Bacteria possess unique traits with great potential for benefiting society. However, current genetic engineering methods to harness these advantages are limited to a small fraction of bacterial ...

The process of bacterial transformation involves the introduction of foreign plasmid DNA into a bacterial cell. The transformation of DNA into bacteria cells, for example, Escherichia coli (E. coli), ...

Organisms must adapt to ever-changing environments, otherwise they risk being outcompeted or eliminated. To do this, they have evolved methods for importing DNA from elsewhere and utilizing it for ...

Two bacteria are sitting near free-floating DNA. Suddenly, one bacterium shoots out a long appendage, latches onto a DNA fragment and reels in its catch. It happens fast, but it’s clear: this organism ...

This is a preview. Log in through your library . Abstract Campylobacter jejuni, a leading cause of bacterial gastroenteritis, is naturally competent. Like many competent organisms, C. jejuni restricts ...

Colibactin is a powerful toxin produced by Escherichia coli and other bacteria living in the human gut. This highly unstable ...

Before we understood that DNA was the genetic code, scientists knew that bacteria transferred it between cells. In 1928, 25 years before the structure of DNA was solved, British bacteriologist ...

When DNA breaks, cells must repair it accurately to prevent harmful mutations. Researchers have discovered that during a key ...

A new paper shows that the cholera germ is an inveterate and rapacious gene stealer, robbing other competing bacteria of up to 150 genes (over 150,000 base pairs) in a single attack. To put this in ...

A closeup look at colibactin’s structure reveals chemical motifs that guide its mutation-wreaking “warheads” to specific stretches of DNA.