Horizontal gene transfer is generally considered as a wide-spread phenomenon and an important evolutionary factor in bacteria. In eukaryotes, the horizontal gene transfer is much less frequent. Several cases of horizontal gene transfer in eukaryotes were described as well, but they are not yet well understood (with the exception of the system plant - Agrobacterium). This project is devoted to the topic of the horizontal gene transfer between the Ralstonia solanacearum (bacterium) and plants. Initial point of this study is our discovery of the horizontally transferred sequence coming from this species in the genome of Silene latifolia. The methods of molecular phylogenetics and gene expression analysis will be applied in these studies. We will also test if some of the horizontally transferred sequences acquired a new function (e. g. its participation in plant defence against R. solanacearum infection). (en)
1. Získání lepších znalostí o způsobech horizontontálního genového přenosu (testování podobnosti s A. tumefaciens a výskytu v jiných druzích) 2. Zodpovězení otázky: jaký je další možný osud horizontálně přenesených genů? (Jaké evol. procesy zde probíhají? Mohou tyto geny získat novou funkci?)