Question

1. A bacteria contain a genomic island composed in several composite transposon.Why might this bacterium be of concern medically?

Answer 1

Transposons :- is a shorht segment of DNA which can change [trans] their location [position] in any where in the same DNA or in another organism DNA.

TEchnically called :-

• Transposons are mobile genetic elements (MGE) that can carry additional genetic cargo nonessential for their own transposition. This cargo can include antibiotic or heavy metal resistance genes or those increasing metabolic plasticity. In addition to transposing across or between the chromosome and other replicons in a single cell, they can transfer between bacteria as passengers on conjugative plasmids that are capable of intercellular transfer. Transposons can be grouped on mechanisms of movement and by lengths of the bounding inverted repeats or of target site duplication created by transposition.
• Transposable genetic elements are important motors of genetic variability. They are components of the extensive bacterial horizontal gene pool which also includes genomic islands, bacteriophages and plasmids and can constitute a relatively large proportion of both eukaryote and prokaryote genomes

transposons has a great ability of mutation and can useful in the  production of recombinant DNA.

as you know recombinant DNA. technology is vastly useful for the production of diifrent medicine antibiotics ,enzymes ,hormones etc.

because of this usefulness of Transposons in recombinant DNA, technology it is highly concer in medicle industry.

In a Bacterium , plasmid is use as transposon , to insert gene of intrest [eg- Insulin] from one organism [human] into bacterium , to produce Insulin on a large scale.