Abstract
This chapter introduces the first major bacterial genetic transfer process to be discovered—genetic transformation. Initially, the mechanism appears to be improbable. Donor cells release large DNA fragments (as heavy as several million daltons), and the fragments diffuse through the culture medium to recipient cells. They are then transported across the cell wall and cell membrane into the cytoplasm where recombination occurs. The process is distinct from another biologic phenomenon also denoted transformation, the conversion of normal mammalian cells into tumor cells. To emphasize this difference, in this book the bacterial process is always described as genetic transformation.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
References
General
Dubnau, D. (1991). Genetic competence in Bacillus subtilis. Microbiological Reviews 55: 395–424. (Includes some information on other systems.)
McCarty, M. (1985). The Transforming Principle: Discovering That Genes Are Made of DNA. New York: Norton. (Scientific history written by one of the participants.)
Moszer, I. (1998). The complete genome of Bacillus subtilis: From sequence annotation to data management and analysis. FEBS Letters 430: 28–36.
Piggott, P.J., Hoch, J.A. (1985). Revised genetic linkage map of Bacillus subtilis. Microbiological Reviews 49: 158–179.
Stewart, G.J., Carlson, C.A. (1986). The biology of natural transformation. Annual Review of Microbiology 40: 211–235.
Specialized
Barouki, R., Smith, H.O. (1986). Initial steps in Haemophilus influenzae transformation: Donor DNA binding in the com1a mutant. Journal of Biological Chemistry 261: 8617–8623.
Campbell, E.A., Choi, S.Y., Masure, H.R. (1998). A competence regulon in Streptococcus pneumoniae revealed by genomic analysis. Molecular Microbiology 27: 929–939.
Chandler, M.S. (1992). The gene encoding cAMP receptor protein is required for competence development in Haemophilus influenzae. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the USA 89: 1626–1630.
Chung, Y.S., Dubnau, D. (1998). All seven comG open reading frames are required for DNA binding during transformation of competent Bacillus subtilis. Journal of Bacteriology180: 41–45.
Hanahan, D. (1983). Studies on transformation of Escherichia coli with plasmids. Journal of _Molecular Biology 166: 557–580.
Hui, F M., Morrison, D.A. (1991). Genetic transformation in Streptococcus pneumoniae: nucleotide sequence analysis shows comA, a gene required for competence induction, to be a member of the bacterial ATP-dependent transport protein family. Journal of Bacteriology173: 372–381.
Lefrancois, J., Samrakandi, M.M., Sicard, A.M. (1998). Electrotransformation and natural transformation of Streptococcus pneuroniae: Requirement of DNA processing for recombination. Microbiology 144: 3061–3068.
Lui, J., Zuber, P. (1998). A molecular switch controlling competence and motility: Competence regulatory factors comS, recA, and comK control Q°-dependent gene expression in Bacillus subtilis. Journal of Bacteriology 180: 4243–4251.
Masure, H.R., Pearce, B.J., Shio, H., Spellerberg, B. (1998). Membrane targeting of RecA during genetic transformation. Molecular Microbiology 27: 845–852.
Mongold, J.A. (1992). DNA repair and the evolution of transformation in Haemophilus influenzae. Genetics 132: 893–898. (Evidence that transforming DNA does not serve as a template for DNA repair.)
Redfield, R.J. (1993). Evolution of natural transformation: testing the DNA repair hypothesis in Bacillus subtilis and Haemophilus influenzae. Genetics 133: 755–762.
Reusch, R.N. (1992). Biological complexes of poly-β-hydroxybutyrate. FEMS Microbiology Reviews 103: 119–130. (A biophysical discussion of possible functions of poly—β-hydroxybutyric acid.)
Sikorski, J., Graupner, S., Lorenz, M.G., Wackernagel, W. (1998). Natural genetic transformation of Pseudomonas stutzeri in a nonsterile soil. Microbiology 144: 569–576.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2000 Springer Science+Business Media New York
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Birge, E.A. (2000). Genetic Transformation. In: Bacterial and Bacteriophage Genetics. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4757-3258-0_10
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4757-3258-0_10
Publisher Name: Springer, New York, NY
Print ISBN: 978-1-4757-3260-3
Online ISBN: 978-1-4757-3258-0
eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive