noun
- The simultaneous transfer of two or more genes from one bacterium to another by a single bacteriophage during transduction.
Usage: microbiology; genetics; technical term
Examples
- Cotransduction allows researchers to map the relative positions of genes on a bacterial chromosome.
- The frequency of cotransduction between two genes depends on their physical distance apart.
- In the laboratory, cotransduction experiments helped scientists understand bacterial gene organization.
- When a phage packages DNA from two nearby genes, cotransduction occurs at a measurable rate.
- The closer two genes are located, the higher the probability of cotransduction by the same phage particle.