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Presence of pRI1: A Small Cryptic Mobilizable Plasmid Isolated from Enterococcus faecium of Human and Animal Origin

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Abstract

This study focused on the molecular characterization of a small cryptic, mobilizable plasmid (6038 bp) sequenced from an E. faecium 9631160-1 of poultry origin. Sequence analysis of pRI1 revealed seven open reading frames. pRI1 contained an IS 100% identical to ISEfa4. This insertion element disrupted a putative mobilization gene (mobA) which presented 99% similarity to the one described in plasmid pJS42 (NC_010291). pRI1 harbored a cluster of four coding sequences which exhibited a homology to those described in contig 658 (from nucleotide 8940 to nt 10515) of E. faecium DO. In addition, a rep almost identical to the repA from the pEFNP1 and pKQ10 plasmids from E. faecium was also identified. Presence of the pRI1 replication initiation gene (rep) was analyzed in a panel of 159 E. faecium isolates of human and animal origin from different European countries, of which 60 tested positive for the presence of pRI1-rep. Conjugation experiments verified transfer of the pRI1 together with conjugative plasmids harboring resistance to vancomycin and streptogramin. The presence of pRI1 in enterococcal isolates geographically separated and from different origin demonstrates the ability of enterococci to acquire and transfer mobile genetic elements, emphasizing the need for further studies to reveal the meaning and role that these cryptic plasmids play in nature.

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Acknowledgments

This study was supported by the European Union Sixth Framework Programme “Approaches to Control Multi-resistant Enterococci (ACE): Studies on Molecular Ecology, Horizontal Gene Transfer, Fitness and Prevention,” under contract LSHECT-2007-037410. We would like to thank Professor Manolo Espinosa for his advice regarding the plasmid biology of pRI1. We gratefully acknowledge Resadije Idrizi at the National Food Institute for her technical support.

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  1. Antimicrobial Resistance Unit, National Food Institute, DTU, Bülowsvej 27, 1790, Copenhagen V, Denmark

    Lourdes Garcia-Migura, Henrik Hasman & Lars B. Jensen

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  1. Lourdes Garcia-Migura
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  2. Henrik Hasman
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  3. Lars B. Jensen
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Correspondence to Lars B. Jensen.

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Garcia-Migura, L., Hasman, H. & Jensen, L.B. Presence of pRI1: A Small Cryptic Mobilizable Plasmid Isolated from Enterococcus faecium of Human and Animal Origin. Curr Microbiol 58, 95–100 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00284-008-9266-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00284-008-9266-x

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