Bridge recombinase enables versatile rewriting of bacterial genomes

Patel, J.; Swartz, S. E.; Oromi-Bosch, A.; Yong, L.; LaTurner, Z. W.; Demaray, J. E.; Voelker, A.; Ono, R.; Vu, P.; Rao, P.; Luskin, H.; Andrade, P.; Cui, M. L.; Mchedlishvili, G.; Hayes, M. M.; Aluwihare, N.; Iglesias-Aguirre, C. E.; MacKenzie, E. C.; Rodriguez, C. I.; Devkota, S.; Diamond, S.; Cress, B. F.

doi:10.64898/2026.04.29.721476

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bioRxiv · 10.64898/2026.04.29.721476

Bridge recombinase enables versatile rewriting of bacterial genomes

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Abstract

Bacteria drive crucial processes across ecosystems and impact human health, yet tools to rewrite microbiomes remain limited. Here, we show that bridge recombinase enables versatile and programmable genome editing across the bacterial tree of life. In Escherichia coli, we achieved 142 kb insertions at >90% efficiency, megabase-scale inversions (2.3 Mb), and pathway-scale 50 kb excisions. With a single ortholog and bridge RNA (bRNA), we edited bacterial isolates spanning five phyla and diverse members of two human gut communities. We overcame cross-reactivity between co-expressed bRNAs to establish search-and-replace Targetable Recombinase Assisted DNA Exchange (TRADE) editing and demonstrated capture and interphylum transfer of chromosomal pathways, enabling programmable horizontal gene transfer. These advances establish bridge recombinase as a foundation for reprogramming gene flow in complex microbial communities.

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Patel, J., Swartz, S. E., Oromi-Bosch, A., Yong, L., LaTurner, Z. W., Demaray, J. E., Voelker, A., Ono, R., Vu, P., Rao, P., Luskin, H., Andrade, P., Cui, M. L., Mchedlishvili, G., Hayes, M. M., Aluwihare, N., Iglesias-Aguirre, C. E., MacKenzie, E. C., Rodriguez, C. I., Devkota, S., Diamond, S., Cress, B. F.. 2026-04-29. Bridge recombinase enables versatile rewriting of bacterial genomes. https://doi.org/10.64898/2026.04.29.721476

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