterial Pathogenesis
  • Evolutionary Biology

Background:

  • Pathogenic bacteria adapt to host stress using environmental cues.
  • Catecholamines, such as norepinephrine, are key mediators of host stress.
  • Multidrug resistance and virulence genes are often on transferable genetic elements, driving bacterial evolution.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the effect of norepinephrine on horizontal gene transfer (HGT) in bacterial pathogens.
  • To determine if norepinephrine influences the expression of genes involved in bacterial conjugation.
  • To elucidate the role of adrenergic receptors in mediating these effects.

Main Methods:

  • In vitro conjugation experiments using Salmonella Typhimurium and Escherichia coli.
  • Quantification of plasmid transfer efficiency under varying norepinephrine concentrations.
  • Analysis of plasmid-encoded transfer (tra) gene expression.
  • Use of adrenergic receptor antagonists (phentolamine and propranolol) to block norepinephrine's effects.

Main Results:

  • Norepinephrine significantly enhanced the HGT efficiency of a conjugative plasmid.
  • Norepinephrine upregulated the expression of plasmid-encoded transfer genes.
  • An alpha-adrenergic antagonist (phentolamine) was more effective than a beta-adrenergic antagonist (propranolol) in blocking norepinephrine's effect.

Conclusions:

  • Host stress mediators like norepinephrine can directly influence bacterial HGT and adaptation.
  • Norepinephrine promotes bacterial evolution by enhancing the spread of antimicrobial resistance and virulence genes.
  • Targeting host-stress-mediated bacterial mechanisms could offer new therapeutic strategies.