Identification and modeling of a novel chloramphenicol resistance protein detected by functional metagenomics in a wetland of Lerma, Mexico

The exploration of novel antibiotic resistance determinants in a particular environment may be limited because of the presence of uncultured microorganisms. In this work, a culture independent approach based on functional metagenomics was applied to search for chloramphenicol resistance genes in agro-industrial wastewater in Lerma de Villada, Mexico. To this end, a metagenomic library was generated in Escherichia coli DH10B containing DNA isolated from environmental samples of the residual arsenic-enriched (10 mg/ml) effl uent. One resistant clone was detected in this library and further analyzed. An open reading frame similar to a multidrug resistance protein from Aeromonas salmonicida and responsible for chloramphenicol resistance was identifi ed, sequenced, and found to encode a member of the major facilitator superfamily (MFS). Our results also showed that the expression of this gene restored streptomycin sensitivity in E. coli DH10B cells. To gain further insight into the phenotype of this MFS family member, we developed a model of the membrane protein multiporter that, in addition, may serve as a template for developing new antibiotics. [Int Microbiol 2013; 16(2):103-111]Keywords: Escherichia coli; chloramphenicol; functional metagenomics; major facilitator superfamily; homology models; membrane proteins; arseni