[Single-stranded conjugation in Escherichia coli K-12: characteristics of the formation of a heterogenous progeny].

During a single-stranded conjugation donor DNA, being a single-stranded form, takes part in the process of recombination. That is why a heteroduplex DNA must be an intermediate product of the recombination. The heteroduplex can be partially corrected as it was supposed for genetic transformation. The division of such a corrected heteroduplex gives the heterogenous progeny of exoconjugants. And this "correctional" heterogeneity must possess two following properties: 1) the mixed progeny must consist of only two recombinational genotypes; 2) the heterogeneity must be marker-specific. The experimental support to both predictions was obtained by the method of clonal analysis of conjugational merozygotes.