Researchers at the Feinburg School of Medicine have discovered a piece of human DNA incorporated in the DNA of the human pathogen Neisseria Gonorrhoeae, the microbe responsible for the sexually transmitted infection known as Gonorrhea. When the DNA of multiple N. Gonorrhoeae was sequenced it was observed that around 11% of them contained a small fragment of human L1 DNA element. Then the researchers sequenced the DNA of very closely related Neisseria species and found no human fragments at all.
It is proposed that the fragment of human DNA was incorporated by a horizontal gene transfer. Which up until now were only thought to occur between like types of cells, prokaryotic or eukaryotic. Since N. Gonorrhoeae is known to reside both intracellular and extracellular it is thought by researchers that it would be able to make its way into a position in which a HGE could occur. Also, that since only 11% of the tested population showed the fragment it implies that this transfer event could have happened recently. This observation alone has many implications in evolution as well as disease and immunity research. This could be a possible mechanism in which pathogens are able to build immunities to their hosts.
I hope these discoveries bring about more research into Horizontal Gene Transfers between bacteria and mammals, not only for the implications into evolutionary mechanisms but also as a tool to better understand the pathogens around us.
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Hopefully, the STD gonorrhea will not evolve drug-resistance. While it is easily treated now, if left untreated, gonorrhea can have many devastating side effects.
ReplyDeleteThis is one of those important discoveries which reminds us that we don't know everything and things we do know could be wrong. It's shocking that the Gonorrhea bacteria can have a part of human DNA. While I don't really understand how all this works, it seems that this could be huge clue in evolution and it demonstrates that nothing has stopped evolving.
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