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Plasmid Replicons from Pseudomonas Are Natural Chimeras of Functional, Exchangeable Modules

Leire Bardaji1, Maite Añorga1, José A Ruiz-Masó2

  • 1Departamento de Producción Agraria, Escuela Técnica Superior de Ingenieros Agrónomos, Universidad Pública de Navarra Pamplona, Spain.

Frontiers in Microbiology
|March 1, 2017
PubMed

Insights

Plasmids evolve through modular replicons that facilitate gene exchange. These functional modules can be exchanged, driving bacterial evolution and enabling the creation of new plasmid specificities.

Area of Science:

  • * Molecular biology
  • * Bacterial genetics
  • * Evolutionary biology

Background:

  • * Plasmids are key drivers of bacterial evolution via horizontal gene transfer, spreading traits like antibiotic resistance and pathogenicity.
  • * Plasmid replication is governed by replicons, which dictate host range and compatibility with other plasmids.
  • * The virulence plasmid pPsv48C from *Pseudomonas syringae* harbors a unique replicon, appearing as a chimera of known elements.

Purpose of the Study:

  • * To characterize the second replicon of the virulence plasmid pPsv48C.
  • * To investigate the modular organization and evolutionary dynamics of bacterial plasmid replicons.
  • * To understand the mechanisms of replicon incompatibility and adaptation.

Main Methods:

  • * Sequence analysis of plasmid replicons from various *Pseudomonas* species.
  • * Functional characterization of replicon modules (REx-C and REx-R).
  • * Incompatibility assays and analysis of nucleotide changes affecting replicon function.

Main Results:

  • * Identified a novel chimeric replicon in pPsv48C, composed of a new replication protein gene and a PFP plasmid control region.
  • * Demonstrated that these replicons consist of two distinct, exchangeable modules: REx-C (control) and REx-R (replication).
  • * Showed that the REx-C module drives incompatibility, which can be overcome by specific mutations in an antisense RNA structure.
  • * Confirmed that REx-C modules can confer replication to non-replicative DNA, highlighting their functional autonomy.

Conclusions:

  • * Plasmid replicons are organized as independent, exchangeable modules, facilitating rapid evolution and diversification.
  • * This modularity allows for the dynamic exchange of genetic elements, promoting bacterial adaptation and survival.
  • * The findings suggest potential for engineering novel replicon specificities and understanding plasmid evolution in diverse bacterial populations.
Keywords:
Rep proteinschimeric repliconscontrol and replication modulesgene co-optionorigin of replicationplasmid incompatibilityswapping of functional modulesvirulence plasmids

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