Isolation of TOL and RP4 recombinants by integrative suppression.

We obtained genetic and molecular evidence of non-thermosensitive recombinants of RP4 (Kmr Tcr Cbr/Apr) and the thermosensitive TOL plasmid. As first isolated in Pseudomonas aeruginosa PAO, the recombinant plasmid pTN1 specified noninducible synthesis of TOL enzymes and was transmissible to Escherichia coli on selection for the transfer of kanamycin resistance. The phenotypic expression of TOL genes of pTN1 in E. coli was low and also noninducible. A spontaneous segregant, pTN2, appearing from pTN1, conferred inducible synthesis of TOL enzymes. These plasmids carry all of the TOL determinants as evidenced by the ability of Pseudomonas putida carrying recombinant plasmids to grow on toluene, xylene, and m-toluate. In E. coli the expression of TOL genes with normal regulation (pTN2) appears to be extremely low without induction, and the induced expression is comparable to that with defective regulation (pTN1). The measurement of the molecular weight of pTN2 by electron microscopy gave a value of about 74 X 10(6).     

Seasonal dynamics of antibiotic-resistantEnterobacteriaceae in the gastrointestinal tract of domestic sheep

Considerable variation in counts of antibiotic-resistant enterobacteria in the ovine gastrointestinal tract was observed. The occurrence of ruminal and fecal isolates resistant to ampicillin (Ap), kanamycin (Km) and tetracycline (Tc) culminated in summer months, followed by rapid decline in subsequent months. Using PCR the tem1bla (Apr), aphA1 (Kmr) and tetB (Tcr) genes were found to be predominant. Under in vitro conditions all resistance genes were transferable into laboratory Escherichia coli strain with relatively high frequency (10(-3) transconjugants per recipient).     

Lack of expression of RP4-specified β-lactamase in Azospirillum brasilense

Plasmid RP4, which normally confers resistance to ampicillin (Ap^r), tetracycline (Tc^r), and kanamycin (Km^r) to its hosts, failed to express enhanced Ap^r when transferred from Escherichia coli to Azospirillum brasilense which has its own intrinsic β-lactamase. Even in a β-lactamase-deficient mutant, A. brasilense RG-D16, no increase in β-lactamase or significant Ap^r appeared following transfer of RP4. However, A. brasilense RG (RP4) and A. brasilense RG-D16 (RP4) did exhibit Tc^r Km^r. When RP4 was transferred back from A. brasilense to E. coli all three drug resistances and β-lactamase activity were fully expressed.     

Plasmid vehicles for direct cloning of Escherichia coli promoters.

A multicopy plasmid cloning vehicle, pGA22, which carries genes for ampicillin resistance (Apr), tetracycline resistance (Tcr), chloramphenicol resistance (Cmr), and kanamycin resistance (Kmr) has been constructed. This plasmid has five unique sites for restriction endonucleases EcoRI, PstI, XhoI, SmaI, and SalI within antibiotic resistance genes. pGA22, which is 5.1 megadaltons in size, has a low copy number (probably fewer than 10 per genome), is capable of relaxed replication, and is mobilized by F-factor at a frequency of 10(-5). A series of promoter-cloning vehicles, pGA24, pGA39, and pGA46, has been developed from pGA22. In these plasmids the natural promoter for Tcr has been removed and has been replaced by small deoxyribonucleic acid fragments carrying unique sites for several restriction endonucleases. Cells carrying these vectors are sensitive to tetracycline unless insertional activation of the Tcr occurs by cloning a promoter-carrying deoxyribonucleic acid fragment in one of the unique sites adjacent to the 5' end of Tcr. In this way, promoters carried on a HindIII-generated deoxyribonucleic acid fragment can be inserted at the HindIII site of plasmid pGA24, pGA39, or pGA46. A promoter in fragments generated by digestion with restriction endonuclease XmaI or PstI or by any restriction endonucleases which generate flush ends, such as SmaI, PvuII, HpaI, HincII, or HaeIII, can be clones in plasmid pGA39. Plasmid pGA46 can be used to detect a promoter fragment carried on a BglII, BamHI, MboI, or PstI fragment. We also describe a plasmid, pGA44, with a unique KpnI site in the rifampin resistance gene rpoB.     

Site-specific recA-independent recombination (fusion) of pMB8-related replicons in Escherichia coli in the region of the replication origins

Escherichia coli recA+ and recA- cells were co-transformed with a mixture of pMB9 (Tcr) and pST8-26 (Apr, pBR325 derivative) plasmid DNAs followed by selection on plates containing both tetracycline and ampicillin. A set of stable Tcr Apr derivatives was isolated from these transformants. Many of the stable Tcr Apr segregants contained fused pMB9::pST8-26 plasmids with lengths that were about 0.8 kb longer than the sum of the lengths of the parental plasmids; one plasmid (pTF8) was about 1.5 kb shorter. The fusion was not stimulated by UV irradiation of co-transformants and occurred both in recA+ and recA- genetic backgrounds. Restriction analysis of the fused plasmids showed the two replicons were in the same relative orientation, and also indicated unique points of fusion in most cases (in 9 out of 10) which are localised within the 1.6-kb regions around the replication origins (RO). Because the fusion of plasmids of the type used in this study was not described before we have tentatively named it RO-fusion (Replication-Origin-fusion).     

Isolation and characterization of antibiotic resistance plasmids from thermophilic bacilli and construction of deletion plasmids

Ten plasmids were isolated as covalently closed circular deoxyribonucleic acid from antibiotic-resistant thermophilic bacteria. Of the 10 plasmids tested, 2 could transform Bacillus subtilis, yielding resistance to specific antibiotics. Plasmid pTB20 (2.8 X 10(6) daltons, approximately 24 copies per chromosome) specifies resistance to tetracycline (Tcr), whereas pTB19 (17.2 X 10(6) daltons, approximately 1 copy per chromosome) renders the host resistant to both kanamycin and tetracycline (KMrTcr). Three plasmids were not self-transmissible. The restriction endonuclease cleavage maps of the two plasmids, pTB19 and pTB20, were constructed. pTB19 and pTB20, both of which were originally isolated from thermophilic bacilli, were tested for stability in B. subtilis. Digestion of pTB19 followed by ligation yielded deletion plasmids pTB512 (Kmr), pTB52 (Tcr), and pTB53 (KmrTcr). Determinants of Kmr, Tcr, and DNA replication were associated with EcoRI fragments R1b (4.2 X 10(6) daltons), R3 (2.8 X 10(6) daltons), and R1a (4.2 X 10(6) daltons), respectively. Restriction endonuclease cleavage maps of pTB51, pTB52, and pTB53 were constructed. Tetracycline resistance of pTB20 was confirmed to be in the EcoRI fragment (1.85 X 10(6) daltons).     

Transformation of Bacillus stearothermophilus with plasmid DNA and characterization of shuttle vector plasmids between Bacillus stearothermophilus and Bacillus subtilis.

A thermophilic bacterium Bacillus stearothermophilus IFO 12550 (ATCC 12980) was transformed with each of the following plasmids, pUB110 (kanamycin resistance, Kmr), pTB19 (Kmr and tetracycline resistance [Tcr]), and its derivative pTB90 (Kmr Tcr), by the protoplast procedure in the presence of polyethylene glycol at 48 degrees C. The transformation frequencies per regenerant for pUB110, pTB19, and pTB90 were 5.9 x 10(-3), 5.5 x 10(-3), and 2.0 x 10(-1), respectively. Among these plasmids, pTB90 was newly derived, and the restriction endonuclease cleavage map was constructed. When tetracycline (5 micrograms/ml) was added into the culture medium, the copy number of pTB90 in B. stearothermophilus was about fourfold higher than that when kanamycin (5 micrograms/ml) was added instead of tetracycline. Bacillus subtilis could also be transformed with the plasmids extracted from B. stearothermophilus and vice versa. Accordingly, pUB110, pTB19, and pTB90 served as shuttle vectors between B. stearothermophilus and B. subtilis. The requirements for replication of pTB19 in B. subtilis and B. stearothermophilus appear to be different, because some deletion plasmids (pTB51, pTB52, and pTB53) derived from pTB19 could replicate only in B. subtilis, whereas another deletion plasmid pTB92 could replicate solely in B. stearothermophilus. Plasmids pTB19 and pTB90 could be maintained and expressed in B. stearothermophilus up to 65 degrees C, whereas the expression of pUB110 in the same strain was up to 55 degrees C.     

Cloning and expression in Escherichia coli of the Azospirillum brasilense Sp7 gene encoding ampicillin resistance.

The Azospirillum brasilense ATCC 29145 gene coding for beta-lactamase was cloned in Escherichia coli. The gene was expressed in E. coli from its own promoter as a 30-kilodalton protein, conferring resistance to high levels of beta-lactam antibiotics. The DNA sequence containing the beta-lactamase gene was found to be highly amplified in the Azospirillum genome, scattered in the chromosomal as well as in the plasmidic DNA.     

Cloning and expression in Escherichia coli of the Azospirillum brasilense Sp7 gene encoding ampicillin resistance

The Azospirillum brasilense ATCC 29145 gene coding for beta-lactamase was cloned in Escherichia coli. The gene was expressed in E. coli from its own promoter as a 30-kilodalton protein, conferring resistance to high levels of beta-lactam antibiotics. The DNA sequence containing the beta-lactamase gene was found to be highly amplified in the Azospirillum genome, scattered in the chromosomal as well as in the plasmidic DNA.     

Ap、Km和Cm抗性细菌在土壤中的差异分布及成因

从不同区域土壤中分离细菌：对其进行氨苄青碡素、卡那霉素和氯霉素的抗性测试,以及抗药性质粒分析。结果表明,对照区和生活区土壤细菌抗氨苄青霉素和卡那霉素菌株比例未见显著性差异,未检出抗氯霉素细菌。保护区中抗氨苄青霉素、卡那霉素菌株含质粒比例均为18.2％,生活区中抗氨苄青霉素和卡那霉素菌株含质粒比例分别为36.4％和27．3％。随机抽提质粒转化无抗忡菌,表明部分抗菌素抗性基因是由质粒携带。实验结果认为本地土壤中抗菌素抗性菌分布差异尚未有显著性表现。     

Mobilization of Bacteroides plasmids by Bacteroides conjugal elements.

A 4.2-kilobase cryptic Bacteroides plasmid, pB8-51, is found in several colonic Bacteroides species. To determine whether pB8-51 is mobilized by any of the known Bacteroides conjugal elements, we constructed an Escherichia coli-Bacteroides shuttle vector, pVAL-1, which contains pB8-51. We constructed Bacteroides uniformis 0061 derivatives which carry pVAL-1 and various Bacteroides conjugal elements. The Bacteroides conjugal elements tested were six conjugal tetracycline resistance (Tcr) elements (which appear to be chromosomal), i.e., Tcr ERL, Tcr V479, Tcr Emr ERL, Tcr Emr 12256, Tcr Emr DOT, and Tcr Emr CEST, and the conjugal erythromycin resistance (Emr) plasmid pBF4. These Tcr conjugal elements have not been extensively characterized, except for Tcr ERL. All six Tcr elements tested mobilized pVAL-1 at high frequency (10(-3) to 10(-5)) from one Bacteroides strain to another or from a Bacteroides strain to E. coli. Pregrowth of the donors (containing one of the Tcr elements and pVAL-1) in 1 microgram of tetracycline per ml enhanced the transfer of pVAL-1 by 20- to 10,000-fold, depending on which Tcr element was present in the donor. An Ems derivative of pBF4 (pBF4 delta E2) mobilized pVAL-1 from one Bacteroides strain to another at a frequency of 10(-4) but did not mobilize pVAL-1 from a Bacteroides strain to E. coli as efficiently. Thus the Tcr conjugal elements and pBF4 recognize a mobilization region on pB8-51.     

Instability of hybrid plasmids containing Drosophila melanogaster DNA in rec+ and rec- Escherichia coli K-12 strains

The stability of hybrid plasmids, constructed on the basis of vector pCV20(AprTcr) and containing HindIII fragments of Drosophila melanogaster DNA (pDm6, pDm9) and PstI fragments of D. melanogaster DNA (pDm39, pDm187, pDm189) was studied. After the transformation of E. coli HB101 recA and Escherichia coli 802 rec+ and selection to Tcr (pDm6, pDm9), or to Apr (pDm39, pDm189, pDm187) 0.04--9% of clones with reduced resistance to Tc or Ap was detected. The hybrid plasmids are more stable in rec-, but not in rec+ strain, the stability depends of the nature of cloned DNA, and on the site of vector DNA in which foreign genes are cloned. Restriction endonuclease analysis revealed that all plasmids of the clones with reduced Tcr or Apr lost the inserted DNA and the excision of foreign DNA occurred precisely in the sites of cloning. We suggest that the genome of the hybrid plasmid in the region of foreign insertion has a conformation which allows the bringing together the ends of cloned DNA with the following excision of the foreign genes.     

Characterization of a novel tetracycline resistance that functions only in aerobically grown Escherichia coli.

A tetracycline resistance (Tcr) gene that was found originally on two Bacteroides plasmids (pBF4 and pCP1) confers tetracycline resistance on Escherichia coli, but only when it is grown aerobically. Using maxicells, we have identified a 44-kilodalton protein which is encoded by the region that carries the Tcr gene and which may be the Tcr gene product. Localization experiments indicate that this 44-kilodalton protein is cytoplasmic. To determine whether the tetracycline resistance gene is expressed under anaerobic conditions, we have constructed a protein fusion between the Tcr gene and lacZ. In strains of E. coli carrying the fusion, beta-galactosidase activity was the same when the cells were grown under anaerobic conditions as when the cells were grown under aerobic conditions. This indicates that the tetracycline resistance gene product is made under anaerobic conditions but does not work. The failure of the Tcr protein to function under anaerobic conditions was not due to a requirement for function of the anaerobic electron transport system, because neither nitrate nor fumarate added to anaerobic media restored tetracycline resistance. Inhibition of the aerobic electron transport system with potassium cyanide did not prevent growth on tetracycline of cells containing the Tcr gene. A heme-deficient mutant, E. coli SHSP19, which carries the Tcr gene, was still resistant to tetracycline even when grown in heme-free medium. These results indicate that functioning of the Tcr gene product is not dependent on the aerobic electron transport system. Thus the requirement for aerobic conditions appears to reflect a requirement for oxygen. Spent medium from an E. coli strain carrying the Tcr gene, which was grown in medium containing tetracycline (50 micrograms/ml), did not inhibit growth of a tetracycline-susceptible strain of E. coli. Thus, the Tcr gene product may be detoxifying tetracycline.     

Phenotypic and genotypic characterization of tetracycline- and oxytetracycline-resistant Aeromonas hydrophila from cultured channel catfish (Ictalurus punctatus) and their environments

Oxytetracycline-resistant (OTcr) and tetracycline-resistant (Tcr) Aeromonas hydrophila were isolated commonly from catfish intestinal contents and the water and sediment of catfish culture ponds, but less frequently in market catfish. Isolates demonstrated two resistance phenotypes, Tcr OTcr and Tcs OTcr, when plated directly on to MacConkey agar containing 30 micrograms of tetracycline or oxytetracycline per ml. Tcs OTcr isolates expressed Tcr after induction by 1 h of growth in tryptic soy broth containing 1 microgram of tetracycline per ml. Over 90% of the resistant aeromonads hybridized with DNA probes for class A or class E Tcr determinants; class E was twice as prevalent as class A. The distribution of class A and E Tcr determinants varied with the Tcr phenotypes. Prior to induction, 86% of isolates with class A determinants were Tcr as well as OTcr, while only 16% with class E determinant were Tcr. Three of 5 Tcr aeromonads without class A or class E determinants and 1 of 14 with class E determinants transferred Tcr to Escherichia coli.     

Novel aerobic tetracycline resistance gene that chemically modifies tetracycline.

A tetracycline resistance gene that was found originally on the Bacteroides plasmid pBF4 confers resistance on Escherichia coli but only when cells are growing aerobically. When E. coli EM24 carrying this aerobic tetracycline resistance (*Tcr) gene is grown in medium containing tetracycline, the resulting spent medium is no longer toxic to tetracycline-sensitive (Tcs) E. coli EM24 (B.S. Speer and A.A. Salyers, J. Bacteriol. 170: 1423-1429, 1988). To determine whether the *Tcr gene product modified tetracycline, we characterized the material resulting from incubation of E. coli (*Tcr) with tetracycline. When [7-3H(N)]tetracycline was added to cultures of E. coli (*Tcr), at least 90% of the label was recovered in the extracellular fluid. Therefore, tetracycline was not being sequestered by the cells. The labeled material behaved similarly to tetracycline with respect to solubility in various organic solvents. However, the UV-visible light spectrum had a single peak at 258 nm, whereas the tetracycline spectrum had a peak at 364 nm. The labeled material also had a faster migration rate than did tetracycline on thin-layer plates in a solvent system of butanol-methanol-10% citric acid (4:1:2, vol/vol/vol) and was separable from tetracycline by reverse-phase high-pressure liquid chromatography, using an acetronitrile-0.1% trifluoroacetic acid solvent system. These results demonstrate that the *Tcr gene product chemically modifies tetracycline. The *Tcr gene is the first example of a chemically modifying tetracycline resistance mechanism.     

Resistance plasmids in Pseudomonas cepacia 4G9.

Pseudomonas cepacia 4G9 utilizes 2-tridecanone as its sole carbon source and has been shown to be resistant to a variety of antibiotics. To ascertain whether any of these characteristics were plasmid mediated, Escherichia coli HB101 was transformed with plasmid DNA isolated from Pseudomonas cepacia 4G9. No 2-tridecanone-utilizing transformants were obtained. Tetracycline (Tc)- and ampicillin (Ap)- resistant transformants were obtained at a low frequency. Plasmid deoxyribonucleic acid from antibiotic-resistant E. coli HB101 transformants had molecular weights of 2.9 x 10(6) for pJW2 Tcr and 5.4 x 10(6) for pJW3 Apr as determined by electron microscopy. Electron microscopy of plasmid deoxyribonucleic acid from P. cepacia 4G9 revealed a single plasmid species, pJW1 of 1.78 x 10(6). Tetracycline resistance in both P. cepacia 4G9 and E. coli HB101(pJW2) was inducible, whereas ampicillin resistance in P. cepacia 4G9 was constitutive. The level of ampicillin resistance coded by pJW3 was lower in P. cepacia 4G9 than in the transformant E. coli HB101(pJW3).     

Homologous recombination of monkey alpha-satellite repeats in an in vitro simian virus 40 replication system: possible association of recombination with DNA replication.

To study homologous recombination between repeated sequences in an in vitro simian virus 40 (SV40) replication system, we constructed a series of substrate DNAs that contain two identical fragments of monkey alpha-satellite repeats. Together with the SV40-pBR322 composite vector encoding Apr and Kmr, the DNAs also contain the Escherichia coli galactokinase gene (galK) positioned between two alpha-satellite fragments. The alpha-satellite sequence used consists of multiple units of tandem 172-bp sequences which differ by microheterogeneity. The substrate DNAs were incubated in an in vitro SV40 DNA replication system and used to transform the E. coli galK strain DH10B after digestion with DpnI. The number of E. coli galK Apr Kmr colonies which contain recombinant DNAs were determined, and their structures were analyzed. Products of equal and unequal crossovers between identical 172-bp sequences and between similar but not identical (homeologous) 172-bp sequences, respectively, were detected, although those of the equal crossover were predominant among all of the galK mutant recombinants. Similar products were also observed in the in vivo experiments with COS1 cells. The in vitro experiments showed that these recombinations were dependent on the presence of both the SV40 origin of DNA replication and SV40 large T antigen. Most of the recombinant DNAs were generated from newly synthesized DpnI-resistant DNAs. These results suggest that the homologous recombination observed in this SV40 system is associated with DNA replication and is suppressed by mismatches in heteroduplexes formed between similar but not identical sequences.     

Tn5 mutagenesis and insertion replacement in Azotobacter vinelandii.

Tn5 insertion mutants of Azotobacter vinelandii were isolated using vectors pJB4JI (IncP) and pGS9 (IncN). A procedure to replace Tn5 (Kmr) by its nontransposing derivative Tn5-131 (Tcr) was developed. For the replacement, a ColEl derivative harboring Tn5-131 (pRZ131) was conjugally mobilized by the IncN plasmid pCU101 into A. vinelandii strains containing Tn5. Both plasmids are unable to be maintained in A. vinelandii, but the transient presence of pRZ131 allows recombination between the incoming and the resident Tn5 elements. Genetic and physical analysis showed that insertion replacements result in lower frequencies of Tn5-associated genomic rearrangements, thereby increasing the stability of Tn5-containing strains.