title: Molecular characterisation of a multidrug resistance conjugative plasmid from Vibrio parahaemolyticus.
abstract: Vibrio parahaemolyticus is a major causative agent of gastroenteritis and is the leading cause of food-borne illness in Hong Kong. Recent studies of resistance to extended-spectrum β-lactams and fluoroquinolones in V. parahaemolyticus have caused huge concern. This work reports the characterisation of a multidrug resistance conjugative plasmid in V. parahaemolyticus isolated from shrimp samples from Hong Kong. The plasmid is ca. 200 kb and carries multidrug resistance genes, including a novel plasmid-mediated quinolone resistance gene qnrVC6 surrounded by several known and novel insertion sequence (IS) elements, an extended-spectrum β-lactamase gene bla(PER-1) mediated by ISCR1, and a ca. 3-kb four-gene cassette (aacA3, catB2, dfrA1 and aadA1) class 1 integron. Transmission of this multidrug resistance conjugative plasmid among Vibrio spp. would compromise the effectiveness of Vibrio infection control and pose a huge threat to public health.
authors.affiliation: Department of Applied Biology and Chemical Technology, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hung Hom, Kowloon, Hong Kong; Food Safety and Technology Research Center, Hong Kong PolyU Shenzhen Research Institute, Shenzhen, PR China.
authors.forename: Ming
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Marcus Ho Yin
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Wong
authors.forename: Sheng
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Chen
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D003227:Conjugation, Genetic; D003445:Crustacea / Q000382:microbiology; D004251:DNA Transposable Elements; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics; D024901:Drug Resistance, Multiple, Bacterial; D006723:Hong Kong; D006801:Humans; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010957:Plasmids; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA; D014736:Vibrio parahaemolyticus / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000235:genetics* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D001618:beta-Lactamases / Q000235:genetics
chemical_list: D004251:DNA Transposable Elements; D004269:DNA, Bacterial; D001618:beta-Lactamases
keywords: Multidrug resistance; Novel integron; Vibrio parahaemolyticus; bla(PER-1); qnrVC6