Micro-organisms must evolve to adapt to the changes in their environments. The evolution is as a result of continuous mutations caused by the changes in the nucleotides in a DNA of a micro-organism. These changes ensure that the micro-organisms function accordingly under the relative environment. Components of microbial evolution include genomic rearrangements, point mutations, and horizontal gene transfer. Notably, if the change in the nucleotide increases the growth of the cell, then the mutant form would have the ability to boost its numbers in the entire population. According to Moran & Sloan (2013) “The acquisition and excision of large genomic fragments that rapidly results in the emergence of new pathogenic variants.” Genetic transfer between organisms is an integral part of the life cycle of higher eukaryotic organisms. For the transfer to be effective there should be stabilization of the new genetic element and the newly acquired DNA must have an optimal expression.
Human actions interfere both negatively or positively with the evolution of micro-organisms. For instance, modification of drugs has a latent effect on micro-organisms (Gaze et al., 2013). Discharge of chemical agents into the environment hastens the movement of resistant genes across bacterial populations (Gaze et al., 2013). Furthermore, sewage and water treatment plants created by humans provide a mixing opportunity between environmental bacteria and human pathogens (Gaze et al., 2013). These actions allow for human pathogens to exploit millions of years of evolution and human activity (Gaze et al., 2013).
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Micro-organisms will continue to evolve for the following reasons; there is a symbiotic relationship amongst micro-organisms, plants, and animals, symbiotic micro-organisms are conveyed between generations, the association between symbiont and host impacts the aptness of the holobiont within its environment, and finally changes in either the host or the microbiota genomes cause a variation in the hologenome (Moran & Sloan, 2013). There is a close relationship between eukaryotes and prokaryotes that for some years (Gaze et al., 2013). Moreover, selected micro-organisms can grow inside plant or animal cells, i.e., the human gut microbiota (Schulz et al., 2013). These micro-organisms cannot be cultured because of their diversity (Moran & Sloan, 2013). Thus, Moran & Sloan (2013) noted that “the host-associated microbial community is quite different from the community found in the surrounding environment.” It is estimated that a person has 5 million bacterial genes in their genome. The interactions between the host and micro-organisms are so intertwined such that alienation of the two is impossible.
The hologenome theory of evolution propagates the continuousness of partnership between the holobiont generations (Moran & Sloan, 2013). It follows that both the symbiotic genome and the host have to be accurately transmitted from one generation to the next (Schulz et al., 2013). Some plants and animals can grow from somatic cells as opposed to gametes (Gaze et al., 201). Cooperation between the microbiota and host depicts improved fitness of the holobiont (Moran & Sloan, 2013). Additionally, the genetic assortment of the microbiota increases the number of environments in that the holobiont might successfully compete especially the diversity of the symbionts which plays a great part in the health of the holobiont (Schulz et al., 2013).
At the root of evolution is variation. Conferring to the hologenome theory, genetic variation stems from the changes in either microbiota and the host genomes (Moran & Sloan, 2013). In the host genome, it ensues in during sexual production, chromosome rearrangement, and mutation (Schulz et al., 2013). In the genome of the microbiota, variations ensue in three procedures namely conjugation, transduction, and DNA transformation (Schulz et al., 2013).
In conclusion, the processes of evolution in micro-organisms is a continuous process. These living organisms have to survive in the ever-changing environment. They exist in diverse bacterial populations which cannot be cultured just as stated above the interdependency that exists between the hosts and symbionts create a perfect opportunity for continuous evolution. Human activity should accommodate the survival of these organisms since they play a crucial role in the ecosystem such as soil formation, human maintenance health among others.
References
Gaze, W. H., Krone, S. M., Larsson, D. G. J., Li, X.-Z., Robinson, J. A., Simonet, P., … Zhu, Y.-
G. (2013). Influence of Humans on Evolution and Mobilization of Environmental Antibiotic Resistome. Emerging Infectious Diseases, 19(7), e120871.
http://doi.org/10.3201/eid1907.120871
Moran, N. A., & Sloan, D. B. (2015). The hologenome concept: helpful or hollow?. PLoS
biology, 13(12), e1002311.
Schulz, S., Brankatschk, R., Dümig, A., Kögel-Knabner, I., Schloter, M., & Zeyer, J. (2013). The
role of microorganisms at different stages of ecosystem development for soil formation. Biogeosciences, 10(6), 3983-3996.
