Section 11
Genetic Transfer in Prokaryotes
By Boundless
In homologous recombination, a type of genetic recombination, nucleotide sequences are exchanged between two similar molecules of DNA.
Transformation is the direct uptake, incorporation and expression of exogenous genetic material from its surroundings.
Transduction is the process by which DNA is transferred from one bacterium to another by a virus.
Prokaryotes reproduce asexually by binary fission; they can also exchange genetic material by transformation, transduction, and conjugation.
Complementation refers to a relationship between two different strains of an organism which both have homozygous recessive mutations.
Archaea are distinct from bacteria and eukaryotes, but genetic material can be transferred between them and between Archaea themselves.