Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have discovered a new secret that could lead to a better understanding of the genetic code. They discovered a new way in which the common oceanic microbes responsible for the production of oxygen share genetic information. Prochlorococcus, a type of bacteria, one of the smallest organisms found across the oceans, share genetic information with each other, even when they are separated from each other. all. These microorganisms are known to change and adapt to different environments. However, the mechanism behind this remains unclear.
In a study published in the journal Cell, researchers have described a new class of genes involved in vertical gene transfer, in which genetic information is transferred directly to ‘between living things, whether they are of the same species or different species. The researchers said that horizontal gene transfer accelerates microbial evolution and that there is a common mechanism for microbial diversity in large oligotrophic oceans.
This genetic transfer agent is named tycheposons, DNA sequences that can contain multiple genes and surrounding sequences and can separate themselves from the surrounding DNA. The team has studied hundreds of prochlorococcus genomes from different ecosystems around the world, as well as laboratory samples of different species.
The team began by studying 623 genomic sequences of different Prochlorococcus species from different regions, trying to understand how they could lose or gain different functions despite not having any known promoting/stimulating method. transmission of genes, such as plasmids or viruses known as prophages. They were born on a genetic island that appears to be a place of frequent genetic variation associated with prominent lifestyles.
These islands contain different genes in different species, but they are always found in the same part of the genome. The team now thinks that the gene transfer process could be used in more places than the visible ones and they have seen the process in other unrelated bacteria in water, but they haven’t tested the samples yet. these in detail. The team hopes to better understand the mechanism of gene transfer, which can be found in many bacteria and has broad implications for understanding evolution.
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