Conjugative type IV, or sex pili, help to transfer genetic material between bacterial cells, promoting the initial joining of mating pairs. 25 Like other type IV pili, they are capable of rapid ...

In classical bacterial conjugation, one bacterium transfers genetic material to another through direct cell-to-cell contact.3 This can either be through a natural process or via artificial means.

Gut microbes can form appendages known as F-pili that link the cells to one another and move antibiotic resistance genes. It was once thought that the gastrointestinal tract was a harsh environment ...

This work is a continuation of previous research published in 2020, when Zeng's team found a phage that can similarly break off the pili of E. coli cells, preventing the bacteria from sharing ...

April 23, 2023 UK researchers have uncovered how F-pili, the appendages found on gut bacteria, exchange antimicrobial resistance genes Jonasz Patkowski/ Imperial College London View 1 Images ...

Gut bacteria form extracellular appendages called F-pili to connect to each other and transfer packets of DNA, called genes, that allow them to resist antibiotics.

In the process, the researchers concentrated on hair-like cell appendages, known as type IVa (T4A) pili, which are prevalent in bacteria and that they use to interact with their environment.

Depiction of bacteriophage PP7 (orange) at the cell surface of Pseudomonas aeruginosa detaching the bacterium’s pilus (blue). The researchers identified protein structures and interactions using ...