Journal of Microbiology

The Microbiological Society of Korea (한국미생물학회)
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Identification and Characterization of the Vibrio vulnificus rtxA Essential for Cytotoxicity in vitro and Virulence in Mice

  • Lee, Jeong-Hyun (Department of Agricultural Biotechnology and Center for Agricultural Biomaterials, Seoul National University) ;
  • Kim, Myung-Won (Department of Agricultural Biotechnology and Center for Agricultural Biomaterials, Seoul National University) ;
  • Kim, Byoung-Sik (Department of Agricultural Biotechnology and Center for Agricultural Biomaterials, Seoul National University) ;
  • Kim, Seung-Min (Department of Agricultural Biotechnology and Center for Agricultural Biomaterials, Seoul National University) ;
  • Lee, Byung-Cheol (School of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Korea University) ;
  • Kim, Tae-Sung (School of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Korea University) ;
  • Choi, Sang-Ho (Department of Agricultural Biotechnology and Center for Agricultural Biomaterials, Seoul National University)
  • Published : 2007.04.30
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Abstract

A mutant exhibiting decreased cytotoxic activity toward INT-407 intestinal epithelial cells and carrying a mutation in the rtx gene cluster that consists of rtxCA and rtxBDE operons was screened from a library of V. vulnificus mutants. The functions of the rtxA gene, assessed by constructing an isogenic mutant and evaluating its phenotypic changes, demonstrated that RtxA is essential for the virulence of V. vulnificus in mice as well as in tissue cultures.

Keywords

References

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