Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Experiment Videos

Plasmid transfer for enhancing degradation capabilities

B E Rittmann1, B F Smets, J A MacDonald

  • 1Environmental Engineering Program, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois 60208, USA.

Environmental Health Perspectives
|June 1, 1995
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Related Concept Videos

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Illicit Substance Use and Harm in Young Adulthood: the Role of Substance Use in Close Relationships and Individual Social Skills.

International journal of mental health and addiction·2025
Same author

Alcohol use among Australian parents during the COVID-19 pandemic - April-2020 to May 2021.

Addictive behaviors·2022
Same author

Child, parent, and family mental health and functioning in Australia during COVID-19: comparison to pre-pandemic data.

European child & adolescent psychiatry·2021
Same author

Psychosocial predictors of binge-drinking residual harm in adolescence and young adulthood: Findings from the Australian Temperament Project.

Drug and alcohol dependence·2021
Same author

Childhood disadvantage and adolescent socioemotional wellbeing as predictors of future parenting behaviour.

Journal of adolescence·2020
Same author

From adolescence to parenthood: a multi-decade study of preconception mental health problems and postpartum parent-infant bonds.

Social psychiatry and psychiatric epidemiology·2020
Same journal

A New Start.

Environmental health perspectives·2026
Same journal

Time-Varying Exposure to Element Mixtures and Children's Cognition at 5 Years of Age: Findings from the New Hampshire Birth Cohort Study.

Environmental health perspectives·2026
Same journal

Effect of Household Air Pollution on the Gut Microbiome and Virome of Adult Women Living in Uganda.

Environmental health perspectives·2026
Same journal

Comparison of Temperature-Mortality Associations across the Middle East Using Different Exposure Estimation Approaches.

Environmental health perspectives·2026
Same journal

Workflow for Statistical Analysis of Environmental Mixtures.

Environmental health perspectives·2026
Same journal

Effects of Extreme Heat Exposure on Heatstroke and Liver Injury in Mice: The Role of PPARα.

Environmental health perspectives·2026
See all related articles

Plasmid conjugation rates for TOL and RP4 plasmids are linked to donor cell energy. A novel method is proposed to boost energy availability, potentially increasing transfer efficiency in biological systems.

Area of Science:

  • Microbiology
  • Molecular Biology
  • Biotechnology

Background:

  • Plasmid conjugation is a key mechanism for horizontal gene transfer in bacteria.
  • The efficiency of plasmid transfer, particularly for TOL and RP4 plasmids, is influenced by environmental and cellular factors.
  • Donor cell growth rate and substrate availability significantly impact cellular energy levels, affecting conjugation kinetics.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the relationship between donor cell energy availability and plasmid conjugation kinetics for TOL and RP4 plasmids.
  • To explore the potential of creating localized zones of high energy availability to enhance plasmid transfer rates.
  • To preliminarily evaluate a proposed scheme for increasing energy availability in a localized cellular environment.

Main Methods:

Related Experiment Videos

  • Kinetics studies of plasmid conjugation under varying donor cell growth rates and substrate concentrations.
  • Measurement of cellular energy availability indicators in donor populations.
  • Development and preliminary testing of a method to create localized high-energy zones.

Main Results:

  • Plasmid conjugation kinetics for TOL and RP4 plasmids were found to be highly dependent on donor cell specific growth rate and substrate concentration.
  • High energy availability correlated with significantly increased plasmid transfer rates.
  • Normal biological conditions typically exhibit low energy availability, limiting conjugation efficiency.

Conclusions:

  • Cellular energy availability is a critical determinant of plasmid conjugation efficiency for TOL and RP4 plasmids.
  • The proposed scheme for creating localized high-energy zones shows preliminary promise for enhancing plasmid transfer.
  • Further research is warranted to optimize and validate the proposed energy enhancement strategy for biotechnological applications.