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Journal of Bacteriology, October 2005, p. 6651-6658, Vol. 187, No. 19
0021-9193/05/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/JB.187.19.6651-6658.2005
Copyright © 2005, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

High-Level ß-Lactam Resistance and Cell Wall Synthesis Catalyzed by the mecA Homologue of Staphylococcus sciuri Introduced into Staphylococcus aureus

Anatoly Severin,1,{dagger} Shang Wei Wu,1 Keiko Tabei,2 and Alexander Tomasz1*

Laboratory of Microbiology, The Rockefeller University, New York, New York 10021,1 Wyeth Research, 401 N. Middletown Rd., Pearl River, New York 109652

Received 5 May 2005/ Accepted 5 July 2005

A close homologue of mecA, the determinant of broad-spectrum ß-lactam resistance in Staphylococcus aureus was recently identified as a native gene in the animal commensal species Staphylococcus sciuri. Introduction of the mecA homologue from a methicillin-resistant strain of S. sciuri into a susceptible strain of S. aureus caused an increase in drug resistance and allowed continued growth and cell wall synthesis of the bacteria in the presence of high concentrations of antibiotic. We determined the muropeptide composition of the S. sciuri cell wall by using a combination of high-performance liquid chromatography, mass spectrometric analysis, and Edman degradation. Several major differences between the cell walls of S. aureus and S. sciuri were noted. The pentapeptide branches in S. sciuri were composed of one alanine and four glycine residues in contrast to the pentaglycine units in S. aureus. The S. sciuri wall but not the wall of S. aureus contained tri- and tetrapeptide units, suggesting the presence of DD- and LD-carboxypeptidase activity. Most interestingly, S. aureus carrying the S. sciuri mecA and growing in methicillin-containing medium produced a cell wall typical of S. aureus and not S. sciuri, in spite of the fact that wall synthesis under these conditions had an absolute dependence on the heterologous S. sciuri gene product. The protein product of the S. sciuri mecA can efficiently participate in cell wall biosynthesis and build a cell wall using the cell wall precursors characteristic of the S. aureus host.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Rockefeller University, 1230 York Ave., New York, NY 10021. Phone: (212) 327-8278. Fax: (212) 327-8688. E-mail: tomasz{at}rockefeller.edu.

{dagger} Present address: Wyeth Research, 401 N. Middletown Rd., Pearl River, NY 10965.

Journal of Bacteriology, October 2005, p. 6651-6658, Vol. 187, No. 19
0021-9193/05/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/JB.187.19.6651-6658.2005
Copyright © 2005, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.



This article has been cited by other articles:

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  • Zhou, Y., Antignac, A., Wu, S. W., Tomasz, A. (2008). Penicillin-Binding Proteins and Cell Wall Composition in -Lactam-Sensitive and -Resistant Strains of Staphylococcus sciuri. J. Bacteriol. 190: 508-514 [Abstract] [Full Text]  


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