The act of joining together or the state of being conjugated.
A sexual process seen in bacteria, ciliate protozoa, and certain fungi in which nuclear material is exchanged during the temporary fusion of two cells (conjugants). In bacterial genetics a form of sexual reproduction in which a donor bacterium (male) contributes some, or all, of its DNA (in the form of a replicated set) to a recipient (female) which then incorporates differing genetic information into its own chromosome by recombination and passes the recombined set on to its progeny by replication. In ciliate protozoa, two conjugants of separate mating types exchange micronuclear material and then separate, each now being a fertilized cell. In certain fungi, the process involves fusion of two gametes, resulting in union of their nuclei and formation of a zygote.
In chemistry, the joining together of two compounds to produce another compound, such as the combination of a toxic product with some substance in the body to form a detoxified product, which is then eliminated.
A process akin to sexual reproduction occurring in bacteria; mating in bacteria. A process that involves cell-to-cell contact and the one-way transfer of DNA from the donor to the recipient. In contrast to some other DNA-transfer processes of bacteria, conjugation may involve the transfer of large portions of the genome. The discovery caused considerable controversy at the time.
Joining of two gametes that are usually not sexually differentiated.
The union of two microorganisms in which genetic material (DNA) passes from one organism to the other. In some bacteria a minute projection on the donor ‘male’ cell (a pilus) forms a bridge with the recipient ‘female’ cell through which the DNA is transferred. Conjugation is comparable to sexual reproduction in higher organisms.