Bacteriophages become de facto pollinators for immune bacteria (IMAGE)

Institute of Science and Technology Austria

Bacteriophages become de facto pollinators for immune bacteria

Caption

ISTA postdoctoral researcher Pavel Payne in the lab. New ISTA research by first author Payne and Professor Călin Guet shows that bacteriophages -- while they are deadly predators of susceptible cells -- become de facto pollinators for immune bacteria, carrying bacterial DNA between cells, much like insects carry pollen between flowers. 

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© ISTA

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