The diversity of mercury reductases among mercury-resistant bacteria. - Related Documents




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36501.0000The diversity of mercury reductases among mercury-resistant bacteria. Two immunologically non-cross-reactive types of mercury reductases were found among Gram-negative and two among Gram-positive mercury-resistant environmental bacteria. Mercury reductases were further discriminated by 'spur' formation immunodiffusion tests. Immunologically indistinguishable mercury reductases were found among strains belonging to phylogenetically distant genera. This suggests a horizontal transfer of mercury resistance genes between these strains.19883134258
450310.9996Evolution and transfer of aminoglycoside resistance genes under natural conditions. 3'-Aminoglycoside phosphotransferases [APH(3')] were chosen as a model to study the evolution and the transfer of aminoglycoside resistance genes under natural conditions. Comparison of the amino acid sequences of APH(3') enzymes from transposons Tn903 (type I) and Tn5 (type II) detected in Gram-negative bacteria, from the Gram-positive Staphylococcus and Streptococcus (type III), from the butirosin-producing Bacillus circulans (type IV) and from a neomycin-producing Streptomyces fradiae (type V) indicate that they have diverged from a common ancestor. These structural data support the hypothesis that the antibiotic-producing strains were the source of certain resistance determinants. We have shown that kanamycin resistance in Campylobacter coli BM2509 was due to the synthesis of an APH(3')-III, an enzyme not detected previously in a Gram-negative bacterium. The genes encoding APH(3')-III in Streptococcus and Campylobacter are identical. These findings constitute evidence for a recent in-vivo transfer of DNA between Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria.19863027020
44220.9996Mercuric reductase in environmental gram-positive bacteria sensitive to mercury. According to existing data, mercury resistance operons (mer operons) are in general thought to be rare in bacteria, other than those from mercury-contaminated sites. We have found that a high proportion of strains in environmental isolates of Gram-positive bacteria express mercuric reductase (MerA protein): the majority of these strains are apparently sensitive to mercury. The expression of MerA was also inducible in all cases. These results imply the presence of phenotypically cryptic mer resistance operons, with both the merA (mercuric reductase) and merR (regulatory) genes still present, but the possible absence of the transport function required to complete the resistance mechanism. This indicates that mer operons or parts thereof are more widely spread in nature than is suggested by the frequency of mercury-resistant bacteria.19921427009
44130.9996Preparation of a DNA gene probe for detection of mercury resistance genes in gram-negative bacterial communities. A DNA gene probe was prepared to study genetic change mechanisms responsible for adaptation to mercury in natural bacterial communities. The probe was constructed from a 2.6-kilobase NcoI-EcoRI DNA restriction fragment which spans the majority of the mercury resistance operon (mer) in the R-factor R100. The range of specificity of this gene probe was defined by hybridization to the DNA of a wide variety of mercury-resistant bacteria previously shown to possess the mercuric reductase enzyme. All of the tested gram-negative bacteria had DNA sequences homologous to the mer probe, whereas no such homologies were detected in DNA of the gram-positive strains. Thus, the mer probe can be utilized to study gene flow processes in gram-negative bacterial communities.19853994373
449940.9995Organization of two sulfonamide resistance genes on plasmids of gram-negative bacteria. The organization of two widely distributed sulfonamide resistance genes has been studied. The type I gene was linked to other resistance genes, like streptomycin resistance in R100 and trimethoprim resistance in R388 and other recently isolated plasmids from Sri Lanka. In R388, the sulfonamide resistance gene was transcribed from a promoter of its own, but in all other studied plasmids the linked genes were transcribed from a common promoter. This was especially established with a clone derived from plasmid R6-5, in which transposon mutagenesis showed that expression of sulfonamide resistance was completely dependent on the linked streptomycin resistance gene. The type II sulfonamide resistance gene was independently transcribed and found on two kinds of small resistance plasmids and also on large plasmids isolated from clinical material.19873032095
36450.9995Stenotrophomonas maltophilia D457R contains a cluster of genes from gram-positive bacteria involved in antibiotic and heavy metal resistance. A cluster of genes involved in antibiotic and heavy metal resistance has been characterized from a clinical isolate of the gram-negative bacterium Stenotrophomonas maltophilia. These genes include a macrolide phosphotransferase (mphBM) and a cadmium efflux determinant (cadA), together with the gene cadC coding for its transcriptional regulator. The cadC cadA region is flanked by a truncated IS257 sequence and a region coding for a bin3 invertase. Despite their presence in a gram-negative bacterium, these genetic elements share a common gram-positive origin. The possible origin of these determinants as a remnant composite transposon as well as the role of gene transfer between gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria for the acquisition of antibiotic resistance determinants in chronic, mixed infections is discussed.200010858330
48560.9995Role of plasmids in mercury transformation by bacteria isolated from the aquatic environment. Eight mercury-resistant bacterial strains isolated from the Chesapeake Bay and one strain isolated from the Cayman Trench were examined for ability to volatilize mercury. Mercury volatilization was found to be variable in the strains tested. In addition, plasmids were detected in all strains. After curing, two of the bacterial strains lost mercury resistance, indicating that volatilization is plasmid mediated in these strains. Only two cultures demonstrated ability to methylate mercuric chloride under either aerobic or anaerobic conditions. Methylation of mercury, compared with volatilization, appears to be mediated by a separate genetic system in these bacteria. It is concluded that mercury volatilization in the estuarine environment can be mediated by genes carried on plasmids.1979533275
48670.9995Detection of heavy metal ion resistance genes in gram-positive and gram-negative bacteria isolated from a lead-contaminated site. Resistance to a range of heavy metal ions was determined for lead-resistant and other bacteria which had been isolated from a battery-manufacturing site contaminated with high concentration of lead. Several Gram-positive (belonging to the genera Arthrobacter and Corynebacterium) and Gram-negative (Alcaligenes species) isolates were resistant to lead, mercury, cadmium, cobalt, zinc and copper, although the levels of resistance to the different metal ions were specific for each isolate. Polymerase chain reaction, DNA-DNA hybridization and DNA sequencing were used to explore the nature of genetic systems responsible for the metal resistance in eight of the isolates. Specific DNA sequences could be amplified from the genomic DNA of all the isolates using primers for sections of the mer (mercury resistance determinant on the transposon Tn501) and pco (copper resistance determinant on the plasmid pRJ1004) genetic systems. Positive hybridizations with mer and pco probes indicated that the amplified segments were highly homologous to these genes. Some of the PCR products were cloned and partially sequenced, and the regions sequenced were highly homologous to the appropriate regions of the mer and pco determinants. These results demonstrate the wide distribution of mercury and copper resistance genes in both Gram-positive and Gram-negative isolates obtained from this lead-contaminated soil. In contrast, the czc (cobalt, zinc and cadmium resistance) and chr (chromate resistance) genes could not be amplified from DNAs of some isolates, indicating the limited contribution, if any, of these genetic systems to the metal ion resistance of these isolates.19979342884
49380.9994Mercury resistance transposons of gram-negative environmental bacteria and their classification. A total of 29 mercury resistance transposons were isolated from mercury-resistant environmental strains of proteobacteria collected in different parts of Eurasia and the USA and tested for hybridization with probes specific for transposase genes of known mercury resistance transposons. 9 were related to Tn21 in this test, 12 were related to Tn5053, 4 to Tn5041 and 1 to Tn5044; three transposons were negative in this test. Restriction mapping and DNA sequencing revealed that 12 transposons were identical or nearly identical to their corresponding relatives while the rest showed varying divergence from their closest relatives. Most of these previously unknown transposons apparently arose as a result of homologous or site-specific recombination. One of these, Tn5046, was completely sequenced, and shown to be a chimera with the mer operon and the transposition module derived from the transposons related to Tn5041 and to Tn5044, respectively. Transposon Tn5070, showing no hybridization with the specific probes used in this study, was also completely sequenced. The transposition module of Tn5070 was most closely related to that of Tn3 while the mer operon was most closely related to that of plasmid pMERPH. The merR of Tn5070 is transcribed in the same direction as the mer structural genes, which is typical for mer operons of gram-positive bacteria. Our data suggest that environmental bacteria may harbor many not yet recognized mercury resistance transposons and warrant their further inventory.200111763242
982190.9994Mercury resistance (mer) operons in enterobacteria. Mercury resistance is found in many genera of bacteria. Common amongst enterobacteria are transposons related to Tn21, which is both mercuric ion- and streptomycin-/spectinomycin- and sulphonamide-resistant. Other Tn21-related transposons often have different antibiotic resistances compared with Tn21, but share many non-antibiotic-resistance genes with it. In this article we discuss possible mechanisms for the evolution of Tn21 and related genetic elements.200212196175
4465100.9994Genetic analyses of sulfonamide resistance and its dissemination in gram-negative bacteria illustrate new aspects of R plasmid evolution. In contrast to what has been observed for many other antibiotic resistance mechanisms, there are only two known genes encoding plasmid-borne sulfonamide resistance. Both genes, sulI and sulII, encode a drug-resistant dihydropteroate synthase enzyme. In members of the family Enterobacteriaceae isolated from several worldwide sources, plasmid-mediated resistance to sulfonamides could be identified by colony hybridization as being encoded by sulI, sulII, or both. The sulI gene was in all cases found to be located in the newly defined, mobile genetic element, recently named an integron, which has been shown to contain a site-specific recombination system for the integration of various antibiotic resistance genes. The sulII gene was almost exclusively found as part of a variable resistance region on small, nonconjugative plasmids. Colony hybridization to an intragenic probe, restriction enzyme digestion, and nucleotide sequence analysis of small plasmids indicated that the sulII gene and contiguous sequences represent an independently occurring region disseminated in the bacterial population. The sulII resistance region was bordered by direct repeats, which in some plasmids were totally or partially deleted. The prevalence of sulI and sulII could thus be accounted for by their stable integration in transposons and in plasmids that are widely disseminated among gram-negative bacteria.19911952855
4501110.9994A Bacteroides tetracycline resistance gene represents a new class of ribosome protection tetracycline resistance. The ribosome protection type of tetracycline resistance (Tcr) has been found in a variety of bacterial species, but the only two classes described previously, Tet(M) and Tet(O), shared a high degree of amino acid sequence identity (greater than 75%). Thus, it appeared that this type of resistance emerged recently in evolution and spread among different species of bacteria by horizontal transmission. We obtained the DNA sequence of a Tcr gene from Bacteroides, a genus of gram-negative, obligately anaerobic bacteria that is phylogenetically distant from the diverse species in which tet(M) and tet(O) have been found. The Bacteroides Tcr gene defines a new class of ribosome protection resistance genes, Tet(Q), and has a deduced amino acid sequence that was only 40% identical to Tet(M) or Tet(O). Like tet(M) and tet(O), tet(Q) appears to have spread by horizontal transmission, but only within the Bacteroides group.19921339256
4500120.9994Mosaic tetracycline resistance genes encoding ribosomal protection proteins. First reported in 2003, mosaic tetracycline resistance genes are a subgroup of the genes encoding ribosomal protection proteins (RPPs). They are formed when two or more RPP-encoding genes recombine resulting in a functional chimera. To date, the majority of mosaic genes are derived from sections of three RPP genes, tet(O), tet(W) and tet(32), with others comprising tet(M) and tet(S). In this first review of mosaic genes, we report on their structure, diversity and prevalence, and suggest that these genes may be responsible for an under-reported contribution to tetracycline resistance in bacteria.201627494928
483130.9993Present-day mercury resistance transposons are common in bacteria preserved in permafrost grounds since the Upper Pleistocene. Transposons closely related to mercury resistance transposons Tn5041, Tn5053, and Tn5056, which have been previously described in present-day bacteria, were detected in a survey of 12 mercury-resistant Pseudomonas strains isolated from permafrost samples aged 15-40 thousand years. In addition, Tn5042, a novel type of mercury resistance transposon, was revealed in the permafrost strain collection and its variants found to be common among present-day bacteria. The results reveal that no drastic changes in the distribution mode of the different types of mercury resistance transposons among environmental bacteria have taken place in the last 15-40 thousand years.200516084067
4497140.9993Detection and expression analysis of tet(B) in Streptococcus oralis. Tetracycline resistance can be achieved through tet genes, which code for efflux pumps, ribosomal protection proteins and inactivation enzymes. Some of these genes have only been described in either Gram-positive or Gram-negative bacteria. This is the case of tet(B), which codes for an efflux pump and, so far, had only been found in Gram-negative bacteria. In this study, tet(B) was detected in two clinical Streptococcus oralis strains isolated from the gingival sulci of two subjects. In both cases, the gene was completely sequenced, yielding 100% shared identity and coverage with other previously published sequences of tet(B). Moreover, we studied the expression of tet(B) using RT-qPCR in the isolates grown with and without tetracycline, detecting constitutive expression in only one of the isolates, with no signs of expression in the other one. This is the first time that the presence and expression of the tet(B) gene has been confirmed in Gram-positive bacteria, which highlights the potential of the genus Streptococcus to become a reservoir and a disseminator of antibiotic resistance genes in an environment so prone to horizontal gene transfer as is the oral biofilm.201931448060
4466150.9993Antibiotic resistance in gram-negative bacteria: the role of gene cassettes and integrons. Resistance of gram-negative organisms to antibiotics such as beta-lactams, aminoglycosides, trimethoprim and chloramphenicol is caused by many different acquired genes, and a substantial proportion of these are part of small mobile elements known as gene cassettes. A gene cassette consists of the gene and a downstream sequence, known as a 59-base element (59-be), that acts as a specific recombination site. Gene cassettes can move into or out of a specific receptor site (attl site) in a companion element called an integron, and integration or excision of the cassettes is catalysed by a site-specific recombinase (Intl) that is encoded by the integron. At present count there are 40 different cassette-associated resistance genes and three distinct classes of integron, each encoding a distinct Intl integrase. The same cassettes are found in all three classes of integron, indicating that cassettes can move freely between different integrons. Integrons belonging to class I often contain a further antibiotic resistance gene, sull, conferring resistance to sulphonamides. The sull gene is found in a conserved region (3'-CS) that is not present in all members of this class. Class I integrons of the sull type are most prevalent in clinical isolates and have been found in many different organisms. Even though most of them are defective transposon derivatives, having lost at least one of the transposition genes, they are none the less translocatable and consequently found in many different locations. The transposon Tn7 is the best known representative of class 2 integrons, and Tn7 and relatives are also found in many different species.199816904397
9865160.9993A plasmid-encoded mobile genetic element from Pseudomonas aeruginosa that confers heavy metal resistance and virulence. Mobile plasmid-encoded elements are DNA segments that are transferred for horizontal gene transfer and that confer adaptive proprieties, as well as virulence and antibiotic and heavy metal resistance to bacteria. The conjugative plasmid pUM505, isolated from a clinical strain of Pseudomonas aeruginosa, possesses a putative 31.292 kb mobile element (denominated Mpe: Mobile plasmid- encoded element) that, in addition to possessing chr genes that confer chromate resistance to Pseudomonas, contains two putative mer operons that could confer mercury resistance. Moreover, the Mpe contains genes related previously with the virulence of both P. aeruginosa and Escherichia coli strains. In this work, we determined that Mpe from pUM505 was able to independently move to another DNA molecule, conferring chromate and mercury resistance to P. aeruginosa PAO1 and mercury resistance to E. coli JM101, suggesting that its transference might be beneficial to bacteria under certain environmental conditions. Additionally, the transference of Mpe increased the virulence of P. aeruginosa PAO1 against the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans, suggesting its contribution to the pathogenicity of P. aeruginosa. In this work, we describe a new mobile plasmid-encoded element that possesses the potential to be transferred by horizontal gene transference, which could provide bacteria with a wide variety of adaptive traits such as heavy metal resistance and virulence, which can be selective factors for the distribution and prevalence of this plasmid in diverse environments, including hospitals and heavy metal contaminated soils.201830063910
4467170.9993PCR mapping of integrons reveals several novel combinations of resistance genes. The integron is a new type of mobile element which has evolved by a site-specific recombinational mechanism. Integrons consist of two conserved segments of DNA separated by a variable region containing one or more genes integrated as cassettes. Oligonucleotide probes specific for the conserved segments have revealed that integrons are widespread in recently isolated clinical bacteria. Also, by using oligonucleotide probes for several antibiotic resistance genes, we have found novel combinations of resistance genes in these strains. By using PCR, we have determined the content and order of the resistance genes inserted between the conserved segments in the integrons of these clinical isolates. PCR mapping of integrons can be a useful epidemiological tool to study the evolution of multiresistance plasmids and transposons and dissemination of antibiotic resistance genes.19957695304
4524180.9993Functional genomics in Campylobacter coli identified a novel streptomycin resistance gene located in a hypervariable genomic region. Numerous aminoglycoside resistance genes have been reported in Campylobacter spp. often resembling those from Gram-positive bacterial species and located in transferable genetic elements with other resistance genes. We discovered a new streptomycin (STR) resistance gene in Campylobactercoli showing 27-34 % amino acid identity to aminoglycoside 6-nucleotidyl-transferases described previously in Campylobacter. STR resistance was verified by gene expression and insertional inactivation. This ant-like gene differs from the previously described aminoglycoside resistance genes in Campylobacter spp. in several aspects. It does not appear to originate from Gram-positive bacteria and is located in a region corresponding to a previously described hypervariable region 14 of C. jejuni with no other known resistance genes detected in close proximity. Finally, it does not belong to a multiple drug resistance plasmid or transposon. This novel ant-like gene appears widely spread among C. coli as it is found in strains originating both from Europe and the United States and from several, apparently unrelated, hosts and environmental sources. The closest homologue (60 % amino acid identity) was found in certain C. jejuni and C. coli strains in a similar genomic location, but an association with STR resistance was not detected. Based on the findings presented here, we hypothesize that Campylobacter ant-like gene A has originated from a common ancestral proto-resistance element in Campylobacter spp., possibly encoding a protein with a different function. In conclusion, whole genome sequencing allowed us to fill in a knowledge gap concerning STR resistance in C. coli by revealing a novel STR resistance gene possibly inherent to Campylobacter.201627154456
487190.9993Chromosome-encoded inducible copper resistance in Pseudomonas strains. Nine Pseudomonas strains were selected by their high copper tolerance from a population of bacteria isolated from heavy-metal polluted zones. Copper resistance (Cu(r)) was inducible by previous exposure of cultures to subinhibitory amounts of copper sulfate. All nine strains possessed large plasmids, but transformation and curing results suggest that Cu(r) is conferred by chromosomal genes. Plasmid-less Pseudomonas aeruginosa PAO-derived strains showed the same level of Cu(r) as environmental isolates and their resistance to copper was also inducible. Total DNA from the environmental Pseudomonas, as well as from P. aeruginosa PAO strains, showed homology to a Cu(r) P. syringae cop probe at low-stringency conditions but failed to hybridize at high-stringency conditions.19958572680