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. 1993 Oct;59(10):3430–3437. doi: 10.1128/aem.59.10.3430-3437.1993

The specific growth rate of Pseudomonas putida PAW1 influences the conjugal transfer rate of the TOL plasmid.

B F Smets 1, B E Rittmann 1, D A Stahl 1
PMCID: PMC182470  PMID: 8250565

Abstract

The kinetics of the conjugal transfer of a TOL plasmid were investigated by using Pseudomonas putida PAW1 as the donor strain and P. aeruginosa PAO 1162 as the recipient strain. Short-term batch mating experiments were performed in a nonselective medium, while the evolution of the different cell types was determined by selective plating techniques. The experimental data were analyzed by using a mass action model that describes plasmid transfer kinetics. This method allowed analysis of the mating experiments by a single intrinsic kinetic parameter for conjugal plasmid transfer. Further results indicated that the specific growth rate of the donor strain antecedent to the mating experiment had a strong impact on the measured intrinsic plasmid transfer rate coefficient, which ranged from 1 x 10(-14) to 5 x 10(-13) ml per cell per min. Preliminary analysis suggested that the transfer rates of the TOL plasmid are large enough to maintain the TOL plasmid in a dense microbial community without selective pressures.

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Selected References

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