The Fertility factor (first named F by one of its discoverers Esther Lederberg) allows genes to be transferred from one bacterium carrying the factor to another bacterium lacking the factor by conjugation. The F factor is carried on the F episome, the first episome to be discovered. Unlike other plasmids, F factor is constitutive for transfer proteins due to the gene traJ. The F plasmid belongs to a class of conjugative plasmids that control sexual functions of bacteria with a fertility inhibition (Fin) system.
Read more about Fertility Factor: Discovery of Fertility Factor "F", Structure, Relation To The Genome, Function
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