Open AccessEmploying lytic phage-mediated horizontal gene transfer in Lactococcus lactis
Author(s) -
Barbara Marcelli,
Harma Karsens,
Mark Nijland,
Ruben Oudshoorn,
Oscar P. Kuipers,
Jan Kok
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
plos one
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.99
H-Index - 332
ISSN - 1932-6203
DOI - 10.1371/journal.pone.0238988
Subject(s) - lactococcus lactis , horizontal gene transfer , bacteriophage , starter , biology , lytic cycle , lactococcus , plasmid , fermentation starter , microbiology and biotechnology , bacteria , food science , gene , lactic acid , genetics , genome , virus , escherichia coli
Lactococcus lactis is a lactic acid bacterium widely used as a starter culture in the manufacture of dairy products, especially a wide variety of cheeses. Improved industrial strains would help to manufacture better food products that can meet the industry’s and consumer’s demands with respect to e.g. quality, taste, texture and shelf life. Bacteriophage infection of L . lactis starter cultures represents one of the main causes of fermentation failure and consequent economic losses for the dairy industry. In this study, however, we aim at employing bacteriophages for beneficial purposes. We developed an experimental setup to assess whether phage-mediated horizontal gene transfer could be used to enhance the genetic characteristics of L . lactis strains in accordance with the European law regarding the use of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) in the food industry. Although we could not show the transfer of chromosomal DNA we did successfully transduce two dissimilar plasmids from L . lactis strain MG1363 to one of its derivatives employing three different lactococcal bacteriophages.