New Mg(2+)-Dependent Oxytetracycline Resistance Determinant Tet 34 in Vibrio Isolates from Marine Fish Intestinal Contents

A new oxytetracycline (OTC) resistance (Otc(r)) determinant, Tet 34, was cloned from chromosomal DNA of Vibrio sp. no. 6 isolated from intestinal contents of cultured yellowtail (Seriola quinqueradiata). The transformant, containing cloned Tet 34, could grow in broth containing 25 μg of drug per ml with 10 mM MgCl(2). Tet 34 encoded an open reading frame (ORF) 154 amino acids long. The amino acid sequence of the ORF was homologous to sequences of several bacterial xanthine-guanine phosphoribosyltransferases (XPRTs), which act in purine nucleotide salvage synthesis. Mg(2+) binding site residues and the active site were highly conserved in XPRT and the ORF of Tet 34. The results suggest that Tet 34 encodes a new Mg(2+)-dependent Otc(r) mechanism.