The transfer of the self-transmissible plasmids, RP4 and pJP4, from introduced bacteria to indigenous bacteria was examined in soil and slurry microcosms. The introduced plasmids persisted in indigenous transconjugants despite the low survival of introduced donors. The potential of the transconjugants for growth and conjugation affects the persistence of introduced plasmids in soil. (C) 2009, The Society for Biotechnology, Japan. All rights reserved.