Molecular characterization of a repetitive element of Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzae

The plasmid pJEL 101 contains a highly repetitive element from the genome of Xanthomonas oryae pv. oryzae that has properties of an insertional element. The insertional nature of the element, hereto referred to as IS203, was confirmed by molecular analyses of the element and three related elements that were isolated from X. oryzae. The related sequences were isolated on the basis of transposition to the transposon-trapping vector pL3SAC and hybridization with pJEL101. The trapped elements (IS203a, IS203b, and IS203c) were each composed of 1,055 base pairs with 25 base terminal inverted repeats. The elements caused a three base pair target site duplication at the site of insertion in the sacRB gene. The sequence of pJEL 101 has 96% base pair identity with IS203a and 99% identity with IS203a and IS203c but lacks three nucleotides of the consensus left terminal repeat. IS203b has the same DNA sequences as IS203c but is inserted ito the sacRB gene in the opposite orientation. The longest open reading frame of IS203a could code for a protein of 318 amino acids and molecular weight of 37, 151. A search of the Genbank database revealed that IS203 has 51% identity with 909 nucleotides of IS4551 from Escherichia coli. The predicted protein of ORF1 has 40% and 30% amino acid identity to the ORF1 of Tn4551 and the transposase of IS30, respectively.