Plasmid transduction and site-specific systems derived from lactic acid bacteria phages

OLAYA PASSARELL, M.J.; ARISTIMUÑO, C.; HEBERT, E. M.; RAYA, R.R.

Bacteriophages in Dairy Processing

Nova Publishers

Lugar: Hauppauge NY; Año: 2011; p. 253 - 268

Introduction Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) are a diverse and useful group of bacteria that have been used for centuries in the preservation and production of fermented foods of plant and animal origins. One of the most critical problems in these processes is the contamination of LAB starters by bacteriophages (phages) that cause bacterial lysis and significant economic losses. The isolation and deep characterization of many virulent and temperate LAB phages has not only brought information about the origin of lytic phages in the fermentation industry, but also contributed to the identification and characterization of multiple phage defense systems, particularly of the clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats (CRISPR) system, and significantly enriched comparative phage genome studies, phage taxonomy, and phage-bacteria evolution. Some LAB phage particles have been used as transducing vehicles in the development of gene transfer systems. Furthermore, phage genetic elements have been used in developing invaluable molecular tools (i.e., site-specific integration vectors) to deliver and stabilize genes in the LAB genome (Brøndsted & Hammer 2006; Brüssow 2006; Brüssow & Desiere 2006; Brüssow & Suárez 2006; Emond & Moineau 2007; Josephsen & Neve 2004). In this chapter, the transductive capacities of phages to mediate the transfer of either chromosomal or plasmid DNA among strains of lactic acid bacteria, as well as the development of special-purpose genetic tools (in particular site-specific integration systems) derived from temperate bacteriophages and their successful exploitation in strain improvement is presented.