HORIZONTAL GENE TRANSFER AND LETAL MUTATIONS IN DISSEMINATION OF BIOFILMS AND METASTASIS

Abstract

Analysis of literature data and the results of our own research on the structure of malignant neoplasms indicate the existence of a certain analogy in the mechanisms of formation and spread of biofilms of microorganisms and malignant tumors. Despite the qualitative difference between cellular abnormalities of both types, they are characterized by horizontal gene transfer, which is a consequence of the formation and accumulation of extracellular DNA of dead tissues and increased permeability of the outer cell membranes. In both cases, this leads to the formation of mutated cells that differ significantly from the original forms. The direct consequence of such mutations is the formation of cells which are low-yielding in this environment and are doomed to death. This ensures both for enrichment of the intercellular component and for the disintegration of cellular aggregates with the formation of "floating islands" of intercellular associations of both types. Such formations are sharply superior to unicellular forms in resistance to adverse environmental factors, which provides the spread of biofilms and metastasis.