In two isolates (one is resistant to ampicillin and theother is sensitive to ampicillin) of a new bacterium,you found that genes encoding ampicillin resistanceare being transferred into the sensitive strain. . To determine if the gene transfer involves transformation, conjugation, or transduction, you separatethe ampicillin-resistant and ampicillin-sensitivestrains by a membrane with pores that are smallerthan the size of a bacterium, but larger than thesizes of bacteriophage or DNA fragments. If genetransfer is still observed, what mechanisms arepossibly involved and which are excluded?
Genetic Recombination
Recombination is crucial to this process because it allows genes to be reassorted into diverse combinations. Genetic recombination is the process of combining genetic components from two different origins into a single unit. In prokaryotes, genetic recombination takes place by the unilateral transfer of deoxyribonucleic acid. It includes transduction, transformation, and conjugation. The genetic exchange occurring between homologous deoxyribonucleic acid sequences (DNA) from two different sources is termed general recombination. For this to happen, an identical sequence of the two recombining molecules is required. The process of genetic exchange which occurs in eukaryotes during sexual reproduction such as meiosis is an example of this type of genetic recombination.
Microbial Genetics
Genes are the functional units of heredity. They transfer characteristic information from parents to the offspring.
In two isolates (one is resistant to ampicillin and the
other is sensitive to ampicillin) of a new bacterium,
you found that genes encoding ampicillin resistance
are being transferred into the sensitive strain.
. To determine if the gene transfer involves transformation, conjugation, or transduction, you separate
the ampicillin-resistant and ampicillin-sensitive
strains by a membrane with pores that are smaller
than the size of a bacterium, but larger than the
sizes of bacteriophage or DNA fragments. If gene
transfer is still observed, what mechanisms are
possibly involved and which are excluded?
Step by step
Solved in 3 steps
