Microbes represent the largest reservoir of genetic diversity on the planet. From environmental hazards to starvation to viral predation, bacteria constantly face a life-and-death struggle against lethal stresses. In the Gozzi Lab, we study how microbes adapt to their ever-changing environment.

Gene Transfer Agents 

One of the strongest advantages bacteria have to adapt to stress is the use of genomic plasticity. Bacteria exchange genetic material at incredible rates, leading to massive amounts of genetic diversity within species. In the Gozzi lab, we aim to determine the role of the virus-like entities known as gene transfer agents (GTAs). Found on the chromosome of many bacteria, GTAs are a prophage-like particle with phage-like capsid heads and tails that are capable of packaging and delivering DNA into a subsequent cell. As opposed to phage that replicate and preferentially package their encoding nucleic acid, GTAs package random sections of the host's genome. Upon activation in a subset of cells, a producing cell will produce hundreds of GTA particles, package fragments of the genome, and lyse, releasing GTA particles. The GTAs can then find another nearby cell and inject the DNA fragments. This can lead to the introduction of novel genetic material containing beneficial alleles or Wild-Type DNA capable of acting as a substrate for DNA repair.

GTAs may indeed be a critical driver of both short-term adaptability and long-term patterns of evolution, as well as a reservoir of untapped novel biology. The Gozzi Lab leverages high-throughput techniques to uncover the biological roles and diversity of gene transfer agents, a critically understudied yet widespread mechanism of HGT. We aim to reveal the rules that define transfer specificity within species and then apply these rules to engineer GTAs to target species of interest.