Self-Conjugation of the EnteropathogenicEscherichia coliAdherence Factor Plasmid of Four Typical EPEC Isolates

The enteropathogenicEscherichia coli(EPEC) adherence factor plasmid (pEAF) encodes the proteins involved in the biogenesis of the bundle-forming pilus (BFP), a key virulence factor that mediates microcolony formation and the localized adherence phenotype on the surface of the host enterocytes. The presence or absence of this plasmid defines typical EPEC (tEPEC) and atypical EPEC (aEPEC), respectively. Although lateral transfer of pEAF has been evidenced by phylogenetic studies, conjugal transfer ability has been experimentally established only for two pEAF plasmids from strains isolated in the late 60s. In the present work, we tested the self-conjugation ability of four pEAF plasmids from tEPEC strains isolated between 2007 and 2008 from children in Peru and the potential of aEPEC to receive them. A kanamycin resistance cassette was inserted into donor pEAF plasmids in order to provide a selectable marker in the conjugation experiments. Two aEPEC isolated from the same geographic region were used as recipient strains along with the laboratoryE. coliDH5αstrain. Here we show that the four pEAF plasmids tested are self-conjugative, with transfer frequencies in the range of 10−6to 10−9. Moreover, the generation of aEPEC strains harboring pEAF plasmids provides valuable specimens to further perform functional studies.

Kanamycin Resistance Cassette for Genetic Manipulation of Treponema denticola

ABSTRACTTreponema denticolahas been recognized as an important oral pathogen of the “red complex” bacterial consortium that is associated with the pathogenesis of endodontal and periodontal diseases. However, little is known about the virulence ofT. denticoladue to its recalcitrant genetic system. The difficulty in genetically manipulating oral spirochetes is partially due to the lack of antibiotic resistance cassettes that are useful for gene complementation following allelic replacement mutagenesis. In this study, a kanamycin resistance cassette was identified and developed for the genetic manipulation ofT. denticolaATCC 35405. Compared to the widely usedermF-ermAMcassette, the kanamycin cassette used in the transformation experiments gave rise to additional antibiotic-resistantT. denticolacolonies. The kanamycin cassette is effective for allelic replacement mutagenesis as demonstrated by inactivation of two open reading frames ofT. denticola, TDE1430 and TDE0911. In addition, the cassette is also functional intrans-chromosomal complementation. This was determined by functional rescue of a periplasmic flagellum (PF)-deficient mutant that had theflgEgene coding for PF hook protein inactivated. The integration of the full-lengthflgEgene into the genome of theflgEmutant rescued all of the defects associated with theflgEmutant that included the lack of PF filament and spirochetal motility. Taken together, we demonstrate that the kanamycin resistance gene is a suitable cassette for the genetic manipulation ofT. denticolathat will facilitate the characterization of virulence factors attributed to this important oral pathogen.

Essential roles of iron superoxide dismutase in photoautotrophic growth of Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 and heterogeneous expression of marine Synechococcus sp. CC9311 copper/zinc superoxide dismutase within its sodB knockdown mutant

Synechocystis sp. PCC 6803 possesses only one sod gene, sodB, encoding iron superoxide dismutase (FeSOD). It could not be knocked out completely by direct insertion of the kanamycin resistance cassette. When the promoter of sodB in WT Synechocystis was replaced with the copper-regulated promoter PpetE, a completely segregated PpetE–sodB strain could be obtained. When this strain was cultured in copper-starved BG11 medium, the chlorophyll a content was greatly reduced, growth was seriously inhibited and the strain was nearly dead during the 8 days of growth, whilst the WT strain grew well under the same growth conditions. These results indicated that sodB was essential for photoautotrophic growth of Synechocystis. The reduction of sodB gene copies in the Synechocystis genome rendered the cells more sensitive to oxidative stress produced by methyl viologen and norflurazon. sodB still could not be knocked out completely after active expression of sodC (encoding Cu/ZnSOD) from Synechococcus sp. CC9311 in the neutral site slr0168 under the control of the psbAII promoter, which means the function of FeSOD could not be complemented completely by Cu/ZnSOD. Heterogeneously expressed sodC increased the oxidation and photoinhibition tolerance of the Synechocystis sodB knockdown mutant. Membrane fractionation followed by immunoblotting revealed that FeSOD was localized in the cytoplasm, and Cu/ZnSOD was localized in the soluble and thylakoid membrane fractions of the transformed Synechocystis. Cu/ZnSOD has a predicted N-terminal signal peptide, so it is probably a lumen protein. The different subcellular localization of these two SODs may have resulted in the failure of substitution of sodC for sodB.

High-Level Production of the Industrial Product Lycopene by the Photosynthetic Bacterium Rhodospirillum rubrum

ABSTRACTThe biosynthesis of the major carotenoid spirilloxanthin by the purple nonsulfur bacteriumRhodospirillum rubrumis thought to occur via a linear pathway proceeding through phytoene and, later, lycopene as intermediates. This assumption is based solely on early chemical evidence (B. H. Davies, Biochem. J. 116:93–99, 1970). In most purple bacteria, the desaturation of phytoene, catalyzed by the enzyme phytoene desaturase (CrtI), leads to neurosporene, involving only three dehydrogenation steps and not four as in the case of lycopene. We show here that the chromosomal insertion of a kanamycin resistance cassette into thecrtC-crtDregion of the partial carotenoid gene cluster, whose gene products are responsible for the downstream processing of lycopene, leads to the accumulation of the latter as the major carotenoid. We provide spectroscopic and biochemical evidence thatin vivo, lycopene is incorporated into the light-harvesting complex 1 as efficiently as the methoxylated carotenoids spirilloxanthin (in the wild type) and 3,4,3′,4′-tetrahydrospirilloxanthin (in acrtDmutant), both under semiaerobic, chemoheterotrophic, and photosynthetic, anaerobic conditions. Quantitative growth experiments conducted in dark, semiaerobic conditions, using a growth medium for high cell density and high intracellular membrane levels, which are suitable for the conventional industrial production in the absence of light, yielded lycopene at up to 2 mg/g (dry weight) of cells or up to 15 mg/liter of culture. These values are comparable to those of many previously describedEscherichia colistrains engineered for lycopene production. This study provides the first genetic proof that theR. rubrumCrtI produces lycopene exclusively as an end product.

Stability of a Spodoptera frugiperda Nucleopolyhedrovirus Deletion Recombinant during Serial Passage in Insects

ABSTRACT The stabilities of the Spodoptera frugiperda multiple nucleopolyhedrovirus (SfMNPV) complete genome bacmid (Sfbac) and a deletion recombinant (Sf29null) in which the Sf29 gene was replaced by a kanamycin resistance cassette were determined during sequential rounds of per os infection in insect larvae. The Sf29 gene is a viral factor that determines the number of virions in occlusion bodies (OBs). The Sf29null bacmid virus was able to recover the Sf29 gene during passage. After the third passage (P3) of Sf29null bacmid OBs, the population was observed to reach an equilibrium involving a mixture of those with a kanamycin resistance cassette and those with the Sf29 gene. The biological activity of Sf29null bacmid OBs at P3 was similar to that of Sfbac OBs. The recovered gene in the Sf29null virus was 98 to 100% homologous to the Sf29 genes of different SfMNPV genotypes. Reverse transcription-PCR analysis of uninoculated S. frugiperda larvae confirmed the expression of the SfMNPV ie-0 and Sf29 genes, indicating that the insect colony harbors a covert SfMNPV infection. Additionally, the nonessential bacterial artificial chromosome vector was spontaneously deleted from both viral genomes upon passage in insects.

Cloning and Characterization of α-Methylacyl Coenzyme A Racemase from Gordonia polyisoprenivorans VH2

ABSTRACT The mcr gene of Gordonia polyisoprenivorans VH2 is not clustered with genes required for rubber degradation. Its disruption by insertion of a kanamycin resistance cassette impaired growth on methyl-branched isoprenoids but not on linear hydrocarbons. Intact mcr from this bacterium or from Nocardia farcinica IFM 10152 complemented the mutant. Reverse transcription analysis showed similar mcr VH2 expression results during cultivation with poly(cis-1,4-isoprene) and propionate. Additional genes coding for a putative cytochrome P450 monooxygenase and a short-chain dehydrogenase/reductase involved in β-oxidation and poly(cis-1,4-isoprene) degradation were also characterized.

Bacillus cereus Fur regulates iron metabolism and is required for full virulence

A homologue of the Bacillus subtilis fur gene was identified in Bacillus cereus and characterized. The predicted amino acid sequence of the cloned gene was found to be highly similar to other members of the Fur family of transcriptional regulators. The B. cereus fur gene was shown to partially complement an Escherichia coli fur mutant. Purified B. cereus Fur bound specifically to a 19 bp DNA sequence homologous to the B. subtilis Fur box in a metal-dependent manner. Analysis of the available B. cereus genome data identified a number of genes which contain predicted Fur box sequences in the promoter region. Many of these genes are predicted to play a role in bacterial iron uptake and metabolism, but several have also been implicated as having a role in virulence. Fur and iron regulation of a siderophore biosynthesis operon was confirmed in a β-galactosidase assay. A B. cereus fur null strain was constructed by allelic replacement of the chromosomal gene with a copy disrupted with a kanamycin resistance cassette. The Δfur mutant was found to constitutively express siderophores, to accumulate iron intracellularly to a level approximately threefold greater than the wild-type, and to be hypersensitive to hydrogen peroxide. In an insect infection model, the virulence of the fur null strain was found to be significantly attenuated, highlighting the essential role played by Fur in the virulence of this pathogen.

A sulphite respiration system in the chemoheterotrophic human pathogen Campylobacter jejuni

The ability to use sulphite as a respiratory electron donor is usually associated with free-living chemolithotrophic sulphur-oxidizing bacteria. However, this paper shows that the chemoheterotrophic human pathogen Campylobacter jejuni has the ability to respire sulphite, with oxygen uptake rates of 23±8 and 28±15 nmol O2 min−1 (mg cell protein)−1 after the addition of 0·5 mM sodium sulphite or metabisulphite, respectively, to intact cells. The C. jejuni NCTC 11168 Cj0004c and Cj0005c genes encode a monohaem cytochrome c and molybdopterin oxidoreductase, respectively, homologous to the sulphite : cytochrome c oxidoreductase (SOR) of Starkeya novella. Western blots of C. jejuni periplasm probed with a SorA antibody demonstrated cross-reaction of a 45 kDa band, consistent with the size of Cj0005. The Cj0004c gene was inactivated by insertion of a kanamycin-resistance cassette. The resulting mutant showed wild-type rates of formate-dependent respiration but was unable to respire with sulphite or metabisulphite as electron donors. 2-Heptyl-4-hydroxyquinoline-N-oxide (HQNO), a cytochrome bc 1 complex inhibitor, did not affect sulphite respiration at concentrations up to 25 μM, whereas formate respiration (which occurs partly via a bc 1 dependent route) was inhibited 50 %, thus suggesting that electrons from sulphite enter the respiratory chain after the bc 1 complex at the level of cytochrome c. Periplasmic extracts of wild-type C. jejuni 11168 showed a symmetrical absorption peak at 552 nm after the addition of sulphite, demonstrating the reduction of cytochrome c. No cytochrome c reduction was observed after addition of sulphite to periplasmic extracts of the Cj0004c mutant. A fractionation study confirmed that the majority of the SOR activity is located in the periplasm in C. jejuni, and this activity was partially purified by ion-exchange chromatography. The presence of a sulphite respiration system in C. jejuni is another example of the surprising diversity of the electron-transport chain in this small-genome pathogen. Sulphite respiration may be of importance for survival in environmental microaerobic niches and some foods, and may also provide a detoxification mechanism for this normally growth-inhibitory compound.

Isolation and Characterization of a Native Composite Transposon, Tn14751, Carrying 17.4 Kilobases of Corynebacterium glutamicum Chromosomal DNA

ABSTRACT A native composite transposon was isolated from Corynebacterium glutamicum ATCC 14751. This transposon comprises two functional copies of a corynebacterial IS31831-like insertion sequence organized as converging terminal inverted repeats. This novel 20.3-kb element, Tn14751, carries 17.4 kb of C. glutamicum chromosomal DNA containing various genes, including genes involved in purine biosynthesis but not genes related to bacterial warfare, such as genes encoding mediators of antibiotic resistance or extracellular toxins. A derivative of this element carrying a kanamycin resistance cassette, minicomposite Tn14751, transposed into the genome of C. glutamicum at an efficiency of 1.8 � 102 transformants per μg of DNA. Random insertion of the Tn14751 derivative carrying the kanamycin resistance cassette into the chromosome was verified by Southern hybridization. This work paves the way for realization of the concept of minimum genome factories in the search for metabolic engineering via genome-scale directed evolution through a combination of random and directed approaches.

Expression of bacteriophage ϕEa1h lysozyme in Escherichia coli and its activity in growth inhibition of Erwinia amylovora

A 3·3 kb fragment from Erwinia amylovora phage ϕEa1h in plasmid pJH94 was previously characterized and found to contain an exopolysaccharide depolymerase (dpo) gene and two additional ORFs encoding 178 and 119 amino acids. ORF178 (lyz) and ORF119 (hol) were found to overlap by 19 bp and they resembled genes encoding lysozymes and holins. In nucleotide sequence alignments, lyz had structurally conserved regions with residues important for lysozyme function. The lyz gene was cloned into an expression vector and expressed in Escherichia coli. Active lysozyme was detected only when E. coli cells with the lyz gene and a kanamycin-resistance cassette were grown in the presence of kanamycin. Growth of Erw. amylovora was inhibited after addition of enzyme exceeding a threshold for lysozyme to target cells. When immature pears were soaked in lysates of induced cells, symptoms such as ooze formation and necrosis were retarded or inhibited after inoculation with Erw. amylovora.