title: Highly different levels of natural transformation are associated with genomic subgroups within a local population of Pseudomonas stutzeri from soil.
abstract: A highly sensitive and specific PCR-based method of monitoring 16S rRNA genes of Pseudomonas stutzeri was developed for searching P. stutzeri DNA in environmental samples. This monitoring was combined with a reliable and sensitive method for isolating P. stutzeri colony formers from soil and sediment, depending on their utilization of ethylene glycol, starch, and maltose. With these techniques, P. stutzeri populations (n = 2 to 170) were obtained from five of six sites giving positive PCR signals (including three marine sediment and two soil samples). The phylogenetic positions of isolates from the five sites, based on their 16S ribosomal DNA sequences, indicated that the environmental isolates were affiliated with different genomovars of P. stutzeri. Using the broad-host-range plasmid pNS1 with kanamycin and gentamicin resistance determinants as the transforming DNA, naturally transformable strains were identified among the isolates from all sites. For one population from soil, the genetic relationship of the 120 members was determined by randomly amplified polymorphic DNA-PCR with three PCR primers. Among the population members which are taxonomically closely related as determined by 16S sequence comparisons of group representatives, a rather high genetic diversity and a characteristic clustering into subgroups were found. Remarkably, within the population, nontransformability and different levels of transformability (a frequency between about 10(-9) and 10(-4) per cell) were often associated with distinct genetic subgroups. It is concluded that transformability is widespread among environmental P. stutzeri strains and that its specific level is a heritable trait that may vary strongly within a local population.
authors.affiliation: Genetics Section, Department of Biology, University of Oldenburg, D-26111 Oldenburg, Germany.
authors.forename: Johannes
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Sikorski
authors.forename: Nicole
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Teschner
authors.forename: Wilfried
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Wackernagel
mesh_terms: D004275:DNA, Ribosomal / Q000032:analysis; D016680:Genome, Bacterial; D019015:Geologic Sediments / Q000382:microbiology*; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010802:Phylogeny; D010957:Plasmids / Q000235:genetics; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction / Q000379:methods*; D011549:Pseudomonas / Q000235:genetics* / Q000254:growth & development / Q000302:isolation & purification; D012336:RNA, Ribosomal, 16S / Q000235:genetics*; D019105:Random Amplified Polymorphic DNA Technique; D012623:Seawater / Q000382:microbiology; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA; D012988:Soil Microbiology; D014169:Transformation, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: D004275:DNA, Ribosomal; D012336:RNA, Ribosomal, 16S