Low-Level Tetracycline Resistance Gene tet(O)_3 in Campylobacter jejuni. 2023

Cátia Pacífico, and Marc M S M Wösten, and Friederike Hilbert
Institute of Food Safety, University of Veterinary Medicine, 1210 Vienna, Austria.

Campylobacter (C.) spp. are the most important foodborne, bacterial, and zoonotic pathogens worldwide. Resistance monitoring of foodborne bacterial pathogens is an important tool to control antimicrobial resistance as a part of the "One Health" approach. The detection and functionality of new resistance genes are of paramount importance in applying more effective screening methods based on whole genome sequencing (WGS). Most tetracycline-resistant C. spp. isolates harbor tet(O), a gene that encodes a ribosomal protection protein. Here we describe tet(O)_3, which has been identified in two food isolates of C. jejuni and is very similar to the tet(O) gene in Streptococcus pneumoniae, having a truncated promoter sequence. This gene confers resistance to tetracycline below 1 mg/L, which is the epidemiological cut-off value. We have analyzed the entire genome of these two isolates, together with a C. jejuni isolate found to have high-level resistance to tetracycline. In contrast to the highly resistant isolate, the promoter of tet(O)_3 is highly responsive to tetracycline, as observed by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). In addition, the two isolates possess a CRISPR repeat, fluoroquinolone resistance due to the gyrA point mutation C257T, a β-lactamase resistance gene bla, a multidrug efflux pump CmeABC and its repressor CmeR, but no plasmid. Low-level antibiotic resistant C. jejuni might therefore have an advantage for surviving in non-host environments.

UI MeSH Term Description Entries

Related Publications

Cátia Pacífico, and Marc M S M Wösten, and Friederike Hilbert
June 2007, Journal of medical microbiology,
Cátia Pacífico, and Marc M S M Wösten, and Friederike Hilbert
October 2020, Microorganisms,
Cátia Pacífico, and Marc M S M Wösten, and Friederike Hilbert
October 1980, Lancet (London, England),
Cátia Pacífico, and Marc M S M Wösten, and Friederike Hilbert
September 2004, Antimicrobial agents and chemotherapy,
Cátia Pacífico, and Marc M S M Wösten, and Friederike Hilbert
December 1996, Antimicrobial agents and chemotherapy,
Cátia Pacífico, and Marc M S M Wösten, and Friederike Hilbert
December 1993, Antimicrobial agents and chemotherapy,
Cátia Pacífico, and Marc M S M Wösten, and Friederike Hilbert
February 2003, The EMBO journal,
Cátia Pacífico, and Marc M S M Wösten, and Friederike Hilbert
January 2008, Japanese journal of infectious diseases,
Cátia Pacífico, and Marc M S M Wösten, and Friederike Hilbert
May 2006, Clinical infectious diseases : an official publication of the Infectious Diseases Society of America,
Cátia Pacífico, and Marc M S M Wösten, and Friederike Hilbert
April 2005, The Journal of antimicrobial chemotherapy,
Copied contents to your clipboard!