Function of plasmid in bacteria: Detailed Facts

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Plasmids are the tiny molecule inside the cell which is also an extrachoromosomal DNA and can be separated.

The Function of plasmid in bacteria can differ and serves quite a bit of usage. They help in gene carrying that helps in organism to survive, some are sensory organelle, some help replication.

The genes that they have are for having the organism to survive wither by getting to kill the rest of microbes or also can be by getting to defeat the host cell that is done by generating of toxins.

Some of the bacteria get to work via this process by helping the bacteria in replication of its DNA. As the plasmids are nothing they actually tend to have less genes with some functions. There are provisions for multiple plasmids to exist in the same cell with having different functions.

The plasmid can be made to part ways from the chromosomal DNA and can replicate on its own. They are mostly found in as small, being double stranded and in circular shape inside the bacteria with sometimes even showing its presence to archaea and eukaryotes.

The main function of the plasmid in bacteria are-

  • They carry in genes that are antibiotic resistant and then spread them in entire human or the body of animal. This helps the eukaryotes get them treated.  
  • The plasmids on the DNA are also able to produce proteins that are antibacterial.
  • They also are capable of carrying out those genes that are involves in all the metabolic process and let themselves be used u for having the pollutants digest from the outer space.
  • They are also able to let carry genes that are connected with getting the pathogenicity of the bacteria increased that can help cause the diseases like that of tetanus and anthrax.

Function of plasmid in bacteria as Gene therapy

Plasmids play a good role in gene therapy. They are most in common to be used for getting the therapeutic genes inserted.

They are also easy to be manipulated and also are easy for the replication in the cells of the bacteria. They have the ability to be efficient to target the cells that shall be defeating and triggering the genes inside them.

They are also no plasmids that are harmful or have any bad effect like that of viral spreaders. The genes is inside the human system for getting them fights against the disease. Gene therapy is the introduction of genes into existing cells to prevent or cure a wide range of diseases.

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Image credit- Gene therapy–Wikipedia

Function of plasmid in bacteria as Recombinant DNA technology

The recombinant DNA technology makes a good use of the plasmids for a lot of purpose.

For the part of the drug delivery, the technology makes a good use of the plasmids to have the likely drugged get inserted in the body. The function of plasmid in Bacteria is much likely and targeted here.

The DNA technology being recombinant which is applied in plasmids for being resistance and can be used up to get the bacteria killed for being harmful to the human cells.

The very first rime when the plasmid was applied inside the human was while insulin was getting inserted inside the human cells. It did give good result and the other application for it was inserting it in the hormone for human growth in the animal’s mammalian cells.

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Image credit- Recombinant DNA technology–Wikipedia

Application of plasmid in bacteria

The humans have been able to develop a lot of uses that can be obtained from plasmid and thus have created software.

The Function of plasmid in bacteria is so diverse that a software has been made that shall be able to record the sequence of DNA of the plasmids for getting it used in many techniques.

The plasmids are sued up in genetic engineering for amplifying or making of many copies of specific genes. In the molecular cloning, a plasmid is considered to be a variable. It is a sequence in DNA that shall help in transferring any foreign genetic particle form one cell to other.

This is done so that the genes can be made to express and also replicated. Plasmids are also used in cloning the tiny segments of the DNA. They can also be made to replicate proteins like that of the protein that are used up to code for insulin in big spaces.

On addition, the plasmids are seen to transfer genes into the human cells as part of the gene therapy. There is investigation or research going on this term. The cells may be lacking few of the proteins if the person has a hereditary disorder that has gene mutation. A plasmid in the DNA shall allow the cells to express a protein that they lack.

Function of plasmid in bacteria
Image credit- Plasmid –Wikipedia

Characteristic of plasmids

The plasmids can be classifies in many ways with mostly being conjugative and non-conjugative ones.

For the purpose of the plasmids to get into the process of replication on its own, they have to stretch the DNA inside the cell. The DNA that is trenched acts as a self-replicating unit here.

The bacteria replicon is quite typical and may have a number of elements like that of the gene plasmid specific to replication, initiation and protein and the repeating units is called introns along with the DNA boxes and with the adjacent AT-rich area. The ones that integrate are called the episomes.

There are also many small plasmids that make the use of the host replicative enzymes to make themselves copies while the bigger plasmids can carry out genes that is specific to replication with respect to plasmids. There are a few of them that can get inserted into the chromosome which are the host.

The plasmids carry out only one gene. Mostly the genes that they carry on are useful to the host cells like that of the cells that enable them to live in a surrounding that should or else be lethal or restrict their growth. Some genes tend to encode trait for being antibiotic resistance and are unlike toward heavy metals.

Some of the other characteristics of plasmids in bacteria are-

  • They have size ranging from small to being less that 1 kilobase pairs.
  • They are generally circular but can also be linear sometimes.
  • Plasmids vary in different individual with being in range from one to many.
  • The plasmids that are larger in size tend to have less number of copies.
  • The plasmids can be carried on from one cell to other.
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Image credit- Self replicating Plasmid– Wikipedia

Plasmid in bacterial transformation

The bacteria can take in any of the foreign DNA and this is called transformation. It is the key step towards cloning of DNA.

After the very step of transformation, the bacteria are already made to get selected on the plates of antibiotic. The bacteria along with the plasmids are then said to be antibiotic resistant with each making a colony.

The colonies that have the correct plasmids shall be able to grow to make cultures that are bigger if that of the identical bacteria that shall be sued up to make plasmid or making of proteins. The key steps to get the DNA cloned is first transforming and selecting the bacteria.

In any method of general cloning method, the scientist at the basic insert a DNA piece like that of the gene, inside the circle shape DNA and is called the plasmid. The step that is used is restriction enzymes and the DNA ligase and is called the ligation.

After the method of ligation is done, the next way if to get the DNA of travelled inside the bacteria in a way called the transformation. Thus, one can use the process of antibiotic selection and then analyses DNA ways to make sure the bacteria is correct and then contain it in the plasmid.

There are many steps that should be kept in mind while plasmids are being utilized in bacteria transformation. They are-

  • The bacteria that are made special are mixed long with the DNA just like ligation
  • The bacteria are then treated with heat shock that results in some of them to take up on as a plasmid.
  • The plasmids that are used in cloning have a gene that is antibiotic resistance. Thus all the bacteria that are placed on any of the antibiotic plate are selected for the ones that are able to make up on a plasmid.
  • The bacteria that are not able to take on any plasmid are dead. Each of the bacterium having the plasmid produce a cluster that is identical and have plasmid have those bacteria called the colony.
  • There are many colonies that are formed and are checked upon to get them recognized with the correct one like that of PCR or the restriction digestion
  • A colony is made that has all the right plasmids grown in large quantity and is then used to make plasmid or produces proteins.

There always need to be an eye kept on the colonies for a good use of plasmid for transformation. The cause’s are-

  • All the colonies should have plasmids taken up and would be antibiotic resistance.
  • It is however not needed that the plasmid that have the colonies need to be of the same plasmid.
  • When any of the DNA is made to cut and paste, it is possible that the side materials of the products can are formed which was not made to build.
  • The bacteria can be lysed up to release the protein along with gene releasing to express itself having chemical sign.
  • For this reason sometimes the gene can back up by without taking any of the gens and sometimes it can move backwards. It can be complex process depending on the hands.
  • If the gene seems to move backwards, the wrong strand of the DNA shall be transcribed and no protein can be made out of it.
  • In some of the cases, the bacteria can be sued up for building of proteins by using a lot of plasmid DNA. This is also one of the functions of plasmid in bacteria.

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