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Related Experiment Video

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Daily Transfers, Archiving Populations, and Measuring Fitness in the Long-Term Evolution Experiment with Escherichia coli

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Published on: August 18, 2023

Evolution of Bacterial Gene Transfer Agents.

Rosemary J Redfield¹, Shannon M Soucy²

¹Department of Zoology, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada.

Frontiers in Microbiology

|November 10, 2018

Summary

Bacterial gene transfer agents (GTAs) package DNA but their genes are not maintained by direct transfer or chromosomal recombination. Alternative selective benefits must explain their long-term persistence.

Keywords:

bacteriophages evolution of sex lateral gene transfer phage recombination

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Molecular Evolution of the Tre Recombinase

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Published on: May 29, 2008

Area of Science:

Microbiology
Evolutionary Biology
Genetics

Background:

Bacterial gene transfer agents (GTAs) are virus-like particles delivering DNA fragments into cells.
GTA gene clusters, resembling defective prophages, are thought to be maintained by selection for GTA-mediated recombination.
Previous hypotheses lack rigorous testing regarding the selective advantages of GTAs.

Purpose of the Study:

To rigorously examine the potential benefits of GTA-mediated recombination for maintaining GTA gene clusters.
To differentiate between direct transmission of GTA genes and recombination of chromosomal genes.
To identify conditions under which GTA-producing populations exhibit higher fitness.

Main Methods:

Theoretical examination of direct GTA gene transmission versus chromosomal gene recombination.
Development of a simulation model to assess population fitness under various conditions.
Analysis of fitness benefits considering synergistic epistasis and regulatory modes.

Main Results:

Direct transmission of GTA genes cannot compensate for the cost of cell lysis and inefficient replication.
While recombination of chromosomal genes can provide fitness benefits, these are insufficient for GTA+ invasion or resistance.
Observed benefits rely on improbable assumptions regarding GTA production and recombination efficiencies.

Conclusions:

The long-term maintenance of GTA gene clusters is unlikely to be driven by direct gene transfer or chromosomal recombination.
Alternative, yet unidentified, selective benefits must account for the evolutionary persistence of bacterial GTAs.
This study challenges existing assumptions about the evolutionary drivers of GTA systems.