• Food Science of Animal Resources
• /
• v.41 no.2
• /
• pp.324-334
• /
• 2021

This study aimed at determining the genetic and virulence characteristics of the Listeria monocytogenes from smoked ducks. L. monocytogenes was isolated by plating, and the isolated colonies were identified by PCR. All the obtained seven L. monocytogenes isolates possessed the virulence genes (inlA, inlB, plcB, and hlyA) and a 385 bp actA amplicon. The L. monocytogenes isolates (SMFM2018 SD 1-1, SMFM 2018 SD 4-1, SMFM 2018 SD 4-2, SMFM 2018 SD 5-2, SMFM 2018 SD 5-3, SMFM 2018 SD 6-2, and SMFM 2018 SD 7-1) were inoculated in tryptic soy broth (TSB) containing 0.6% yeast extract at 60℃, followed by cell counting on tryptic soy agar (TSA) containing 0.6% yeast extract at 0, 2, 5, 8, and 10 min. We identified five heat resistant isolates compared to the standard strain (L. monocytogenes ATCC13932), among which three exhibited the serotype 1/2b and D-values of 5.41, 6.48, and 6.71, respectively at 60℃. The optical densities of the cultures were regulated to a 0.5 McFarland standard to assess resistance against nine antibiotics after an incubation at 30℃ for 24 h. All isolates were penicillin G resistant, possessing the virulence genes (inlA, inlB, plcB, and hlyA) and the 385-bp actA amplicon, moreover, three isolates showed clindamycin resistance. In conclusion, this study allowed us to characterize L. monocytogenes isolates from smoked ducks, exhibiting clindamycin and penicillin G resistance, along with the 385-bp actA amplicon, representing higher invasion efficiency than the 268-bp actA, and the higher heat resistance serotype 1/2b.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
• /
• v.19 no.12
• /
• pp.1520-1526
• /
• 2009

We have identified the iscR (PA3815) gene encoding an iron-sulfur cluster assembly regulator homolog as one of the genes required for peroxide resistance in Pseudomonas aeruginosa PA14. Here, we present the phenotypic characterization of an iscR deletion mutant in terms of KatA expression, stress responses, and virulence. The iscR null mutant exhibited reduced KatA activity at the posttranslational level, hypersensitivity to hydrogen peroxide, and virulence-attenuation in Drosophila melanogaster and mouse peritonitis models. These phenotypes were fully restored by multicopy-based expression of katA. These results suggest that the requirement of IscR in P. aeruginosa is related to the proper activity of KatA, which is crucial for peroxide resistance and full virulence of this bacterium.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
• /
• v.27 no.11
• /
• pp.1983-1993
• /
• 2017

Salmonella enterica subsp. enterica serovar Typhimurium, one of the most common foodborne pathogens, is transmitted mainly through contaminated food derived from infected animals. In this study, S. Typhimurium ST1120, an isolate from pig feces in Korea, was subjected to whole-genome analysis to understand its genomic features associated with virulence. The genome of ST1120 was found to have a circular chromosome of 4,855,001 bp (GC content 52.2%) and a plasmid of 6,863 bp (GC content 46.0%). This chromosome was predicted to have 4,558 open reading frames (ORFs), 17 pseudogenes, 22 rRNA genes, and 86 tRNA genes. Its plasmid was predicted to have three ORFs. Comparative genome analysis revealed that ST1120 was phylogenetically close to S. Typhimurium U288, a critical isolate in piggery farms and food chains in Europe. In silico functional analysis predicted that the ST1120 genome harbored multiple genes associated with virulence and stress resistance, including Salmonella pathogenicity islands (SPIs containing SPI-1 to SPI-5, SPI-13, and SPI-14), C63PI locus, ST104 prophage locus, and various antibiotic resistance genes. In accordance with these analysis results, ST1120 showed competence in invasion and survival abilities when it was added to host cells. It also exhibited robust resistance against antibiotics in comparison with other S. Typhimurium strains. This is the first report of the complete genome sequence of S. Typhimurium isolated from swine in Korea. Comparative genome analysis between ST1120 and other Salmonella strains would provide fruitful information toward understanding Salmonella host specificity and developing control measures against S. Typhimurium infection.

• Animal Bioscience
• /
• v.34 no.4
• /
• pp.734-742
• /
• 2021

Objective: The present study aimed to investigate the occurrence and species of coagulase-positive staphylococci (CoPS) and coagulase-negative staphylococci (CoNS) in retail pork meat samples collected during nationwide monitoring. The staphylococcal isolates were characterized for antimicrobial and zinc chloride resistance and enterotoxigenic potential. Methods: A total of 260 pre-packaged pork meat samples were collected from 35 retail markets in 8 provinces in Korea for isolation of staphylococci. Antimicrobial and zinc chloride resistance phenotypes, and genes associated with the resistance phenotypes were determined on the isolates. Furthermore, the presence and distribution of 19 staphylococcal enterotoxin (SE) genes and enterotoxin-like genes among the pork-associated staphylococci were determined by multiplex polymerase chain reaction-based assays using the specific primer sets. Results: A total of 29 staphylococcal strains (29/260, 11.1%) were isolated from samples of retail pork meat, 24 (83%) of which were CoNS. The four CoNS species identified were S. saprophyticus (n = 16, 55%), S. sciuri (n = 3, 10%), S. warneri (n = 3, 10%), and S. epidermidis (n = 2, 7%). Among the 29 isolates, four methicillin-resistant CoNS (MR-CoNS; three S. sciuri and one S. epidermidis) and one methicillin-resistant CoPS (MR-CoPS; one S. aureus) were identified. In addition, a relatively high level of tetracycline (TET) resistance (52%) was confirmed in CoNS, along with a predominant distribution of tet(K). The most prevalent SEs were sep (45%), and sen (28%), which were carried by 81% of S. saprophyticus. Conclusion: These findings suggest that CoNS, especially S. saprophyticus strains, in raw pork meat could be a potential risk factor for staphylococcal food poisoning (SFP), and therefore, requires further investigation to elucidate the role of SEls in SFP and virulence of the pathogen. Our results also suggest that CoNS from raw pork meat may act as a source for transmission of antimicrobial resistance genes such as staphylococcal cassette chromosome mec and tet(K).

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
• /
• v.52 no.6
• /
• pp.596-604
• /
• 2019

Vibrio parahaemolyticus causes food poisoning, mainly via marine fisheries products. We investigated the virulence factors and drug resistance of V. parahaemolyticus isolated from fisheries products purchased from the Yeosu Fisheries Market. The isolates were identified using a variety of biochemical tests and the detection of toxR and hns gene. The presence of the virulence factor-encoding genes tdh and trh in the isolates was also investigated by PCR. The resistance of the isolates to 13 antibacterial agents was tested using the disc-diffusion method and carriage of β-lactamase genes and class 1 integrons by ampicillin-resistant isolates was investigated by PCR. Four of seventeen isolates identified as V. parahaemolyticus by biochemical tests produced a species-specific PCR band. Those isolates showed >98% 16S rRNA gene sequence homology with V. parahaemolyticus and only one isolate harbored the tdh gene. All of the V. parahaemolyticus isolates were resistant to ampicillin and amoxicillin; moreover, VPA0477, a class A β-lactamase gene, and class 1 integrons were detected. Therefore, V. parahaemolyticus from fisheries products represents a low risk to human health. Also, V. parahaemolyticus is likely to develop multidrug resistance because it has class 1 integrons.

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
• /
• v.54 no.6
• /
• pp.918-926
• /
• 2021

We isolated 28 Vibrio vulnificus strains from seawater and fisheries and investigated the positive rate of eight virulence genes. Additionally, we evaluated the susceptibility of these strains to 25 antimicrobials. The positive rates of fur, vvhA, tcp, rtxA, vcgC, viuB, vvp, and acfA were 100, 92.9, 92.9, 67.9, 64.3, 25.0, 14.3, and 7.1%, respectively. A disk diffusion susceptibility test revealed that, all the investigated strains had the highest resistance to amoxicillin and oxacillin, followed by that to streptomycin (96.4%), cefoxitin (92.9%), clindamycin (82.1%), amikacin (67.9%), vancomycin (46.4%), nalidixic acid (7.1%), penicillin G (7.1%), and ampicillin (3.6%). Moreover, they were susceptible to 10 other antimicrobials, including cefotaxime, chloramphenicol, erythromycin, gentamicin, and rifampicin. Notably, amoxicillin, oxacillin, and streptomycin had average minimum inhibitory concentrations of 132.6, 603.4, and 23.1 ㎍/mL against V. vulnificus, respectively. These observations provide new insights regarding the necessity for sanitation of commercial fisheries and can potentially, help reduce the risk posed by fisheries contaminated with bacteria resistant to antimicrobials.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
• /
• v.31 no.10
• /
• pp.1420-1429
• /
• 2021

The safety of the probiotic strain Q180, which exerts postprandial lipid-lowering effects, was bioinformatically and phenotypically evaluated. The genome of strain Q180 was completely sequenced, and single circular chromosome of 3,197,263 bp without any plasmid was generated. Phylogenetic and related analyses using16S rRNA gene and whole-genome sequences revealed that strain Q180 is a member of Lactiplantibacillus (Lp., formerly Lactobacillus) plantarum. Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) genes were bioinformatically analyzed using all Lp. plantarum genomes available in GenBank, which showed that AMR genes are present differently depending on Lp. plantarum strains. Bioinformatic analysis demonstrated that some mobile genetic elements such as prophages and insertion sequences were identified in the genome of strain Q180, but because they did not contain harmful genes such as AMR genes and virulence factor (VF)- and toxin-related genes, it was suggested that there is no transferability of harmful genes. The minimum inhibition concentrations of seven tested antibiotics suggested by the European Food Safety Authority guidelines were slightly lower than or equal to the microbiological cut-off values for Lp. plantarum. Strain Q180 did not show hemolytic and gelatinase activities and biogenic amine-producing ability. Taken together, this study demonstrated the safety of strain Q180 in terms of absence of AMR genes and VF- and toxin-related genes as a probiotic strain.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Life Science Conference
• /
• 2007.10a
• /
• pp.104.1-104.1
• /
• 2007

See Full Text

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
• /
• v.18 no.5
• /
• pp.942-945
• /
• 2008

There have been concerns about possible pathogenicity and antimicrobial resistance in Enterococcus, which constitute more than 50% of probiotics in the worldwide market. In this study, Enterococcus in sixteen products manufactured by ten different companies was tested for the presence of six virulence genes and two vancomycin resistance genes. Results in this study showed the safety of Enterococcus on the Korean market and the importance of screening vanA, vanE, agg, cylA, esp, and gelE. Pulse-field gel electrophoresis showed that the sixteen isolates tested in this study are originated from three strains.

• The Plant Pathology Journal
• /
• v.36 no.4
• /
• pp.355-363
• /
• 2020

Bacterial traits for virulence of Ralstonia solanacearum causing lethal wilt in plants were extensively studied but are not yet fully understood. Other than the known virulence factors of Ralstonia solanacearum, this study aimed to identify the novel gene(s) contributing to bacterial virulence of R. solanacearum. Among the transposon-inserted mutants that were previously generated, we selected mutant SL341F12 strain produced exopolysaccharide equivalent to wild type strain but showed reduced virulence compared to wild type. In this mutant, a transposon was found to disrupt the murI gene encoding glutamate racemase which converts L-glutamate to D-glutamate. SL341F12 lost its motility, and its virulence in the tomato plant was markedly diminished compared to that of the wild type. The altered phenotypes of SL341F12 were restored by introducing a full-length murI gene. The expression of genes required for flagella assembly was significantly reduced in SL341F12 compared to that of the wild type or complemented strain, indicating that the loss of bacterial motility in the mutant was due to reduced flagella assembly. A dramatic reduction of the mutant population compared to its wild type was apparent in planta (i.e., root) than its wild type but not in soil and rhizosphere. This may contribute to the impaired virulence in the mutant strain. Accordingly, we concluded that murI in R. solanacearum may be involved in controlling flagella assembly and consequently, the mutation affects bacterial motility and virulence.