Using P1 Phage to Move Antibiotic Resistance in E. coli

Bacteriophage transduction moves DNA between bacteria by using a phage, or bacterial virus, as the carrier. In this process, a phage can deliver genetic material from one bacterium to another. The method is a form of horizontal gene transfer and is important in both bacterial evolution and laboratory genetics.

Bacteria can adapt quickly to a fast-changing environment by exchanging genetic material and one way they can do this is via transduction, the exchange of genetic material mediated by bacterial viruses. A bacteriophage, often abbreviated to phage, is a type of virus that infects bacteria by first attaching to the surface of the host and then inj...