Diversity of Arsenate Reductase Genes (<Emphasis Type="Italic">arsC</Emphasis> Genes) from Arsenic-Resistant Environmental Isolates of <Emphasis Type="Italic">E. coli</Emphasis>

A polymerase chain reaction (PCR) approach was used to assess the occurrence and diversity of arsenate reductase gene (arsC gene) in arsenic-resistant environmental E. coli strains. For this purpose, two different sets of primers were designed for the specific amplification of approximately 370-bp fragments from the arsC gene. These primers were used to screen a collection of 25 environmental arsenic-resistant strains isolated from different geographical regions of India, as well as Bangladesh. The PCR results showed that 17 out of the 25 environmental isolates (68%) contained a gene related to the arsC family. Phylogenetic analysis of the protein sequences deduced from the amplicons indicated a prevalence of arsC genes in the isolated strains. A significant divergence in the DNA sequence was found in the arsC genes among As-resistant environmental E. coli strains from this study, and arsenic resistance, a genetic character, arose from a common ancestral background.