AAC
Home Help [Feedback] [For Subscribers] [Archive] [Search] [Contents]
This Article
Right arrow Full Text
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrowReprints and Permissions
Right arrow Copyright Information
Right arrow Books from ASM Press
Right arrow MicrobeWorld
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via HighWire
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Ferrándiz, M. J.
Right arrow Articles by De La Campa, A. G.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Ferrándiz, M. J.
Right arrow Articles by De La Campa, A. G.

 Previous Article  |  Next Article 

Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy, April 2000, p. 840-847, Vol. 44, No. 4
0066-4804/00/$04.00+0
Copyright © 2000, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.

Horizontal Transfer of parC and gyrA in Fluoroquinolone-Resistant Clinical Isolates of Streptococcus pneumoniae

María José Ferrándiz,1 Asunción Fenoll,2 Josefina Liñares,3 and Adela G. De La Campa1,*

Unidad de Genética Bacteriana (Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas), Centro Nacional de Biología Fundamental,1 and Servicio de Bacteriología, Centro Nacional de Microbiología,2 Instituto de Salud Carlos III, 28220 Majadahonda, Madrid, and Servicio de Microbiología, Hospital Princeps d'Espanya, Ciutat Sanitària i Universitaria de Bellvitge, 08907 l'Hospitalet de Llobregat, Barcelona,3 Spain

Received 30 July 1999/Returned for modification 4 November 1999/Accepted 27 December 1999

We have analyzed genetically three clinical isolates (3180, 3870, and 1244) of Streptococcus pneumoniae with high-level ciprofloxacin resistance. Isolates 3180 and 3870 were atypical because of their insolubility in deoxycholate. However, they hybridized specifically with pneumococcal autolysin and pneumolysin gene probes and have typical pneumococcal atpC and atpA gene sequences. Analysis of the complete sequences of the parC and gyrA genes revealed total variations of 8 and 8.7% (isolate 3180) and 7.4 and 3.6% (isolate 3870), respectively, compared to the wild-type strain R6 sequence. The variations observed between the sequences of R6 and isolate 1244 were less than 0.9%. The structure of the gyrA and parC genes from isolates 3180 and 3870 was organized in sequence blocks that show different levels of divergence, suggesting a pattern of recombination. These results are evidence for recombination at the fluoroquinolone target genes in clinical isolates of S. pneumoniae. The genetically related viridans group streptococci could act as a reservoir for fluoroquinolone resistance genes.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Unidad de Genética Bacteriana (Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas), Centro Nacional de Biología Fundamental, Instituto de Salud Carlos III, 28220 Majadahonda, Madrid, Spain. Phone: (34) 91-5097904. Fax: (34) 91-5097919. E-mail: agcampa{at}isciii.es.

Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy, April 2000, p. 840-847, Vol. 44, No. 4
0066-4804/00/$04.00+0
Copyright © 2000, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.


This article has been cited by other articles:



Home Help [Feedback] [For Subscribers] [Archive] [Search] [Contents]
Clin. Vaccine Immunol. Clin. Microbiol. Rev.
J. Clin. Microbiol. ALL ASM JOURNALS

Copyright © 2000 by the American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.