TY - JOUR
T1 - Plasmid-mediated resistance to gentamicin in Staphylococcus aureus
T2 - The involvement of a transposon
AU - Lyon, B. R.
AU - Gillespie, M. T.
AU - Byrne, M. E.
AU - May, J. W.
AU - Skurray, R. A.
PY - 1987/1/1
Y1 - 1987/1/1
N2 - Resistance to gentamicin, tobramycin and kanamycin (Gm(r)Tm(r)Km(r)) in strains of Staphylococcus aureus isolated from clinical sources in Australia is mediated by a 4.7 kb transposable element, designated Tn4001. A 2.5 kb HindIII fragment which maps symmetrically within Tn4001, and encompasses the aminoglycoside-resistance coding region, has been shown to hybridise with fragments of identical size in HindIII digests of three different Gm(r)Tm(r)Km(r) plasmids, two of which were self-transmissible, from strains of S. aureus isolated in the USA. Examination by electronmicroscopy of self-annealed molecules of the North American Gm(r)Tm(r)Km(r) plasmids revealed the presence of stem and loop structures similar to those produced by Tn4001, but with shorter inverted repeats. These results suggest that Gm(r)Tm(r)Km(r) in strains of S. aureus isolated in the USA is, or once was, transposable, and that transposable elements analogous to Tn4001 may be found in isolates of Gm(r)Tm(r)Km(r) S. aureus worldwide.
AB - Resistance to gentamicin, tobramycin and kanamycin (Gm(r)Tm(r)Km(r)) in strains of Staphylococcus aureus isolated from clinical sources in Australia is mediated by a 4.7 kb transposable element, designated Tn4001. A 2.5 kb HindIII fragment which maps symmetrically within Tn4001, and encompasses the aminoglycoside-resistance coding region, has been shown to hybridise with fragments of identical size in HindIII digests of three different Gm(r)Tm(r)Km(r) plasmids, two of which were self-transmissible, from strains of S. aureus isolated in the USA. Examination by electronmicroscopy of self-annealed molecules of the North American Gm(r)Tm(r)Km(r) plasmids revealed the presence of stem and loop structures similar to those produced by Tn4001, but with shorter inverted repeats. These results suggest that Gm(r)Tm(r)Km(r) in strains of S. aureus isolated in the USA is, or once was, transposable, and that transposable elements analogous to Tn4001 may be found in isolates of Gm(r)Tm(r)Km(r) S. aureus worldwide.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=0023156149&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1099/00222615-23-2-101
DO - 10.1099/00222615-23-2-101
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:0023156149
SN - 0022-2615
VL - 23
SP - 101
EP - 110
JO - Journal of Medical Microbiology
JF - Journal of Medical Microbiology
IS - 2
ER -