Genome conservation in Helicobacter mustelae as determined by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis |
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Authors: | Diane E. Taylor Nicholas Chang Nancy S. Taylor James G. Fox |
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Affiliation: | Department of Medical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, 1–28 Medical Sciences Building, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada T6G 2H7; Division of Comparative Medicine, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA |
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Abstract: | Abstract Genomic DNA from 15 strains of Helicobacter mustelae was subjected to pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) after digestion with Pac I and S fi I. H. mustelae genome DNA appeared very similar in all strains examined, whether isolated from ferrets or mink or from animals bred in either the USA or in the UK. The H. mustelae genome size was estimated to be 1.7 Mb, similar in size to that of H. pylori . A minor difference in PacI PFGE pattern and genome size was observed between rifampicin-resistant and rifampicin-susceptible derivatives of H. mustelae F251. Another minor difference in genome pattern based on PFGE with S fi I was observed between an H. mustelae strain used to experimentally infect four ferrets which resulted in loss of an S fi I site in strains obtained from the newly infected ferrets. Thus, although minor differences in PFGE pattern were noted, H. mustelae lacks the genomic diversity observed in H. pylori . |
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Keywords: | Helicobacter mustelae Pulsed-field gel electrophoresis Animal models Genome diversity |
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