Transduktionsereignisse

Transduktionsereignisse, in the context of molecular biology, refer to the process where genetic material is transferred from one bacterium to another by a bacteriophage, a type of virus that infects bacteria. This transfer is accidental and occurs during the phage replication cycle. When a bacteriophage infects a bacterium, it injects its own genetic material and hijacks the host cell's machinery to produce new phage particles. During the assembly of these new phages, fragments of the bacterial chromosome can sometimes be mistakenly packaged into the phage head instead of, or in addition to, the phage's own DNA.

When this newly formed phage, now carrying bacterial DNA, infects a new recipient bacterium, it injects the packaged bacterial genetic material. This transferred DNA can then be integrated into the recipient bacterium's genome, potentially conferring new traits or functions. There are two main types of transduction: generalized transduction, where any part of the bacterial chromosome can be transferred, and specialized transduction, where only specific bacterial genes located near the integration site of the prophage (the integrated phage DNA) are transferred. Transduction is a significant mechanism for horizontal gene transfer in bacteria, contributing to genetic diversity and the spread of traits like antibiotic resistance.