Identification and characterization of a shuttle plasmid with antibiotic resistance gene from Staphylococcus aureus.
While studying antibiotic-resistant plasmids from multi-drug-resistant nosocomial Staphylococcus aureus strains, we isolated a small (2.889 kb) chloramphenicol-resistant (Cm(r)) plasmid, which was designated as pMC524/MBM. The molecular size of pMC524/MBM was close to that of pC194 (2.910 kb), a well-known Cm(r) staphylococcal plasmid. Unlike pC194, this plasmid can replicate and express itself efficiently and stably in Escherichia coli. However, Cm is needed for stable maintenance of pMC524/MBM in different hosts. In this study, the nucleotide sequences of these two plasmids were compared after sequencing of pMC524/MBM [EMBL Accession No. AJ312056 SAU312056]. Although these two plasmids have striking nucleotide sequence homology, the Plus Origin, Minus Origin, the replication protein (Rep), and the chloramphenicol acetyl transferase (Cat) have considerable variations. Possibly, these changes have modulated pMC524/MBM into an efficient shuttle-plasmid.
Department of Physiology, University of Calcutta, University Colleges of Science & Technology, 92, Acharya Prafulla Chandra Road, Kolkata-700009, India.
Mausumi
M
Bhakta
Manjusri
M
Bal
D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D001483:Base Sequence; D015139:Blotting, Southern; D015500:Chloramphenicol O-Acetyltransferase / Q000235:genetics; D024901:Drug Resistance, Multiple, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics*; D005822:Genetic Vectors / Q000235:genetics; D006801:Humans; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D011815:R Factors / Q000235:genetics*; D018741:Replication Origin / Q000235:genetics; D012689:Sequence Homology, Nucleic Acid; D013211:Staphylococcus aureus / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D014169:Transformation, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics
D015500:Chloramphenicol O-Acetyltransferase