Mechanism of transformation in Mycobacteria using a novel shockwave assisted technique driven by in-situ generated oxyhydrogen

Abstract

We present a novel method for shockwave-assisted bacterial transformation using a miniature oxyhydrogen detonation-driven shock tube. We have obtained transformation efficiencies of about 1.28 × 106, 1.7 × 106, 5 × 106, 1 × 105, 1 × 105 and 2 × 105 transformants/µg of DNA for Escherichia coli, Salmonella Typhimurum, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Mycobacterium smegmatis, Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) and Helicobacter pylori respectively using this method which are significantly higher than those obtained using conventional methods. Mtb is the most difficult bacteria to be transformed and hence their genetic modification is hampered due to their poor transformation efficiency. Experimental results show that longer steady time duration of the shockwave results in higher transformation efficiencies. Measurements of Young’s modulus and rigidity of cell wall give a good understanding of the transformation mechanism and these results have been validated computationally. We describe the development of a novel shockwave device for efficient bacterial transformation in complex bacteria along with experimental evidence for understanding the transformation mechanism.