Horizontal Gene Transfer and Endophytes: An Implication for the Acquisition of Novel Traits

Horizontal gene transfer (HGT), an important evolutionary mechanism observed in prokaryotes, is the transmission of genetic material across phylogenetically distant species. In recent years, the availability of complete genomes has facilitated the comprehensive analysis of HGT and highlighted its em...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Plants (Basel) 2020-03, Vol.9 (3), p.305
Main Authors: Tiwari, Pragya, Bae, Hanhong
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adaptation
Bacteria
Biological evolution
Ecological adaptation
Economic importance
Endophytes
environmental adaptation
Eukaryotes
Evolution
Fungi
Gene amplification
Gene transfer
Genetic engineering
Genomes
horizontal gene transfer
Horizontal transfer
Host plants
Metabolites
Mutualism
Nematodes
novel traits
Organisms
Phylogenetics
Phylogeny
Prokaryotes
prokaryotic genomes
Review
Taxonomy
whole genome sequencing
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Horizontal gene transfer (HGT), an important evolutionary mechanism observed in prokaryotes, is the transmission of genetic material across phylogenetically distant species. In recent years, the availability of complete genomes has facilitated the comprehensive analysis of HGT and highlighted its emerging role in the adaptation and evolution of eukaryotes. Endophytes represent an ecologically favored association, which highlights its beneficial attributes to the environment, in agriculture and in healthcare. The HGT phenomenon in endophytes, which features an important biological mechanism for their evolutionary adaptation within the host plant and simultaneously confers "novel traits" to the associated microbes, is not yet completely understood. With a focus on the emerging implications of HGT events in the evolution of biological species, the present review discusses the occurrence of HGT in endophytes and its socio-economic importance in the current perspective. To our knowledge, this review is the first report that provides a comprehensive insight into the impact of HGT in the adaptation and evolution of endophytes.
ISSN:2223-7747
2223-7747
DOI:10.3390/plants9030305