Studying plasmid horizontal transfer in situ: a critical review

Sørensen, Søren J.; Bailey, Mark; Hansen, Lars; Kroer, Niels; Wuertz, Stefan

doi:10.1038/nrmicro1232

Cited by 630 publications

(479 citation statements)

References 89 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

450

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…Plasmid donor strains were all chromosomally tagged with a gene cassette encoding constitutive red fluorescence and constitutive lacI q production. As a result, there is no gfp expression in the donor strains, but upon plasmid transfer to a soil bacterium, gfp expression is possible, resulting in green fluorescent cells or microcolonies, which can be detected and sorted by fluorescence microscopy or fluorescent activated cell sorting (FACS), respectively (Figure 1) (Sørensen et al, 2005). Pseudomonas putida KT2440, Escherichia coli MG1655 and Kluyvera sp.…”

Section: Donor Strain Constructionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Broad host range plasmids can invade an unexpectedly diverse fraction of a soil bacterial community

et al. 2014

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Conjugal plasmids can provide microbes with full complements of new genes and constitute potent vehicles for horizontal gene transfer. Conjugal plasmid transfer is deemed responsible for the rapid spread of antibiotic resistance among microbes. While broad host range plasmids are known to transfer to diverse hosts in pure culture, the extent of their ability to transfer in the complex bacterial communities present in most habitats has not been comprehensively studied. Here, we isolated and characterized transconjugants with a degree of sensitivity not previously realized to investigate the transfer range of IncP-and IncPromA-type broad host range plasmids from three proteobacterial donors to a soil bacterial community. We identified transfer to many different recipients belonging to 11 different bacterial phyla. The prevalence of transconjugants belonging to diverse Gram-positive Firmicutes and Actinobacteria suggests that inter-Gram plasmid transfer of IncP-1 and IncPromAtype plasmids is a frequent phenomenon. While the plasmid receiving fractions of the community were both plasmid-and donor-dependent, we identified a core super-permissive fraction that could take up different plasmids from diverse donor strains. This fraction, comprising 80% of the identified transconjugants, thus has the potential to dominate IncP-and IncPromA-type plasmid transfer in soil. Our results demonstrate that these broad host range plasmids have a hitherto unrecognized potential to transfer readily to very diverse bacteria and can, therefore, directly connect large proportions of the soil bacterial gene pool. This finding reinforces the evolutionary and medical significances of these plasmids.

show abstract

Section: Donor Strain Constructionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Broad host range plasmids can invade an unexpectedly diverse fraction of a soil bacterial community

et al. 2014

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Ever since Joshua Lederberg's pioneering work, it has been known that bacteria can exchange genes horizontally (Lederberg and Tatum, 1946;Zinder and Lederberg, 1952). However, it is only recently that both the significance and the scale of HGT has become apparent (Ochman et al, 2000;Bushman, 2002;Kurland et al, 2003;Bordenstein and Reznikoff, 2005;Sorensen et al, 2005;Thomas and Nielsen, 2005) and has even been described by one party as 'biology's next revolution' (Goldenfeld and Woese, 2007).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

What traits are carried on mobile genetic elements, and why?

2010

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

“…Using both microcosm and in situ experiments, HGT between bacterial hosts has been shown to occur in soil and in the phytosphere (Lilley and Bailey, 1997;Mølbak et al, 2003;Normander et al, 1998;Pukall et al, 1996;Sengeløv et al, 2001). The use of marker genes in combination with microscopic tools or flow cytometry allowed monitoring of HGT processes by conjugation in situ at a single cell level (Sørensen et al, 2005).…”

Section: Factors Influencing Hgt In Soilmentioning

confidence: 99%

Horizontal gene transfer between bacteria

Heuer¹,

Smalla²

2007

Environ. Biosafety Res.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Horizontal gene transfer (HGT) refers to the acquisition of foreign genes by organisms. The occurrence of HGT among bacteria in the environment is assumed to have implications in the risk assessment of genetically modified bacteria which are released into the environment. First, introduced genetic sequences from a genetically modified bacterium could be transferred to indigenous micro-organisms and alter their genome and subsequently their ecological niche. Second, the genetically modified bacterium released into the environment might capture mobile genetic elements (MGE) from indigenous micro-organisms which could extend its ecological potential. Thus, for a risk assessment it is important to understand the extent of HGT and genome plasticity of bacteria in the environment. This review summarizes the present state of knowledge on HGT between bacteria as a crucial mechanism contributing to bacterial adaptability and diversity. In view of the use of GM crops and microbes in agricultural settings, in this mini-review we focus particularly on the presence and role of MGE in soil and plant-associated bacteria and the factors affecting gene transfer.

show abstract

Studying plasmid horizontal transfer in situ: a critical review

Cited by 630 publications

References 89 publications

Broad host range plasmids can invade an unexpectedly diverse fraction of a soil bacterial community

Broad host range plasmids can invade an unexpectedly diverse fraction of a soil bacterial community

What traits are carried on mobile genetic elements, and why?

Horizontal gene transfer between bacteria

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About