Survival of enterococci and Tn916-like conjugative transposons in soil

The persistence of Enterococcus faecalis, fecal enterococci from swine waste, and Tn916-like elements was determined following inoculation into autoclaved and native soil microcosms. When cells of E. faecalis CG110 (Tn916) were inoculated into native microcosms, enterococcal viability in the soil decreased approximately 5 orders of magnitude (4.8 x 10(5) CFU/g soil to < 10 CFU/g) after 5 weeks. In autoclaved microcosms, the viability of E. faecalis decreased by only 20% in 5 weeks. In contrast, the content of Tn916, based on PCR of DNA extracts from soil microcosms, decreased by about 20% in both native and autoclaved microcosms. Similar results were obtained when the source of fecal enterococci and Tn916-like elements was swine waste. Because the concentration of Tn916-independent E. faecalis DNA (the D-alanine D-alanine ligase gene), based on PCR, decreased to nearly undetectable levels (at least 3 orders of magnitude) after 5 weeks in the native microcosms, the evidence suggests Tn916 stability in the soil results from en masse transfer of the transposon to the normal soil microflora and not survival of E. faecalis DNA in the soil system. Results from denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis suggest that multiple forms of Tn916 occur in swine waste, but only forms most like Tn916 exhibit stability in the soil.