NLM DIR Seminar Schedule

Abstract:

Transposons are a class of mobile genetic elements that are capable of horizontal transfer between cells. Some transposons carry extra "cargo" genes that are transferred along with the element, but the diversity of cargo genes mobilized via transposition has not been comprehensively assessed. In this seminar, I will present a computational approach designed to identify transposons integrated in bacterial genomes, focusing on the model transposon Tn7. By identifying and delineating Tn7-like transposons integrated in bacterial genomes, the full diversity of cargo genes carried by these elements could be assessed, which included defense systems, antibiotic resistance genes and even other mobile genetic elements. Dissection of transposon cargo provides insight into prokaryotic horizontal gene transfer by expanding the known phyletic range of Tn7-like transposons, assessing the preferred routes and phylogenetic barriers to transposition, and characterizing the diversity of the mobilized genes.