An Indigenous System of Gene Transfer in the Plant Pathogen Pseudomonas morsprunorum

SUMMARY: A fertility system has been discovered in the phytopathogen Pseudomonas morsprunorum. The recovery of recombinants carrying both selected and unselected genetic markers from crosses indicated that relatively large segments of bacterial chromosome may have been transferred. Fertility was restricted to particular combinations of strains. The system may represent an important means of genetic recombination in the natural environment.