How does bacterial transformation occur?

Transformation is the uptake of naked DNA fragments from the surrounding environment and the expression of that genetic information in the recipient cell, meaning the recipient cell has now acquired a characteristic that it did not previously have. Transformation was first identified by Fredrick Griffith in Streptococcus pneumonia.

For example, if the recipient cell has taken a segment of foreign DNA that codes for antibiotic resistance, the recipient cell will naturally exhibit antibiotic resistance trait as well.

Bacterial transformation involves the uptake of foreign genetic material by bacteria, typically through the introduction of plasmid DNA. This process relies on the ability of bacteria to take up exogenous DNA from their environment and incorporate it into their own genome. This is often facilitated by techniques such as heat shock or electroporation. Once inside, the foreign DNA may express its genes, leading to the production of new proteins or altering the characteristics of the transformed bacteria.