Bacterial genetics

By
Calvin Bisong Ebai
MLS/FHS/UBa
 Lecture objectives

• At the end of this lecture, learners are expected to:

1. Describe the genome composition of bacteria.

2. Explain the reasons for the genetic diversity of bacteria.

3. Describe the mechanisms of mutation and genetic recombination.

4. Understand the implications of bacterial genetic diversity.

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 Plan
• Introduction

• Plasmids

• Bacterial genetic diversity

Mutation

Genetic recombination

• Mechanisms of genetic recombination

Transformation

Transduction

Conjugation

• Transposons
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 Introduction

• Bacteria (Prokaryotes) nucleoid :

Not nuclear membrane,

Most: one circular chromosome consisting of double- stranded DNA,

Single origin of bidirectional replication, binary fission;

when straightened, length of DNA is 1000µm usually expressed as kb (1000 bp),

Bacterial DNA is 4000kb whereas human genome is 3 million kb long.

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 Plasmids
• Have extrachromosomal genetic material: plasmid,

• Plasmids: circular DNA molecules capable of autonomous replication,

• Important vectors for genetic engineering,

• Plasmid DNA may be integrated with chromosomal DNA.

• Such integrated forms are called Episomes,

• Carry genetic information for new bacterial properties e.g. virulence factors and
antibiotic resistance,

• May transfer from one cell to another (conjugative plasmids).

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 Plasmids

• May encode genetic information for properties like:

Resistance to Antibiotics,

Bacteriocines production,

Enterotoxin production,

Enhanced pathogenicity,

Reduced Sensitivity to mutagens,

Degrade complex organic molecules.

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 Classification of plasmids
• Plasmids are classified as

1. Transferrable:

Conjugative: the sexual transfer of plasmids to another bacterium through a pilus.

Non-conjugative plasmids: don’t initiate conjugation. They can only be transferred with the help
of conjugative plasmids.

2. Col plasmids: contain genes that code for bacteriocines, proteins that can kill other bacteria,

3. F-plasmids (Fertility plasmids) contain tra-genes and are capable of conjugation resulting in the
expression of sex pili,

4. Resistance plasmids: Contain gene(s) that can build resistance against one or several antibiotics
or poisons
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 Classification of plasmids

5. Degradative plasmids: able to digest unusual substances, e.g., toluene or salicylic acid

6. Virulence plasmids: turn a bacterium into a pathogen.

7. Addiction system: These plasmids produce both a long-lived poison and a short-lived
antidote. Daughter cells that retain a copy of the plasmid survive while a daughter cell
that fails to inherit the plasmid dies or suffers a reduced growth-rate because of the
lingering poison from the parent cell.

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 Bacterial genetic diversity

• Genetic variation can occur by:

Mutation or

Genetic Recombination (Gene transfer or Exchange)

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 1. Mutation
• Definition: a random, undirected, heritable variation caused by alteration in the nucleotide
sequence at some point of DNA which can occur due to addition, deletion or substitution of one
or more bases

• Types of mutation : single base change & frameshift mutation

• Mutation can be:

Spontaneous: occurs naturally, one in every million to one in every billion divisions. Probably due
to low level mutagens in the environment;

Induced: caused by mutagens with a much higher rate of mutation induced by chemicals or
radiations;

Other mutations are caused by transposable genetic element.

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 Mutation

• Mutation Rate: different types of mutations can occur at different

frequencies,

• For a typical bacterium, mutation rates of 10–7 to 10–11 per base pair are
generally seen,

• Although RNA and DNA polymerases make errors at about the same rate, RNA
genomes typically accumulate mutations at much higher frequencies than
DNA genomes.
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Mutation

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 Mutation cont’d

• Mutations can occur in any sequence, inevitable and useful for survival

• Multiple Mutations: causes extensive chromosomal rearrangement

• Missense mutation: triplet code is altered so as to specify an amino acid different

from that normally located at particular position in the protein.

• Nonsense mutation: deletion of nucleotide within a gene may cause premature

polypeptide chain termination by nonsense codon

• Transversion: substitution of purine for pyramidine or vice versa in the base pairing.
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 Types of mutations

• Frame shift mutation: deletion or addition of a nucleotide

• DNA nucleotides not divisible by three are added or deleted,

• This causes a shift in open reading frame and all of the codons and amino
acids. After that, mutations are usually wrong.

• Frequently one of the codons turns out to be a stop or nonsense codon

and the protein is terminated at that point

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 2. Genetic recombination

• Transfer of DNA from one organism to another,

• The donor’s DNA may then be integrated into the recipient’s DNA by
various mechanisms- homologous or heterologous.

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 Features of recombination

• Unidirectional: donor to recipient

• Merozygotes: donor does not give an entre chromosome

• Gene transfer can occur between same or different species

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 Genetic recombination cont’d

• Other mechanisms of genetic recombination:

Transformation

Transduction

Conjugation

NB: these are not methods of reproduction.

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Transformation

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Transformation

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 Transduction

• Gene transfer from a donor to a recipient bacteria via a bacteriophage

• Bacteriophage: virus that infects bacteria

• Types:

Generalized

Specialized

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 Types of bacteriophage

• Virulent phage: a phage that multiplies within the host cell, lyse the cell and
release progeny phage (e.g. T4 phage). This cycle is known as the lytic cycle.

• Temperate phage: a phage that can either multiply through a lytic cycle or go
into a quiescent integrated state in the bacteria cell-lysogenic cycle. Here, there is

Repression of most phage genes,

Prophage: integration of phage DNA in the host bacteria genome,

Lysogen: bacteria habouring the prophage.

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Generalized and specialized transduction

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 TRANSPOSONS
• Structurally:

Genetically: discrete sequence of DNA,

Move around in a cut and paste manner between chromosomal and extra chromosomal
DNA molecules within cells.

Transposons or Jumping genes

• Mode of gene transfer:

Transposition: a mechanism for amplifying genetic transfer in nature

Small Transposons 1 – 2 Kb

Not self replicating and depend on Plasmid or Chromosome for replication.

A chunk of DNA is added by Transposons.

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 Conclusion

1. Apart from bacterial chromosomal genome bacterial have extrachromosomal genetic

material that has important role in their genetics and survival,

2. Bacterial genetic diversity is as a result of two important processes: mutation and GR,

3. Mutation in bacteria can either be spontaneous or induced,

4. GR in bacteria occurs via 3 imp processes: transformation, transduction and conjugation,

5. These processes transfer important characteristics between bacteria with important clinical
consequences like resistance to antibiotics and other virulent factors.

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