Characterization of In40 of Enterobacter aerogenes BM2688, a class 1 integron with two new gene cassettes, cmlA2 and qacF

Enterobacter aerogenes BM2688, which is resistant to multiple antibiotics, and its aminoglycoside-susceptible derivative BM2688-1 were isolated from the same clinical sample. Strain BM2688 harbored plasmid pIP833, which carries a class I integron, In40, containing (in addition to qacE Delta 1 tend sul1, which are characteristic of class 1 integrons) four gene cassettes: aac(6')-Ib, qacF, cmlA2, and oxa-9, The cmlA2 gene had 83.7% identity with the previously described nonenzymatic chloramphenicol resistance cmlA1 gene, The qacF gene conferred resistance to quaternary ammonium compounds and displayed a high degree of similarity with qacE (67.8% identity) which, however, has been found as part of a cassette with a very different 59-base element. The oxa-9 gene was not expressed due to a lack of promoter sequences. Study of the antibiotic-susceptible derivative BM2688-1 indicated that a 3,148-bp deletion between the 3' end of the nac(6')-Ib gene and the 3' conserved segment of In40 was responsible for the loss of resistance. The occurrence of this DNA rearrangement, which did not involve homologous sequences, suggests that the In40 integrase could promote recombination at secondary sites.