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Journal of Bacteriology, August 1998, p. 4024-4029, Vol. 180, No. 16
Department of Biological Sciences, Illinois
State University, Normal, Illinois 61790-4120
Received 16 March 1998/Accepted 2 June 1998
A DNA fragment conferring resistance to zinc and cobalt ions was
isolated from a genomic DNA library of Staphylococcus
aureus RN450. The DNA sequence analysis revealed two consecutive
open reading frames, designated zntR and zntA.
The predicted ZntR and ZntA showed significant homology to members of
ArsR and cation diffusion families, respectively. A mutant strain
containing the null allele of zntA was more sensitive to
zinc and cobalt ions than was the parent strain. The metal-sensitive
phenotype of the mutant was complemented by a 2.9-kb DNA fragment
containing zntR and zntA. An S. aureus strain harboring multiple copies of zntR and
zntA showed an increased resistance to zinc. The resistance to zinc in the wild-type strain was inducible. Transcriptional analysis
indicated that zntR and zntA genes were
cotranscribed. The zinc uptake studies suggested that the
zntA product was involved in the export of zinc ions out of
cells.
0021-9193/98/$04.00+0
Copyright © 1998, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.
Molecular Characterization of a Chromosomal
Determinant Conferring Resistance to Zinc and Cobalt Ions in
Staphylococcus aureus
*
Corresponding author. Mailing address: Department of
Biological Sciences, Illinois State University, Normal, IL
61790-4120. Phone: (309) 438-5128. Fax: (309) 438-3722. E-mail:
drjay{at}rs6000.cmp.ilstu.edu.
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