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Infection and Immunity, October 1999, p. 5033-5040, Vol. 67, No. 10
0019-9567/99/$04.00+0
Copyright © 1999, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.

Cloning and Sequencing of the Genes Downstream of the wbf Gene Cluster of Vibrio cholerae Serogroup O139 and Analysis of the Junction Genes in Other Serogroups

Shanmuga Sozhamannan,1,* Ying Kang Deng,1 Manrong Li,1 Alexander Sulakvelidze,1 James B. Kaper,2 Judith A. Johnson,3,4 G. Balkrish Nair,5 and J. Glenn Morris Jr.1,4

Division of Hospital Epidemiology, Department of Medicine,1 Department of Microbiology and Immunology,2 and Department of Pathology,3 School of Medicine, University of Maryland at Baltimore, and Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Affairs Medical Center,4 Baltimore, Maryland 21201, and National Institute of Cholera and Enteric Diseases, Calcutta, India5

Received 12 April 1999/Returned for modification 25 June 1999/Accepted 7 July 1999

The DNA sequence of the O-antigen biosynthesis cluster (wbf) of a recently emergent pathogen, Vibrio cholerae serogroup O139, has been determined. Here we report the sequence of the genes downstream of the O139 wbfX gene and analysis of the genes flanking the wbf gene cluster in other serogroups. The gene downstream of wbfX, designated rjg (right junction gene), is predicted to be not required for O-antigen biosynthesis but appears to be a hot spot for DNA rearrangements. Several variants of the rjg gene (three different insertions and a deletion) have been found in other serogroups. DNA dot blot analysis of 106 V. cholerae strains showed the presence of the left and right junction genes, gmhD and rjg, respectively, in all strains. Further, these genes mapped to a single I-CeuI fragment in all 21 strains analyzed by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis, indicating a close linkage. The insertion sequence element IS1358, found in both O1 and O139 wb* regions, is present in 61% of the strains tested; interestingly, where present, it is predominantly linked to the wb* region. These results indicated a cassette-like organization of the wb* region, with the conserved genes (gmhD and rjg) flanking the divergent, serogroup-specific wb* genes and IS1358. A similar organization of the wb* region in other serogroups raises the possibility of the emergence of new pathogens by homologous recombination via the junction genes.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Division of Hospital Epidemiology, Department of Medicine, University of Maryland School of Medicine, 934-MSTF, 10 S. Pine St., Baltimore, MD 21201. Phone: (410) 706-5157. Fax: (410) 706-4581. E-mail: ssozhama{at}medicine.umaryland.edu.

Infection and Immunity, October 1999, p. 5033-5040, Vol. 67, No. 10
0019-9567/99/$04.00+0
Copyright © 1999, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.


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