gene transfer

American  

noun

1. Biotechnology. the insertion of copies of a gene into living cells in order to induce synthesis of the gene's product: the desired gene may be microinjected directly into the cell or it may be inserted into the core of a virus by gene splicing and the virus allowed to infect the cell for replication of the gene in the cell's DNA.

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Example Sentences

This "selfless" sharing, known as horizontal gene transfer, can rapidly spread useful traits including genes that confer resistance to antibiotic drugs used to treat infections.

From Science Daily • Apr. 17, 2026

As it's common for hosts like humans or other animals to harbor more than one infection at once, there can be plenty of opportunities for gene transfer to occur.

From Salon • Apr. 24, 2025

What this means is that evolution in E. coli, despite the serendipity of horizontal gene transfer, isn’t just a matter of chance.

From Salon • Oct. 14, 2024

Earlier work by the Lingchong You lab has shown that 25% of bacterial pathogens are capable of spreading antibiotic resistance through horizontal gene transfer.

From Science Daily • Feb. 22, 2024

They have also shown that the presence of antibiotics does not speed up the rate of horizontal gene transfer, so there must be something else happening that pushes the genes to spread.

From Science Daily • Feb. 22, 2024