title: Mycoplasma pneumoniae large DNA repetitive elements RepMP1 show type specific organization among strains.
abstract: Mycoplasma pneumoniae is the smallest self-replicating bacterium with a streamlined genome of 0.81 Mb. Complete genome analysis revealed the presence of multiple copies of four large repetitive elements (designated RepMP1, RepMP2/3, RepMP4 and RepMP5) that are implicated in creating sequence variations among individual strains. Recently, we described RepMP1-associated sequence variations between reference strain M129 and clinical isolate S1 that involved three RepMP1-genes (i.e. mpn130, mpn137 and mpn138). Using PCR and sequencing we analyze 28 additional M. pneumoniae strains and demonstrate the existence of S1-like sequence variants in nine strains and M129-like variants in the remaining nineteen strains. We propose a series of recombination steps that facilitates transition from M129- to S1-like sequence variants. Next we examined the remaining RepMP1-genes and observed no other rearrangements related to the repeat element. The only other detected difference was varying numbers of the 21-nucleotide tandem repeats within mpn127, mpn137, mpn501 and mpn524. Furthermore, typing of strains through analysis of large RepMPs localized within the adhesin P1 operon revealed that sequence divergence involving RepMP1-genes mpn130, mpn137 and mpn138 is strictly type-specific. Once more our analysis confirmed existence of two highly conserved groups of M. pneumoniae strains.
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology and Immunology, The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, Texas, United States of America. musatovova@gmail.com
authors.forename: Oxana
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Musatovova
authors.forename: T R
authors.initials: TR
authors.lastname: Kannan
authors.forename: Joel B
authors.initials: JB
authors.lastname: Baseman
mesh_terms: D002876:Chromosomes, Bacterial; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics*; D017353:Gene Deletion; D023061:Gene Order; D005798:Genes, Bacterial; D014644:Genetic Variation; D009177:Mycoplasma pneumoniae / Q000235:genetics*; D011995:Recombination, Genetic; D012091:Repetitive Sequences, Nucleic Acid; D020080:Tandem Repeat Sequences
chemical_list: D004269:DNA, Bacterial