The development of virulent, toxin-producing bacterial strains due to the presence of a temperate phage can occur in
A)Bacterial conjugation
B)Transformation
C)Generalized transduction
D)Specialized transduction
E)All of the choices are correct

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Specialized transduction is a mechanism by which a temperate phage can integrate its DNA specifically into certain regions of the bacterial chromosome. If the phage mistakenly excises a neighboring region of bacterial DNA during the lytic phase, it can incorporate these genes into its own genome and transfer them to another bacterial host during subsequent lytic cycles. If this region contains genes encoding virulence factors or toxins, the phage can promote the evolution of virulent strains among the bacterial population. Bacterial conjugation involves the transfer of plasmids between bacterial cells, and transformation and generalized transduction involve the uptake of random DNA from the environment or from other bacterial cells, respectively. While conjugation and transformation can contribute to the spread of virulence genes, they do not specifically rely on the activity of a temperate phage. Therefore, the correct answer is D.

The Development of Virulent, Toxin-Producing Bacterial Strains Due to the Presence