The transfer of genetic information from one cell to another can occur by three methods: conjugation, transduction, and transformation. Conjugation is the mating of two bacterial cells, during which DNA is transferred from the donor to the recipient cell (Figure 4-2). The mating process is controlled by an F (feility) plasmid (F factor), which carries the genes for the proteins required for conjugation. Transduction is the transfer of cell DNA by means of a bacterial virus (bacteriophage, phage). Transformation is the transfer of DNA itself from one cell to another. Ref: Levinson W. (2012). Chapter 4. Genetics. In W. Levinson (Ed), Review of Medical Microbiology & Immunology, 12e.