Identification and characterization of a small sequence located at two sites on the amplifiable tetracycline resistance plasmid pAMalpha1 in Streptococcus faecalis.

Streptococcus faecalis DT-11 harbors the 6.0-megadalton plasmid pAMalpha1, which determines resistance to tetracycline (TC). When this strain is grown in the presence of TC for a number of generations, a reversible gene amplification occurs, generating tandem repeats of a 2.65-megadalton segment of the plasmid. On the basis of heteroduplex studies between various forms of pAMalpha1 and fragments generated by the Escherichia coli restriction endonuclease EcoRI, we have obtained direct evidence for the presence of a small sequence designated RS1 (for recombination sequence) located on both sides of the TC resistance determinant. Corresponding points on the two sequences are separated by 2.65 megadaltons of deoxyribonucleic acid. The two RS1 sequences have the same polarity and are of a size corresponding to about 380 nucleotide base pairs. The data presented serve as strong support for amplification models that are based on recombinational events involving the RS1 sequences.     

Transmissible toxin (hemolysin) plasmid in Streptococcus faecalis and its mobilization of a noninfectious drug resistance plasmid.

Streptococcus faecalis strain DS-5 has been shown previously to contain three plasmids, pAMalpha1, pAMbeta1, and pAMgamma1. Mixed incubation of DS-5 with strain JH2-2, a plasmid-free S. faecalis recipient, results in the transfer of pAMalpha1 (which determines resistance to tetracycline) and/or pAMgamma1. Analyses of recipients carrying various combinations of these plasmids have revealed the pAMgamma1 codes for toxin (hemolysin) production and two bacteriocin activities. JH2-2 strains carrying both pAMalpha1 and pAMgamma1, or pAMgamma1 only, can donate their plasmids to other recipients, whereas strains carrying only pAMalpha1 cannot serve as donors. This indicates that pAMgamma1 actually mobilizes the otherwise nontransferable pAMalpha1.     

Identification of a truncated, but functionally active tet(H) tetracycline resistance gene in Pasteurella aerogenes and Pasteurella multocida

Molecular analysis of Pasteurella isolates of animal origin for plasmid-encoded tetracycline resistance genes identified a common tet(H)-carrying plasmid of 5.5 kbp in a single isolate of Pasteurella aerogenes and six isolates of Pasteurella multocida. This plasmid carried a truncated Tn5706 element in which one of the IS elements, IS1596, was lost completely and of the other, IS1597, only a relic of 84 bp was left. Sequencing of the resistance gene region and the flanking areas revealed the presence of a deletion in the 3' end of the tet(H) gene which shortened the tet(H) reading frame by 24 bp. The amino acid sequence of the respective TetH protein comprised only 392 amino acids. Despite this deletion, the tet(H) gene conferred high level tetracycline resistance not only to the original Pasteurella isolates but also to the respective Escherichia coli JM107 and C600 transformants as confirmed by MIC determination. The deletion was probably the result from recombinational events. Two possible recombination sites involved in the deletion of tet(H) and that of IS1597 were identified. Macrorestriction analysis of the Pasteurella isolates carrying plasmid pPAT1 confirmed horizontal and vertical transfer of this plasmid.     

Isolation of tetracycline-resistant Megasphaera elsdenii strains with novel mosaic gene combinations of tet(O) and tet(W) from swine

Anaerobic bacteria insensitive to chlortetracycline (64 to 256 microg/ml) were isolated from cecal contents and cecal tissues of swine fed or not fed chlortetracycline. A nutritionally complex, rumen fluid-based medium was used for culturing the bacteria. Eight of 84 isolates from seven different animals were identified as Megasphaera elsdenii strains based on their large-coccus morphology, rapid growth on lactate, and 16S ribosomal DNA sequence similarities with M. elsdenii LC-1(T). All eight strains had tetracycline MICs of between 128 and 256 microg/ml. Based on PCR assays differentiating 14 tet classes, the strains gave a positive reaction for the tet(O) gene. By contrast, three ruminant M. elsdenii strains recovered from 30-year-old culture stocks had tetracycline MICs of 4 microg/ml and did not contain tet genes. The tet genes of two tetracycline-resistant M. elsdenii strains were amplified and cloned. Both genes bestowed tetracycline resistance (MIC = 32 to 64 microg/ml) on recombinant Escherichia coli strains. Sequence analysis revealed that the M. elsdenii genes represent two different mosaic genes formed by interclass (double-crossover) recombination events involving tet(O) and tet(W). One or the other genotype was present in each of the eight tetracycline-resistant M. elsdenii strains isolated in these studies. These findings suggest a role for commensal bacteria not only in the preservation and dissemination of antibiotic resistance in the intestinal tract but also in the evolution of resistance.     

Controlling gene expression in mice with tetracycline: application in pigment cell research

Genetic manipulation techniques are widely used in mice to study the functions of genes. The most common strategy for assessing in vivo function involves making irreversible changes in the genome by homologous recombination. To complement this approach, a number of systems have been developed that allow specific and controlled expression of a gene. One of the more versatile and promising systems is based on the tetracycline (tet) responsive bacterial tetracycline repressor (TetR). In recent years, the tet system has proven to be a valuable method for understanding the function of genes involved in a number of physiological processes, including mouse models for human diseases such as cancer and neurological and pigment disorders. This review will highlight the power and elegance of the tet system by focusing on its utility in the study of two pigment cell-related biological problems, the pathogenesis of melanomas and melanocyte development in the embryo.     

Identification and sequence of a tet(M) tetracycline resistance determinant homologue in clinical isolates of Escherichia coli

The presence of the tetracycline resistance determinant tet(M) in human clinical isolates of Escherichia coli is described for the first time in this report. The homologue was >99% identical to the tet(M) genes reported to occur in Lactobacillus plantarum, Neisseria meningitidis, and Streptococcus agalactiae, and 3% of the residues in its deduced amino acid sequence diverge from tet(M) of Staphylococcus aureus. Sequence analysis of the regions immediately flanking the gene revealed that sequences upstream of tet(M) in E. coli have homology to Tn916; however, a complete IS26 insertion element was present immediately upstream of the promoter element. Downstream from the termination codon is an insertion sequence that was homologous to the ISVs1 element reported to occur in a plasmid from Vibrio salmonicida that has been associated with another tetracycline resistance determinant, tet(E). Results of mating experiments demonstrated that the E. coli tet(M) gene was on a mobile element so that resistance to tetracycline and minocycline could be transferred to a susceptible strain by conjugation. Expression of the cloned tet(M) gene, under the control of its own promoter, provided tetracycline and minocycline resistance to the E. coli host.     

Amplification of drug resistance genes flanked by inversely repeated IS1 elements: involvement of IS1-promoted DNA rearrangements before amplification.

Tn2653 contains one copy of the tet gene and two copies of the cat gene derived from plasmid pBR325 and is flanked by inverted repeats of IS1. Transposed onto the P1-15 prophage, it confers a chloramphenicol resistance phenotype to the Escherichia coli host. Because the prophage is perpetuated as a plasmid at about one copy per host chromosome, the host cell is still tetracycline sensitive even though P1-15 is carrying one copy of the tet gene. We isolated P1-15::Tn2653 mutants conferring a tetracycline resistance phenotype, in which the whole transposon and variable flanking P1-15 DNA segments were amplified. Amplification was most probably preceded by IS1-mediated DNA rearrangements which led to long direct repeats containing Tn2653 sequences and P1-15 DNA. Subsequent recombination events between these direct repeats led to amplification of a segment containing the tetracycline resistance gene in tandem arrays.     

Multicopy Tn10 tet plasmids confer sensitivity to induction of tet gene expression.

We inserted the Tn10 tetracycline resistance determinant (tet) into the multicopy plasmid pACYC177, and we examined the phenotype of Escherichia coli K-12 strains harboring these plasmids. In agreement with others, we find that Tn10 tet exhibits a negative gene dosage effect. Strains carrying multicopy Tn10 tet plasmids are 4- to 12-fold less resistant to tetracycline than are strains with a single copy of Tn10 in the bacterial chromosome. In addition, we find that multicopy tet strains are 30- to 100-fold less resistant to the tetracycline derivative 5a,6-anhydrotetracycline than are single-copy tet strains. Multicopy tet strains are, in fact, 10- to 25-fold more sensitive to anhydrotetracycline than are strains that lack tet altogether. The hypersensitivity of multi-copy strains to anhydrotetracycline is correlated with the effectiveness of anhydrotetracycline as an inducer of tet gene expression, rather than its effectiveness as an inhibitor of protein synthesis. Anhydrotetracycline is 50- to 100-fold more effective than tetracycline as an inducer of tetracycline resistance and as an inducer of beta-galactosidase in strains that harbor tet-lac gene fusions. In contrast, anhydrotetracycline appears to be two- to fourfold less effective than tetracycline as an inhibitor of protein synthesis. Both anhydrotetracycline and tetracycline induce synthesis of tet polypeptides in minicells harboring multicopy tet plasmids. Differences between E. coli K-12 backgrounds influence the tetracycline and anhydrotetracycline sensitivity of multicopy strains; ZnCl2 enhances the tetracycline and anhydrotetracycline sensitivity of these strains two- to threefold. We propose that the overexpression of one or more Tn10 tet gene products inhibits the growth of multicopy tet strains and accounts for their relative sensitivity to inducers of tet gene expression.     

Diverse tetracycline resistance genotypes of Megasphaera elsdenii strains selectively cultured from swine feces

A total of 30 Megasphaera elsdenii strains, selectively isolated from the feces of organically raised swine by using Me109 M medium, and one bovine strain were analyzed for tetracycline resistance genotypic and phenotypic traits. Tetracycline-resistant strains carried tet(O), tet(W), or a tet gene mosaic of tet(O) and tet(W). M. elsdenii strains carrying tet(OWO) genes exhibited the highest tetracycline MICs (128 to >256 microg/ml), suggesting that tet(O)-tet(W) mosaic genes provide the selective advantage of greater tetracycline resistance for this species. Seven tet genotypes are now known for M. elsdenii, an archetype commensal anaerobe and model for tet gene evolution in the mammalian intestinal tract.     

Sphingobacterium sp. strain PM2-P1-29 harbours a functional tet(X) gene encoding for the degradation of tetracycline

Aims:  The tet (X) gene has previously been found in obligate anaerobic Bacteroides spp., which is curious because tet (X) encodes for a NADP-dependent monooxygenase that requires oxygen to degrade tetracycline. In this study, we characterized a tetracycline resistant, aerobic, Gram-negative Sphingobacterium sp. strain PM2-P1-29 that harbours a tet (X) gene.
Methods and Results:  Sphingobacterium sp. PM2-P1-29 demonstrated the ability to transform tetracycline compared with killed controls. The presence of the tet (X) gene was verified by PCR and nucleotide sequence analysis. Additional nucleotide sequence analysis of regions flanking the tet (X) gene revealed a mobilizable transposon-like element (Tn 6031 ) that shared organizational features and genes with the previously described Bacteroides conjugative transposon CTnDOT. A circular transposition intermediate of the tet (X) region, characteristic of mobilizable transposons, was detected. However, we could not demonstrate the conjugal transfer of the tet (X) gene using three different recipient strains and numerous experimental conditions.
Conclusions:  This study suggests that Sphingobacterium sp. PM2-P1-29 or a related bacterium may be an ancestral source of the tet (X) gene.
Significance and Impact of the Study:  This study demonstrates the importance of environmental bacteria and lateral gene transfer in the dissemination and proliferation of antibiotic resistance among bacteria.     

Characterisation of Tn1721, a new transposon containing tetracycline resistance genes capable of amplification.

R plasmid pRSD1 contains tetracycline resistance (tet) genes in a 3.55 Mdal-region capable of amplification by forming tandem repeats (Mattes, Burkardt and Schmitt, Molec. gen. Genet., 1979). The repetitious tet element is itself part of a 7.2 Mdal-transposon, named Tn1721, as demonstrated by the following criteria; (i) Tn1721 has been translocated to phage lambda. The resulting hybrid phage lambda tet contains the 7.2 Mdal-insertion to the right of the attachment site, but not continguous with it indicating translocation of the element by non-homologous recombination. In addition, lambda tet has sustained a 3.4 Mdal-deletion adjacent to the insertion. (ii) Further transposition of Tn1721 to the 21.5 Mdal-plasmid R388 resulted in R388::Tn1721 derivatives, two of which were characterised. They contain Tn1721 inserted into different sites but in the same orientation as shown by restriction and heteroduplex analyses. These translocation of Tn1721 were not accompanied by deletions of DNA. (iii) The insertion plasmid pRSD102(R388::Tn1721) has conserved the capacity of the original plasmid pRSD1 to amplify the 3.55 Mdal-tet region. It has been concluded that Tn1721 constitutes a novel transposon encompassing a tet region capable of selective amplification. The model proposed for Tn1721 contains three short repeats. Two direct repeats, flanking the 3.55 Mdal tet region, provide sequence homology for amplification. The third repeat (located distally to tet) is inverted and provides the basis for transposition of the 7.2 Mdal-element.     

Characterization of the tetracycline resistance gene of plasmid pT181 of Staphylococcus aureus.

Some genetic and biochemical properties of the tetracycline resistance element of the Staphylococcus aureus plasmid pT181 have been studied. Resequencing of a portion of the tetracycline resistance gene (tet) showed the presence of a single open reading frame of 1,299 nucleotides capable of encoding a polypeptide of 433 amino acids. Analysis of BAL 31 nuclease-generated deletion mutants of the tet gene showed the presence of two complementation groups within this region. Northern blot hybridizations demonstrated that the tet gene encodes a single mRNA, and its initiation site has been mapped by S1 nuclease protection experiments. We also identified an approximately 52,000-dalton tetracycline-inducible polypeptide in Bacillus subtilis minicells carrying pT181. Induction of the tet gene by tetracycline resulted in a 4-fold increase in the levels of TET mRNA and at least a 15-fold increase in the amount of TET protein in B. subtilis minicells.     

The expression of Streptomyces and Escherichia coli drug-resistance determinants cloned into the Streptomyces phage phi C31

Lysogens obtained by infecting Streptomyces albus G with a phi C31-pBR322 chimaeric prophage or its delta W12 deletion derivative had increased tetracycline resistance. The ability of the delta W12 derivative to transduce tetracycline resistance was inactivated by inserting a viomycin resistance determinant (vph) into the BamHI site of the pBR322 tet gene, and restored by excising the vph gene. Another deletion mutant (delta W17) of the chimaera, carrying an intact tet gene, was normally unable to transduce tetracycline resistance. This inability was correlated with the finding, by Southern hybridisation analysis, that the att site required for insertion of phi C31 prophage into the host chromosome was located within the delta W17 deletion. Use of phi C31 lysogenic recipient permitted the integration of the att-deleted phage, presumably by homologous recombination, giving tetracycline-resistant double lysogens. This technique was extended to S. coelicolor A3(2) in the detection of derivatives of the att-deleted phage into which a thiostrepton-resistance determinant (tsr) had been inserted in vitro. Phage released from double lysogens were mainly recombinants. One such recombinant is a PstI vector for DNA cloning, able to accommodate up to 6 kb of introduced DNA.     

Development, validation, and application of PCR primers for detection of tetracycline efflux genes of gram-negative bacteria

Phylogenetic analysis of tetracycline resistance genes, which confer resistance due to the efflux of tetracycline from the cell catalyzed by drug:H(+) antiport and share a common structure with 12 transmembrane segments (12-TMS), suggested the monophyletic origin of these genes. With a high degree of confidence, this tet subcluster unifies 11 genes encoding tet efflux pumps and includes tet(A), tet(B), tet(C), tet(D), tet(E), tet(G), tet(H), tet(J), tet(Y), tet(Z), and tet(30). Phylogeny-aided alignments were used to design a set of PCR primers for detection, retrieval, and sequence analysis of the corresponding gene fragments from a variety of bacterial and environmental sources. After rigorous validation with the characterized control tet templates, this primer set was used to determine the genotype of the corresponding tetracycline resistance genes in total DNA of swine feed and feces and in the lagoons and groundwater underlying two large swine production facilities known to be impacted by waste seepage. The compounded tet fingerprint of animal feed was found to be tetCDEHZ, while the corresponding fingerprint of total intestinal microbiota was tetBCGHYZ. Interestingly, the tet fingerprints in geographically distant waste lagoons were identical (tetBCEHYZ) and were similar to the fecal fingerprint at the third location mentioned above. Despite the sporadic detection of chlortetracycline in waste lagoons, no auxiliary diversity of tet genes in comparison with the fecal diversity could be detected, suggesting that the tet pool is generated mainly in the gut of tetracycline-fed animals, with a negligible contribution from selection imposed by tetracycline that is released into the environment. The tet efflux genes were found to be percolating into the underlying groundwater and could be detected as far as 250 m downstream from the lagoons. With yet another family of tet genes, this study confirmed our earlier findings that the antibiotic resistance gene pool generated in animal production systems may be mobile and persistent in the environment with the potential to enter the food chain.     

Identification of a new ribosomal protection type of tetracycline resistance gene,tet(36), from swine manure pits

Previously, only one ribosome protection type of a tetracycline resistance gene, tetQ, had been identified in Bacteroides spp. During an investigation of anaerobic bacteria present in swine feces and manure storage pits, a tetracycline-resistant Bacteroides strain was isolated. Subsequent analysis showed that this new Bacteroides strain, Bacteroides sp. strain 139, did not contain tetQ but contained a previously unidentified tetracycline resistance gene. Sequence analysis showed that the tetracycline resistance gene from Bacteroides sp. strain 139 encoded a protein (designated Tet 36) that defines a new class of ribosome protection types of tetracycline resistance. Tet 36 has 60% amino acid identity over 640 aa to TetQ and between 31 and 49% amino acid identity to the nine other ribosome protection types of tetracycline resistance genes. The tet(36) region was not observed to transfer from Bacteroides sp. strain 139 to another Bacteroides sp. under laboratory conditions. Yet tet(36) was found in other genera of bacteria isolated from the same swine manure pits and from swine feces. Phylogenetic analysis of the tet(36)-containing isolates indicated that tet(36) was present not only in the Cytophaga-Flavobacter-Bacteroides group to which Bacteroides sp. strain 139 belongs but also in gram-positive genera and gram-negative proteobacteria, indicating that horizontal transfer of tet(36) is occurring between these divergent phylogenetic groups in the farm environment.     

Nucleotide sequence analysis of the class G tetracycline resistance determinant from Vibrio anguillarum.

The nucleotide sequence of the class G tetracycline resistance determinant previously isolated from Vibrio anguillarum has been determined. Two open reading frames of divergent polarity were identified. A resistance gene (tet A) encodes a protein of 393 amino acid residues (deduced molecular mass of 40.9 kDa), and a repressor gene (tet R) encodes a protein consisting of 210 amino acids with a calculated molecular mass of 23.6 kDa. Based on the deduced amino acid sequences, the proteins of tet A(G) and tet R(G) are about 60% homologous with those of RP1/Tn1721 (class A) and pSC101/pBR322 (class C), and about 50% homologous with Tn10 (class B). The relationship of the tet (G) sequence to five known tetracycline resistance determinants (class A to E) is discussed.     

Analysis of tetracycline resistance encoded by transposon Tn10: deletion mapping of tetracycline-sensitive point mutations and identification of two structural genes

Deletions in the tet genes derived from Tn10 were formed from different tet::Tn5 insertion mutations by removing DNA sequences located between a HindIII site in Tn5 and a HindIII site adjacent to the tet genes. Tetracycline-sensitive point mutations were mapped in recombination tests with the deletions and were thus aligned with the genetic and physical map of the tet region. Plasmids carrying point mutations were tested for complementation with derivatives of pDU938, a plasmid carrying cloned tet genes derived from Tn10 which had been inactivated by Tn5 insertions. Complementation occurred between promoter-proximal tet point mutations and distal tet::Tn5 insertions, suggesting the existence of two structural genes, tetA and tetB. These results, together with the analysis of polypeptides in minicells harboring pDU938tet::Tn5 mutants, suggested that tetA and tetB are expressed coordinately in an operon. The tetB gene encodes the previously characterized 36,000-dalton cytoplasmic membrane TET protein, but the product of tetA was not identified. Point mutations in either tetA or tetB led to the defective expression of the resistance mechanism involving tetracycline efflux. It is suggested that the tetA and tetB products interact cooperatively in the membrane to express resistance.     

Acquired tetracycline and/or macrolide-lincosamides-streptogramin resistance in anaerobes

In general bacterial antibiotic resistance is acquired on mobile elements such as plasmids, transposons and/or conjugative transposons. This is also true for many antibiotic resistant anaerobic species described in the literature. Of the 23 different tetracycline resistant efflux genes identified, tet(B), tet(K), tet(L), and tetA(P) have been found in anaerobic species and six of the ten tetracycline resistant genes coding for ribosomal protection proteins, tet(M), tet(O), tetB(P), tet(Q), tet(W), and tet(32), have been identified in anaerobes. There are now three enzymes which inactivate tetracycline, of which the tet(X) has been identified in Bacteroides though is not functional under anaerobic growth conditions. A similar situation exists with the genes conferring macrolide-lincosamide-streptogramin (MLS) resistance. Of the 26 rRNA methylase MLS resistant genes characterized, five genes; erm(B), erm(C), erm(F), erm(G), and erm(Q), have been identified in anaerobes. In contrast, no genes coding for MLS resistant efflux proteins or inactivating enzymes have been described in anaerobic species. This mini-review will summarize what is known about tetracycline and MLS resistance in genera with anaerobic species and the mobile elements associated with acquired tetracycline and/or MLS resistance genes.