Conjugáció

Conjugáció is a term used in several disciplines to describe processes that connect units into different states. In linguistics, it denotes the inflection of verbs to express grammatical categories; in biology, it refers to a mechanism of gene transfer between organisms; in chemistry, it describes electron delocalization across adjacent atoms.

In linguistics, verb conjugation involves altering a verb to reflect features such as person, number, tense, mood, voice, and aspect. Different languages build conjugation paradigms differently; some are highly regular, others highly irregular.

In biology, bacterial conjugation is a means of horizontal gene transfer. It usually requires direct cell contact through a pilus and transfer of DNA from a donor cell carrying a conjugative plasmid to a recipient. This process can spread traits such as antibiotic resistance.

In chemistry, conjugation refers to the delocalization of pi electrons across adjacent p-orbitals in molecules with alternating single and multiple bonds. This delocalization stabilizes structures, affects reactivity, and influences color and UV absorption.