Molecular characterization of the rpoB gene in Brucella species: new potential molecular markers for genotyping.
The rpoB gene encoding the beta subunit of the DNA-dependent RNA polymerase was molecularly characterized by PCR amplification and DNA sequencing in 26 Brucella reference strains by using primers selected according to the B. melitensis 16 M rpoB published sequence. Comparison of the rpoB nucleotide sequence of all Brucella strains analysed revealed specific nucleotide variations associated with different Brucella species and biovars. 17 rpoB alleles were recognized and new Brucella typing is proposed. Our results suggest that the rpoB gene polymorphism can be used to identify all Brucella species and most of the biovars, offering an improvement over conventional typing methods.
Marianelli
Cinzia
C
Dipartimento di Sanità Alimentare ed Animale, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Viale Regina Elena 299, 00161 Rome, Italy. cinzia.marianelli@iss.it
Ciuchini
Franco
F
Tarantino
Michela
M
Pasquali
Paolo
P
Adone
Rosanna
R
D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000494:pharmacology; D001426:Bacterial Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D001483:Base Sequence; D002002:Brucella / Q000187:drug effects / Q000235:genetics*; D024881:Drug Resistance, Bacterial; D005798:Genes, Bacterial; D005819:Genetic Markers; D005838:Genotype; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D012293:Rifampin / Q000494:pharmacology
D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D001426:Bacterial Proteins; D005819:Genetic Markers; D012293:Rifampin