Frederic Bushman Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press (2002) 448 pages. ISBN 0-87969-621-4 $39 (paperback)
DNA is the molecular repository of the programme of life. However, the DNA composition of an organism can be quite flexible. It seems that, rather often,DNA is transferred from one organism to another and that sometimes DNA can be stably incorporated in the recipient and thereby permanently change its genetic composition. This process is called `lateral' or `horizontal' gene transfer. Horizontal gene transfer is therefore the opposite of vertical transfer: vertically transferred genes are inherited from one's parents.
Lateral DNA Transfer: Mechanisms and Consequences, by Frederic Bushman, describes the mechanisms and consequences of lateral gene transfer;it covers the basic machinery of lateral DNA transfer, the rather well known transfer of antibiotic resistance genes between bacteria and the exchange of DNA sequences among phages and moves on to discuss transfer of retroviral genes. It also covers...
