How can the learning function (L&D) support learning and innovation at the level of an entire organization in times of digital transformation? The core challenges in this are twofold: 1) Competence clarification: What are relevant “digital competences” in terms of knowledge, skills and attitudes that employees need in order to cope with digital transformation? 2) Competence development: How to ...

In the cariogenic Streptococcus mutans, competence development is regulated by the ComRS signaling system comprised of the ComR regulator and the ComS prepeptide to the competence signaling peptide XIP (ComX-inducing peptide). Aside from competence development, XIP signaling has been demonstrated to regulate cell lysis, and recently, the expression of bacteriocins, small antimicrobial peptides ...

Biological risk assessment of food containing recombinant DNA has exposed knowledge gaps related to the general fate of DNA in the gastrointestinal tract (GIT). Here, a series of experiments is presented that were designed to determine if genetic transformation of the naturally competent bacterium Acinetobacter baylyi BD413 occurs in the GIT of mice and rats, with feed-introduced bacterial DNA ...

Natural competence for DNA uptake is common among bacteria but its evolutionary function is controversial. Resolving the dispute requires a detailed understanding of both how cells decide to take up DNA and how the DNA is processed during and after uptake. We have used whole-genome microarrays to follow changes in gene expression during competence development in wild-type Haemophilus influenzae...

Bacillus subtilis can serve as a powerful platform for directed evolution, especially for secretory enzymes. However, cloning and transformation of a DNA mutant library in B. subtilis are not as easy as they are in Escherichia coli. For direct transformation of B. subtilis, here we developed a new protocol based on supercompetent cells prepared from the recombinant B. subtilis strain SCK6 and m...

The Gram-negative bacterial pathogen Neisseria gonorrhoeae is naturally competent for transformation with species-related DNA. We show here that two phase-variable pilus-associated proteins, the major pilus subunit (pilin, or PilE) and PilC, a factor known to function in the assembly and adherence of gonococcal pili, are essential for transformation competence. The PilE and PilC proteins are ne...

The growth and development of competence by group H streptococci, strain Challis, were compared in synthetic, semisynthetic, and complex media with respect to the cultural conditions required, time of onset and persistence of competence and transformation efficiency. Provided that cultural conditions were strictly controlled in the synthetic system, transformation frequencies of 1% or above wer...

The DNA uptake competence (Com) system of the intracellular bacterial pathogen Listeria monocytogenes is considered nonfunctional. There are no known conditions for DNA transformation, and the Com master activator gene, comK, is interrupted by a temperate prophage. Here, we show that the L. monocytogenes Com system is required during infection to promote bacterial escape from macrophage phagoso...

Background: Although sperm selection according to morphologic and motility characteristic, made to some what the fertility successful, but sperm’s normal morphology cannot demonstrate sperm DNA competence. Since the health of sperm DNA is affecting the results of assisted reproductive technology; the aim of this study is to evaluate semen parameters measured by CASA with sperm chromatin abnorma...

We have characterised two restriction fragments, isolated from a "shotgun" collection of human DNA, which function as autonomously replicating sequences (ARSs) in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Functional domains of these fragments have been defined by subcloning and exonuclease (BAL 31) deletion analysis. Both fragments contain two spatially distinct domains. One is essential for high frequency tra...