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Applied and Environmental Microbiology, July 2002, p. 3424-3431, Vol. 68, No. 7
0099-2240/02/$04.00+0     DOI: 10.1128/AEM.68.7.3424-3431.2002
Copyright © 2002, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Distribution of Genes Encoding the Trypsin-Dependent Lantibiotic Ruminococcin A among Bacteria Isolated from Human Fecal Microbiota

F. Marcille,1 A. Gomez,1 P. Joubert,1 M. Ladiré,1 G. Veau,1 A. Clara,1 F. Gavini,2 A. Willems,3 and M. Fons1*

Unité d'Ecologie et de Physiologie du Système Digestif, Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique, 78352 Jouy-en-Josas Cedex,1 Unité d'Ecologie et de Physiologie du Système Digestif, Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique, 59650 Villeneuve d'Ascq, France,2 Laboratorium voor Microbiologie, Vakgroep Biochemie, Fysiologie en Microbiologie, Universiteit Gent, B-9000 Ghent, Belgium3

Received 14 December 2001/ Accepted 27 March 2002

Fourteen bacterial strains capable of producing a trypsin-dependent antimicrobial substance active against Clostridium perfringens were isolated from human fecal samples of various origins (from healthy adults and children, as well as from adults with chronic pouchitis). Identification of these strains showed that they belonged to Ruminococcus gnavus, Clostridium nexile, and Ruminococcus hansenii species or to new operational taxonomic units, all from the Clostridium coccoides phylogenetic group. In hybridization experiments with a probe specific for the structural gene encoding the trypsin-dependent lantibiotic ruminococcin A (RumA) produced by R. gnavus, seven strains gave a positive response. All of them harbored three highly conserved copies of rumA-like genes. The deduced peptide sequence was identical to or showed one amino acid difference from the hypothetical precursor of RumA. Our results indicate that the rumA-like genes have been disseminated among R. gnavus and phylogenetically related strains that can make up a significant part of the human fecal microbiota.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Institut Méditerranéen de Recherche en Nutrition, Faculté des Sciences et Techniques de Marseille St. Jérôme, Ave. Escadrille Normandie Niemen, 13397 Marseille Cedex 20, France. Phone: 33-4-91-28-84-45. Fax: 33-4-91-28-84-40. E-mail: michel.fons{at}univ.u-3mrs.fr.

Applied and Environmental Microbiology, July 2002, p. 3424-3431, Vol. 68, No. 7
0099-2240/02/$04.00+0     DOI: 10.1128/AEM.68.7.3424-3431.2002
Copyright © 2002, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.



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Copyright © 2002 by the American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.