BookTomás G. Villa, Miguel Viñas, editors.
Summary: The book focuses on the evolutionary impact of horizontal gene transfer processes on pathogenicity, environmental adaptation and biological speciation. Newly acquired genetic material has been considered as a driving force in evolution for prokaryotic genomes for many years, with recent technical developments advancing this field further. However, the extent and implications of gene transfer between prokaryotes and eukaryotes still raise controversies. This multi-authored volume introduces various means by which DNA can be exchanged, covers gene transfer between prokaryotes and their viruses as well as between bacteria and eukaryotes, such as fungi, plants and animals, and addresses the role of horizontal gene transfer in human diseases. Aspects discussed also include the relevance for virulence and drug resistance development on one hand, and for the occurrence of naturally derived antibiotics and other secondary metabolites on the other hand. This book offers new insights to anyone interested in genome evolution and the exchange of DNA between the different domains of life, the genetic toolkit for adaptation and the emergence of multidrug resistant bacteria.
Contents:
Intro; Contents; Part I: Horizontal Gene Transfer Among Bacteria and Bacteriophages; Horizontal Gene Transfer in Bacteria, an Overview of the Mechanisms Involved; 1 Introduction; 2 Transformation; 2.1 Transformation in Gram-Positive Bacteria; 2.1.1 Development of Competence; 2.1.2 DNA Fixation to the Recipient Cell Surface and DNA Uptake; 2.1.3 Eclipse; 2.1.4 ssDNA Integration into the Recipient dsDNA; 2.2 Transformation in Gram-Negative Bacteria; 2.2.1 Development of Competence; 2.2.2 DNA Fixation to the Recipient Cell Surface and DNA Uptake; 2.2.3 Eclipse 2 HGT in Free-Living, Antibiotic-Producing Streptomyces and Salinispora3 HGT in the Pathogens Mycobacterium, Rhodococcus, and Corynebacterium; 4 Actinobacteria as HGT Donors in Microbial Communities; 5 HGT and Genomic Heterogeneity Within Species; 6 Conclusions and Future Outlook; References; Photobacterium damselae: How Horizontal Gene Transfer Shaped Two Different Pathogenic Lifestyles in a Marine Bacterium; 1 Introduction; 2 P. damselae subsp. damselae: A Generalist Pathogen with High Genetic Diversity 2.2.4 ssDNA Integration into the Recipient dsDNA3 Transduction; 3.1 Specialized Transduction; 3.2 Generalized Transduction; 4 Conjugation; 4.1 F+ x F- Crosses in E. coli; 4.2 Genesis of Hfr Strains and Hfr (F+) x F- Crosses in E. coli; 5 Bacterial Vesicles as Possible Source of HGT; References; Alternative Ways to Exchange DNA: Unconventional Conjugation Among Bacteria; 1 Introduction; 2 Conjugation in Mycobacterium; 3 Conjugation in Streptomyces; 4 Conjugation in Mollicutes; 5 Conjugation in Thermus spp.; 6 Concluding Remarks; References 3.10 Listeria monocytogenes Toxins3.11 Helicobacter pylori Toxins; References; Genomic Islands and the Evolution of Multidrug-Resistant Bacteria; 1 Horizontal Gene Transfer of Resistance Genomic Islands; 2 GI3 in MDR Escherichia coli O104:H4; 3 SGI/PGI/AGI-Like GIs in MDR Salmonella enterica, Proteus mirabilis and Acinetobacter baumannii; 4 SCCmec in MDR Staphylococcus aureus; 5 GIs in MDR Pseudomonas aeruginosa; 6 Conclusions; References; Horizontal Gene Transfer and Genome Evolution in the Phylum Actinobacteria; 1 Introduction