Bacterial conjugation: everybody's doin' it

Abstract

Recent evidence suggests that bacterial conjugation is ubiquitous in the bacterial world and that DNA transfer between different genera–kingdoms is possible. It has also been demonstrated that many bacterial gene transfer systems resemble each other at the molecular level and that others are a blend of two or more of these systems. Thus, in the absence of a sexual cycle, bacterial conjugation, along with bacteriophages, transposons, and natural transformation systems, forms a potent force for gene dissemination and repair in the eubacteria and simple eukaryotes. Key words: conjugation, gene transfer, pili, relaxation complexes, plasmids.