Investigation of the Actinobacillus actinomycetemcomitans genome by pulsed field gel electrophoresis.
Pulsed field gel electrophoresis was used to investigate nineteen strains of Actinobacillus actinomycetemcomitans. The genome was found to contain a single chromosome whose size we estimate to be 2300 kb from the sum of restriction fragments generated with rare cutting endonucleases. We detected the presence of large plasmids with sizes ranging from 35 to 300 kb. In some strains, extrachromosomal elements constitute over 20% of the total genome. Comparison of the profiles of ApaI digests of the 19 strains showed a high degree of polymorphism with 13 different profiles, providing a new tool for epidemiological studies.
Valcarcel
J
J
Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale, Unité 431, Faculté de Médecine, Nimes, France.
Allardet-Servent
A
A
Bourg
G
G
O'Callaghan
D
D
Michailesco
P
P
Ramuz
M
M
D016976:Aggregatibacter actinomycetemcomitans / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics*; D015373:Bacterial Typing Techniques; D002876:Chromosomes, Bacterial / Q000737:chemistry; D004262:DNA Restriction Enzymes; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000737:chemistry*; D016521:Electrophoresis, Gel, Pulsed-Field; D016680:Genome, Bacterial; D006801:Humans; D010518:Periodontitis / Q000382:microbiology; D010957:Plasmids / Q000737:chemistry; D012150:Polymorphism, Restriction Fragment Length
D004269:DNA, Bacterial; D004262:DNA Restriction Enzymes