• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.22 no.9
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• pp.1279-1287
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• 2012

We established an efficient transformation method for thermophile Geobacillus kaustophilus HTA426 using conjugative transfer from Escherichia coli of host-mimicking plasmids that imitate DNA methylation of strain HTA426 to circumvent its DNA restriction barriers. Two conjugative plasmids, pSTE33T and pUCG18T, capable of shuttling between E. coli and Geobacillus spp., were constructed. The plasmids were first introduced into E. coli BR408, which expressed one inherent DNA methylase gene (dam) and two heterologous methylase genes from strain HTA426 (GK1380-GK1381 and GK0343-GK0344). The plasmids were then directly transferred from E. coli cells to strain HTA426 by conjugative transfer using pUB307 or pRK2013 as a helper plasmid. pUCG18T was introduced very efficiently (transfer efficiency, $10^{-5}-10^{-3}\;recipient^{-1}$). pSTE33T showed lower efficiency ($10^{-7}-10^{-6}\;recipient^{-1}$) but had a high copy number and high segregational stability. Methylase genes in the donor substantially affected the transfer efficiency, demonstrating that the host-mimicking strategy contributes to efficient transformation. The transformation method, along with the two distinguishing plasmids, increases the potential of G. kaustophilus HTA426 as a thermophilic host to be used in various applications and as a model for biological studies of this genus. Our results also demonstrate that conjugative transfer is a promising approach for introducing exogenous DNA into thermophiles.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.17 no.1
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• pp.162-167
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• 2007

A genetic transfer system for introducing foreign genes to biomining microorganisms is urgently needed. Thus, a conjugative gene transfer system was investigated for a moderately thermophilic, extremely acidophilic biomining bacterium, Acidithiobacillus caldus MTH-04. The broad-hostrange IncP plasmids RP4 and R68.45 were transferred directly into A. caldus MTH-04 from Escherichia coli by conjugation at relatively high frequencies. Additionally the broad-hostrange IncQ plasmids pJRD215, pVLT33, and pVLT35 were also transferred into A. caldus MTH-04 with the help of plasmid RP4 or strains with plasmid RP4 integrated into their chromosome, such as E. coli SM10. The $Km^r\;and\;Sm^r$ selectable markers from these plasmids were successfully expressed in A. caldus MTH-04. Futhermore, the IncP and IncQ plasmids were transferred back into E. coli cells from A. caldus MTH-04, thereby confirming the initial transfer of these plasmids from E. coli to A. caldus MTH-04. All the IncP and IncQ plasmids studied were stable in A. caldus MTH-04. Consequently, this development of a conjugational system for A. caldus MTH-04 will greatly facilitate its genetic study.

• Korean Journal of Veterinary Research
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• v.29 no.2
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• pp.59-67
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• 1989

This paper deals with the genetic properties of R plasmids in Salmonella originated from pigs and cattle. The plasmid DNA was examined for incompatibility, stability and fertility inhibition(Fi), and gel electrophoresis was performed for isolation of plasmid DNA. The results obtained were summerized as follows: 1. Among the 66 conjugative R plasmids from 44 pigs and 22 cattle, 61 R plasmids (92.4%) were $Fi^-$, whereas the remainder were $Fi^+$. 2. The Inc groups of 66 R plasmids were determined with 7 standard plasmids. Twenty-six R plasmids were classified into Inc group $I{\alpha}$, H1, H2 or F1, 40 R plasmids being not classified with standard plasmids used, and the Inc group $I{\alpha}$ (57.7%) was most frequent. 3. Inc groups $I{\alpha}$, H1, and F1 were identified in strains from swine, Inc groups H2 and F1 from cattle. 4. The plasmid DNA profiles in 16 Salmonella isolated from pigs and cattle were confirmed as being 1 to 10 fragments by the gel eletrophoresis. Their molecular weight ranged 1.0 to 90 megadalton. 5. The molecular weight of conjugative plasmids ranged 1.0 to 80 megadalton in 4 Salmonella (P-4, P-5, P-7 and P-8) isolated from pigs.

• The Journal of the Korean Society for Microbiology
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.95-99
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• 1987

When tetracycline resistancy were cured by ethidium bromide treatment, some of the cured strains lost the tetracycline resistance plasmid while other strains kept the plasmids. Both strains of lost and remained plasmids were digested with restriction endonuclease Hind III and these cleaved plasmids were compared with that of parent strains, two plasmid remained strains showed same cleavage patterns between parent and cured strains, however, one plasmid lost strain showed dissimilarity with parent strain, but in the other one strain, among 4 plasmid lost colonies, 2 showed same but other 2 showed different patterns compared to parent strain. Tetracycline was transfered by conjugation in on set(Staphylococcus aureus donor versus Staphylococcus epidermidis, recipient) with relative high frequency but the other 2 sets showed a low degree of frequency and the other 2 sets exhibited no transfer.

• Korean Journal Plant Pathology
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• v.12 no.2
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• pp.156-161
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• 1996

세계적으로 구리약제에 대해서 저항성을 나타내는 균주들이 발견되있으며, 이들은 구리약제의 방제효과를 감소시켰다. 국내에서도, 구리 저항성 균주 Xanthomonas campestris. pv. vesicatoria HN94-2, -3, -4, -5, -6 들이 천안지역의 고추재배지에서 처음으로 분리되었으며, 이들 균주들의 nutrient agar에서 황산구리(CuSo\ulcorner)에 대한 최소억제농도(minimum inhibitory concentration, MIC)는 1.4~1.6 mM이었다. 이들은 모두 황산아연(ZnSO\ulcorner)에 대해서는 감수성을 보여, 구리저항성 균주에 대한 방제약제로서 아연 함유 약제를 사용할 수 있을 것이다. 분리된 균주중 HN94-2와 HN94-6을 이용하여 접합(conjugation)을 통해 구리저항성의 전파를 실험한 결과, 이들 두 균주 모두 구리감수성 균주에게 4.3$\times$10\ulcorner에서 1.0$\times$10\ulcorner(transconjugant/donor)의 정도로 구리 저항성이 전이되었다. 이들 HN94-2와 HN94-6 균주의 구리정항성 유전자들은 약 200 kb 정도의 커다란 플라스미드(plasmid)에 존재하며, 이들은 각각 pXVK9402와 pXVK9406이라 명명되었다.

• Korean Journal of Veterinary Research
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• v.28 no.2
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• pp.331-337
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• 1988

This paper dealt with the distribution of Salmonella (S) infection on 4 herds in Kyungju and Taegu during the period from May to October 1986. Isolated Salmonella were examined for serotypes, antimicrobial drug resistance and detection of R plasmid. The results obtained were summarised as followings: 1. Of total 4.622 samples from 4 herds, 67 Salmonella were isolated from 51 samples(1.1%), and their serovar strains were S typhimurium 6, S derby 5, S infantis 4, S bareilly 4, S dublin 3, S anatum 2, S montevideo 2 and untypable 41. 2. The isolation rate of Salmonella was higher in summer and autumn. 3. Of the 67 strains examined, 45 (67.2%) were resistant to one or more antibiotics, such as ampicillin (Am), cephalothin (Ce), chloramphenicol (Cm), rifampicin (Rf), sulfadimethoxine (Su), and tetracycline (Tc), and higher resistant to Sm (40.2%), Ce (31.3%), Am (23.9%). 4. Of the 45 resistant Salmonella strains, 44 (97.8%) harbored conjugative R plasmids and the transfer frequency of Sm (100%), Ce (95.2%), Tc (91.0%) and Su (80.0%) resistance was much higher than that of the other drug resistance. 5. The most common resistant patterns were Sm, Ce, AmCeCmSmSuTc, and AmCe. 6. In 4 herds, the incidience of drug resistance was 57.7%~100% and transfer frequency of conjugative R plasmid was 96.1%~100%.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Agriculture
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• v.42 no.4
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• pp.269-278
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• 2023

Antibiotics either kill or inhibit the growth of bacteria. However, antibiotic-resistant bacteria are difficult to treat with antibiotics. Infections caused by such bacteria often lead to severe diseases. Antibiotic resistance genes (ARG) can be horizontally transmitted across different bacterial species, necessitating a comprehensive understanding of how ARGs spread across various environments. In this study, we analyzed the plasmid sequences of 33 extended-spectrum beta-lactamases (ESBL) producing Escherichia coli isolated from pigs, farms, and their owners. We conducted an antibiotic susceptibility test (AST) with aztreonam and seven other antibiotics, as well as whole genome sequencing (WGS) of the strains using MinION. Our results demonstrated that the plasmids that did not harbor ARGs were mostly non-conjugative, whereas the plasmids that harbored ARGs were conjugative. The arrangement of these ARGs exhibited a pattern of organization featuring a series of ARG cassettes, some of which were identical across the isolates collected from different sources. Therefore, this study suggests that the sets of ARG cassettes on plasmids were mostly shared between pigs and their owners. Hence, enhanced surveillance of ARG should be implemented in farm environments to proactively mitigate the risk of antibiotic-resistant bacterial infections.

• Korean Journal of Veterinary Research
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• v.30 no.2
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• pp.203-214
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• 1990

A total of 166 strains of Salmonella (S) typhimurium var copenhagen isolated from pigeons (164 strains) and aquatic birds (2 strains) were examined for the biochemical characteristics and plasmid profiles. All the strains were sensitive to ampicillin, chloramphenicol, gentamicin, kanamycin and sulfadimethoxine. But 13 strains(7.8%) were resistant to streptomycin (Sm), 2 (1.2%) to tetracycline, 2 (1.2%) to rifampicin, and 1 (0.6%) to nalidixic acid. Among drug resistant strains, only one strain resistant to Sm contained conjugative R plasmid which was fertility inhibition and incompatibility group $I_{\alpha}$. All the strains were sensitive to cobalt chloride, cupric sulfate, lead nitrate, mercuric chloride and silver nitrate. Of 166 isolates, 6 (3.6%) were resistant to sodium arsenate and 1 (0.6%) to potassium tellurite. Among 166 isolates, 1 (0.6%) was colicinogenic, 12 (7.2%) sucrose fermenters, and 166 (100%) maltose fermenters. Plasmid profiles were confirmed as being 4 or 5 plasmids, and their molecular weight ranged 3.2 to 60 megadalton (MD). All the strains harbored 60 Md plasmid. There are three patterns by the plasmid profile, 150 isolates (90.4%) were pattern I (3.2, 3.5, 33, 60Md), 14 (8.4%) pattern II (3.2, 3.5, 29, 60Md), and 2 (1.2%) pattern III (4.2, 7.8, 8.5, 15, 60Md). S typhimurium var copenhagen strains containing 60Md plasmid were resistant to killing by 90% normal guinea pig serum.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.27 no.9
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• pp.1711-1715
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• 2017

In this study, we characterized the $bla_{NDM-5}$-bearing plasmid in a Klebsiella pneumoniae isolate that had lost the plasmid during serial passage. We determined the complete sequences of the plasmid pCC1410-2, which was extracted from a K. pneumoniae ST709 isolate collected at a Korean hospital from which two NDM-5-producing K. pneumoniae isolates were subsequently isolated. As a result, the pCC1410-2 plasmid had a backbone structure that was similar to those of two plasmids previously reported from the same hospital, but lacked some antibiotic resistance genes ($bla_{TEM-1}$, rmtB, mphR(A), mrx(A), and mph(A)). A 9-bp repeating unit encoding three amino acids (Gln-Gln-Pro) was inserted in TraD in pCC1410-2. Thus, the pCC1410-2 plasmid might be transferred from the previously identified carbapenem-resistant K. pneumoniae, but some delections and inversions might have occurred during the process. We compared the transfer frequency and stability of the plasmids. The relative frequency of conjugative transfer and stability in the host were significantly lower in pCC1410-2 than in previously reported $bla_{NDM-5}$-bearing plasmids in Korea. A low transfer frequency and instability in the host may cause underestimation of carbapenemase-producing Enterobacteriaceae in the clinical setting and in surveillance studies.

• Korean Journal of Microbiology
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• v.52 no.1
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• pp.110-115
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• 2016

A small plasmid (pDK4) from the Antarctic marine organism Pseudoalteromonas sp. PAMC 21150, was purified, sequenced and analyzed. pDK4 was determined to be 3,480 bp in length with a G+C content of 41.64% and contains three open reading frames encoding a replication initiation protein (RepA), a conjugative mobilization protein (Mob) and a hypothetical protein. PCR-amplified pDK4 was cloned in high-copy pUC19 to yield the fusion vector pDOC153. The chloramphenicol resistance gene was inserted into pDOC153 to give an ampicillin and chloramphenicol-resistant, Pseudoalteromonas - Escherichia coli shuttle vector (7,216 bp; pDOC155). The TonB-dependent receptor (chi22718_IV ) and exochitinase (chi22718_III ) genes from Arctic marine P. issachenkonii PAMC 22718 were cloned into pDOC155 to produce pDOC158 and pDOC165, respectively. Both vector derivatives were transferred into plasmid-free Pseudoalteromonas sp. PAMC 22137 by the triparental mating method. PCR experiments showed that the genes were stably maintained both in Pseudoalteromonas sp. PAMC 22137 and E. coli $DH5{\alpha}$ cells, indicating the potential use of pDOC155 as a new gene transfer system into marine Pseudoalteromonas spp.