Bacterial Genes

[qw098]

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Hi,

I was wondering it is possible for bacterial genes to be incorporated into a human's chromosome?

I know bacterial genes can be transferred to other bacteria via conjugation, transduction, and translation... but how about bacterial genes to humans?

Thanks!

 

[Raiden2012]

Interesting question you have there. i say it is possible through transfection.

Transduction might also be possible but the virus has to infect both bacteria and human.

Not my field. Just my 2 cents

 

[sciencebooks]

Hi,

I was wondering it is possible for bacterial genes to be incorporated into a human's chromosome?

I know bacterial genes can be transferred to other bacteria via conjugation, transduction, and translation... but how about bacterial genes to humans?

Thanks!

In transfection, you start with a eukaryote (human) and add "naked" DNA. I'm guessing it's possible that DNA could be from bacteria.

 

[sciencebooks]

Interesting question you have there. i say it is possible through transfection. But i think people usually use it for human to bacteria.

Transduction might also be possible but the virus has to infect both bacteria and human.

Not my field. Just my 2 cents

Lol, beat me to it at the same exact post time, 😛.

 

[Raiden2012]

Not sure what are the requirements are for transfection to work though. Heard the success rate of incorporating the foreign dna is really low.

 

[shaboobly]

if you think about it, all our cells have our dna locked away in the center of the nucleus.. bacteria do not have nuclei and so they are able to uptake and put foreign dna into their chromosome more readily, i would think, than eukaryotes.

 

[sciencebooks]

if you think about it, all our cells have our dna locked away in the center of the nucleus.. bacteria do not have nuclei and so they are able to uptake and put foreign dna into their chromosome more readily, i would think, than eukaryotes.

Yeah, I totally agree with this one.

 

[bored]

sure its possible to make a dna moleculae with a bacterial gene between human genes. bbut we wont be able to transcribe that material becuase the promoters are very different for us and for them.

if you actually add promotors and all the other necessary things for the gene, then yes you can do it with viruses

 

[Singhp03]

I'd say that its theoretically possible, I know they can tranfect bacteria genes in Eukaryote cells, in general, but the only case I've heard is bacteria to plant, not animal. I don;t think it would be too much harder to promote expression in an animal cell, if they can manage to do in a plant cell, since key factors in the central dogma are the same for eukaryotic cells

 

[mehc012]

You can transfect animal cells with whatever you want...however, it is typically not incorporated into the genome, and unless selection pressure is added, eventually the 'extra' DNA is lost. To prevent this, most transfections are done by creating plasmids with the desired gene, necessary promotors, and a resistance gene (for example strep resistance). The cell lines are then grown in media+strep, which kills any cells without the desired plasmid.