Open AccessMobile Genetic Elements in Streptococci
Author(s) -
Miao Lu,
Tao Gong,
Anqi Zhang,
Boyu Tang,
Jiamin Chen,
Zhang Zhong,
Yuqing Li,
Xuedong Zhou
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
current issues in molecular biology
Language(s) - Uncategorized
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.835
H-Index - 53
eISSN - 1467-3045
pISSN - 1467-3037
DOI - 10.21775/cimb.032.123
Subject(s) - mobile genetic elements , horizontal gene transfer , transposable element , plasmid , genetics , biology , gene , bacteria , antibiotic resistance , microbiology and biotechnology , bacterial genetics , dna , escherichia coli , genome
Streptococci are a group of Gram-positive bacteria belonging to the family Streptococcaceae, which are responsible of multiple diseases. Some of these species can cause invasive infection that may result in life-threatening illness. Moreover, antibiotic-resistant bacteria are considerably increasing, thus imposing a global consideration. One of the main causes of this resistance is the horizontal gene transfer (HGT), associated to gene transfer agents including transposons, integrons, plasmids and bacteriophages. These agents, which are called mobile genetic elements (MGEs), encode proteins able to mediate DNA movements. This review briefly describes MGEs in streptococci, focusing on their structure and properties related to HGT and antibiotic resistance.