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The advent of Oxford Nanopore Technologies has undergone significant improvements in terms of sequencing costs, accuracy, and sequencing read lengths, making it a cost-effective, and readily accessible approach for analyzing microbial genomes. A major challenge for bacterial whole genome sequencing by Nanopore technology is the requirement for a higher quality and quantity of high molecular weight DNA compared to short-read sequencing platforms. In this study, using eight pathogenic bacteria, we evaluated the quality, quantity, and fragmented size distribution of extracted DNA obtained from three different commercial DNA extraction kits, and one automated robotic platform. Our results demonstrated significant variation in DNA yield and purity among the extraction kits. The ZymoBIOMICS DNA Miniprep Kit (ZM) provided a higher purity of DNA compared to other kit-based extractions. All kit-based DNA extractions were successfully performed on all twenty-four samples using a single MinION flow cell, with the Nanobind CBB Big DNA kit (NB) yielding the longest raw reads. The Fire Monkey HMW-DNA Extraction Kit (FM) and the automated Roche MagNaPure 96 platform (RO) outperformed in genome assembly, particularly in gram-negative bacteria. Based on our finding, we recommend a minimum read coverage and raw read N50, obtained from the appropriate DNA extraction kit for each bacterial species, to optimize genome assembly and plasmid recovery. This approach will assist end-users in selecting the most effective kit-based extraction method for bacterial whole-genome assembly using only long-read nanopore sequences., Competing Interests: Declarations Competing interests The authors declare that they have no competing interests. Use of trade names is for research only and does not imply endorsement by all authors and the Division of Medical Bioinformatics, Research Department, Faculty of Medicine Siriraj Hospital, Mahidol University, Bangkok, Thailand., (© 2024. The Author(s).)

Rapid and efficient protocols aimed at the isolation and purification of DNA for the purpose of downstream applications, such as cloning, PCR, Southern blotting, or sequencing, are essential for genetic, biochemical, and molecular biological analyses of a given bacterium. The protocols herein presented provide a robust and efficient method for the isolation of chromosomal and plasmid DNA from Bifidobacterium strains by organic extraction. The methods are simple, and the yield, purity, and quality of the DNA are adequate to perform various downstream applications including next-generation sequencing.

A plasmid preparation is a method used to extract and purify plasmid DNA. Methods developed to purify plasmid DNA from bacteria generally involve harvesting and alkaline lysis of the bacteria, precipitation of chromosomal DNA and protein, followed by purification of the plasmid DNA. Here, we describe the mini-preparation of plasmid DNA by a rapid small-scale method, adapted for Listeria monocytogenes. The quality of plasmid DNA isolated using this method is sufficient for analytical purposes but may be upscaled for further downstream analysis. Electrophoretic separation of the resultant lysate allows conclusions to be made on the presence, number, copy number, and size of the plasmids in the analyzed bacterial strains.

Several Acinetobacter spp. act as opportunistic pathogens causing healthcare-associated infections worldwide, and in this respect their ability to resist antimicrobial compounds has certainly boosted up their global propagation. Acinetobacter clinical strains have demonstrated a remarkable ability to evolve and become resistant to almost all available drugs in the antimicrobial arsenal, including the last-resort carbapenem β-lactams. The dissemination of antimicrobial resistant genes (ARG), heavy metals-detoxification systems and other traits such as virulence factors is facilitated by mobile genetic elements (MGE) through horizontal gene transfer. Among them, plasmids have been shown to play a critical role in this genus. Despite the continuous increase of Acinetobacter plasmid sequences present in databases, there are no reports describing the basic traits carried by these MGE. To fill this gap, a broad analysis of the Acinetobacter plasmidome was performed. A search for Acinetobacter complete plasmids indicated that 905 sequences have been deposited in the NCBI-GenBank public database, of which 492 are harbored by Acinetobacter baumannii strains. Plasmid-classification schemes based on Rep proteins homology have so far described 23 different groups for A. baumannii (GR1-23), and 16 Acinetobacter Rep3 Groups (AR3G1-16) for the complete genus. Acinetobacter plasmids size ranges from 1.3 to 400 kb. Interestingly, widespread plasmids which are < 20 kb make up 56% of the total present in members of this genus. This led to the proposal of Acinetobacter plasmid assignation to two groups according to their size (< 20 kb and > 20 kb). Usually, smaller plasmids are not self-transmissible, and thereby employ alternative mechanisms of dissemination. For instance, a subgroup of < 20 kb-plasmids belonging to the pRAY-family, lack a rep gene, but encode a relaxase enabling their mobilization by conjugative plasmids. Other subgroup, including small GR2 Acinetobacter plasmids, does not encode a relaxase gene. However, they could still be mobilized by conjugative plasmids which recognize an oriT region carried by these small plasmids. Also, these < 20 kb-plasmids usually carry accessory genes bordered by XerC/D-recombinases recognition sites which have been hypothesized to mediate plasmid plasticity. Conversely, many cases of larger plasmids are self-transmissible and might encode virulence factors and their regulators, thus controlling strain pathogenicity. The ARGs carried by the > 20 kb-plasmids are usually encoded within other MGEs such as transposons, or as part of integrons. It has been recently noted that some of the > 20 kb-plasmids are derived from excised phages, and thus dubbed as phage-like plasmids. All in all, the plethora of plasmids found in strains of this genus and the multiple strategies promoting their evolution and dissemination have certainly contributed to survival of the Acinetobacter members in different habitats, including the clinical environment.

In the one-step approach to bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC) modification, two plasmids are introduced into the BAC host cells. The shuttle pLD53.SC2, carrying the EFGP reporter sequence and requiring the π protein to replicate, must be grown in PIR1- or PIR2-competent Escherichia coli Our preference for these vectors is PIR1, because these cells are able to maintain about 250 copies of the donor vector. This small-sized vector is stable in PIR1. The RecA plasmid pSV1.RecA has a temperature-sensitive origin of replication and can be grown in most competent bacteria at 30°C; here we use DH5α competent cells. This protocol describes preparation of the vector DNAs. The shuttle-reporter vector DNA is subsequently digested for introduction of one homology arm (typically the A-box)., (© 2020 Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press.)

Bloodstream infections (BSI) and sepsis are major causes of morbidity and mortality worldwide. Blood culture-based diagnostics usually requires 1-2 days for identification of bacterial agent and an additional 2-3 days for phenotypic determination of antibiotic susceptibility pattern. With the escalating burden of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) rapid diagnostics becomes increasingly important to secure adequate antibiotic therapy. Real-time whole genome sequencing represents a genotypic diagnostic approach with the ability to rapidly identify pathogens and AMR-encoding genes. Here we have used nanopore sequencing of bacterial DNA extracted from positive blood cultures for identification of pathogens, detection of plasmids and AMR-encoding genes. To our knowledge, this is the first study to gather the above-mentioned information from nanopore sequencing and conduct a comprehensive analysis for diagnostic purposes in real-time. Identification of pathogens was possible after 10 minutes of sequencing and all predefined AMR-encoding genes and plasmids from monoculture experiments were detected within one hour using raw nanopore sequencing data. Furthermore, we demonstrate the correct identification of plasmids and bla CTX-M subtypes using de novo assembled nanopore contigs. Results from this study hold great promise for future applications in clinical microbiology and for health care surveillance purposes.

Based on phylogenetic analyses, strain M2a isolated from honey, an unexpected source of acinetobacters, was classified as Acinetobacter lwoffii. The genome of this strain is strikingly crowded with mobile genetic elements. It harbours more than 250 IS elements of 15 IS-families, several unit and compound transposons and 15 different plasmids. These IS elements, including 30 newly identified ones, could be classified into at least 53 IS species. Regarding the plasmids, 13 of the 15 belong to the Rep-3 superfamily and only one plasmid, belonging to the "Low-GC" family, possesses a seemingly complete conjugative system. The other plasmids, with one exception, have a mobilization region of common pattern, consisting of the divergent mobA/mobL-family and mobS-, mobC- or traD-like genes separated by an oriT-like sequence. Although two plasmids of M2a are almost identical to those of A. lwoffi strains isolated from gold mine or Pleistocene sediments, most of them have no close relatives. The presence of numerous plasmid-borne and chromosomal metal resistance determinants suggests that M2a previously has also evolved in a metal-polluted environment. The numerous, possibly transferable, plasmids and the outstanding number of transposable elements may reflect the high potential of M2a for rapid evolution.

This laboratory experiment describes the production and purification of plasmid DNA for undergraduate biochemistry and biotechnology courses. This experiment performed in a one-week period includes the protocols for plasmid pVAX1-LacZ production in Escherichia coli DH5α cells and subsequent purification of supercoiled pVAX1-LacZ. Firstly, the students use a growth medium that favors the replication of the plasmid resulting in a higher plasmid production during exponential growth. Afterwards, alkaline lysis is done to disrupt the bacterial cells and recover pVAX1-LacZ plasmid. Lastly, they perform the purification of pVAX1-LacZ supercoiled isoform by L-histidine chromatography, followed by agarose gel electrophoresis to characterize the separation of supercoiled isoform from contaminants. The proposed experiment provides an opportunity for students to acquire these skills that are routinely used in biochemistry and biotechnology laboratories. © 2019 International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, 47(6):638-643, 2019., (© 2019 International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology.)

A pUC-derived replicon inducible by oxygen limitation was designed and tested in fed-batch cultures of Escherichia coli. It included the addition of a second inducible copy of rnaII, the positive replication control element. The rnaII gene was expressed from P trc and cloned into pUC18 to test the hypothesis that the ratio of the positive control molecule RNAII to the negative control element, RNAI, was the determinant of plasmid copy number per chromosome (PCN). The construct was evaluated in several E. coli strains. Evaluations of the RNAII/RNAI ratio, PCN and plasmid yield normalized to biomass (Y pDNA/X ) were performed and the initial hypothesis was probed. Furthermore, in high cell-density cultures in shake flasks, an outstanding amount of 126 mg/L of plasmid was produced. The microaerobically inducible plasmid was obtained by cloning the rnaII gene under the control of the oxygen-responsive Vitreoscilla stercoraria hemoglobin promoter. For this plasmid, but not for pUC18, the RNAII/RNAI ratio, PCN and Y pDNA/X efficiently increased after the shift to the microaerobic regime in fed-batch cultures in a 1 L bioreactor. The Y pDNA/X of the inducible plasmid reached 12 mg/g at the end of the fed-batch but the original pUC18 only reached ca. 6 mg/g. The proposed plasmid is a valuable alternative for the operation and scale-up of plasmid DNA production processes in which mass transfer limitations will not represent an issue., (© 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.)

Edwardsiella piscicida is the causative agent of edwardsiellosis, which has caused enormous economic losses worldwide. In our previous research, an attenuated live vaccine WED based on the virulent strain E. piscicida EIB202 can effectively protect turbots against edwardsiellosis via intraperitoneal injection, while vaccination by immersion exhibits a weaker effect. During the development of the immersion vaccine, we surprisingly found the counts of ΔpEIB202/ EIB202 colonized on zebrafish were 100 times lower than those of EIB202. However, pEIB202 carries 53 predicted ORFs and has several copies in E. piscicida EIB202, impeding the study of its function. Thus the replication region is located at a 1 980 bp fragment (from 18 837 to 20 816 bp), containing a transcriptional repressor and a replication protein. Moreover, the minimal replication plasmid, named pRep-q77, has low copies in both E. coli and E. piscicida , but is more stable in E. piscicida than in E. coli . This work lays a foundation for further examination of the function of the virulence plasmid pEIB202.

Plasmids of Lactobacillus plantarum PC518 cannot be effectively extracted by existing methods. It was studied that the effect of lysozyme treatment and removal on plasmid extraction by 7 protocols. The modified method was compared with a commercial kit using L. plantarum PC518, 410, 9L15, and JS193 and Weissella cibaria M2 as the tested strains. The results suggested that the step of lysozyme removal is the key to improve the efficiency of plasmid extraction. The concentrations of plasmid DNA isolated from the 5 tested strains were increased by 10.6, 9.5, 6, 5.6 and 1.5 times respectively compared with the commercial kit., (Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Transposon-aided capture of plasmids allows for antibiotic resistance plasmids to be acquired from complex samples. It is based on the insertion of a transposon, with a known origin of replication and selectable marker, into the plasmids present in a sample which can subsequently be captured after the removal of contaminating chromosomal DNA. Here we describe isolation of bacterial cells from a complex sample, DNA extraction, transposon-aided capture of plasmids in the sample, and analysis of the captured plasmids.

There are few practical protocols to extract efficient plasmid DNA from the difficult-to-lyse bacterium, Lactobacillus casei. This is related to production of a large amount of exopolysaccharide coat and its special physiological characteristics. In this study, we optimized a protocol to extract efficient plasmid DNA from a recombinant L. casei strain. Different extraction methods were evaluated in three classes of conventional, kit-based, and combined protocols. The quantity and quality of the extracted plasmid DNA were determined by spectrophotometry, agarose gel electrophoresis, and PCR. Results revealed that the yield of the extracted plasmids differed for each protocol and conventional protocols showed higher plasmid yields. We suggested an effective, inexpensive protocol to extract plasmid DNA from the recombinant L. casei for downstream biological processes., (Copyright © 2016 International Alliance for Biological Standardization. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

In this protocol, plasmid DNA is isolated from small-scale (1-2 mL) bacterial cultures. Yields vary between 100 and 5 µg of DNA, depending on the copy number of the plasmid. Miniprep DNA is sufficiently pure for use as a substrate or template in many in vitro enzymatic reactions. However, further purification is required if the plasmid DNA is used as the substrate in sequencing reactions., (© 2016 Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press.)

Plasmid purification is a basic tool of molecular biologists. Although the development of plasmid isolation kits utilizing silica spin columns reduced the time and labor spent on plasmid purification, achieving large plasmid DNA yields still requires significant time and effort. Here we introduce the Miraprep, a rapid protocol that allows isolation of plasmid DNA using commercial Miniprep kits, but with DNA yields comparable to commercial Maxiprep plasmid purifications. Combining ethanol precipitation with spin column purification, we created a DNA isolation protocol that yields highly concentrated plasmid DNA samples in less than 30 minutes. We show that Miraprep isolated plasmids are as stable as plasmids isolated by standard procedures, can be used for standard molecular biology procedures including DNA sequencing, and can be efficiently transfected into mammalian cells. This new plasmid DNA isolation protocol will significantly reduce time and labor without increasing costs.

Gene therapy products are very complex advanced therapy medicinal products produced using different processes that require many chemical and biological reagents and production intermediates, such as producing cells. The quantification of residual impurities in gene therapy vectors is a major quality control step when these vectors are used for therapeutic purposes, whether or not they are derived from viruses. Indeed, in nonviral gene therapy products, particularly plasmid vectors used to transfer genetic material, the presence of host-cell DNA (HCDNA) from the bacterial cells used for the vector production is an important concern because of the risk of immunogenicity and insertional mutagenesis. Several methods have been developed to quantify residual HCDNA, but real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) seems to be most suitable because it allows detecting traces of "contaminating" DNA. The French National Agency for Medicines and Health Products Safety (ANSM) ensures the quality and safety of gene transfer medicinal products and must be able to quantify, in its own laboratories, the amount of HCDNA present in plasmid vector batches. Therefore, we developed and validated a qPCR method to quantify at the femtogram level the presence of Escherichia coli residual DNA in plasmid vectors. This approach uses the capillary-based LightCycler 1.5 System (Roche) with SYBR Green I, a primer pair against the E. coli 23S ribosomal RNA gene and different concentrations of a linearized plasmid that contains the 23S target sequence, as standard. This qPCR method is linear on an 8-decade logarithmic scale, accurate, reproducible, and sensitive (quantification of up to 10 copies of 23S target sequence per reaction, or 1.4 E. coli genome, or 7 fg of bacterial DNA). This technique allows ensuring that batches of plasmid vectors to be used in clinical trials comply with the specifications on HCDNA content.

The aim of this study is to prepare megaporous dye-affinity cryogel discs for the purification of plasmid DNA (pDNA) from bacterial lysate. Poly(hydroxyethyl methacrylate) [PHEMA] cryogel discs were produced by free radical polymerization initiated by N,N,N',N'-tetramethylene diamine (TEMED) and ammonium persulfate (APS) redox pair in an ice bath. Cibacron Blue F3GA was used as an affinity ligand (loading amount: 68.9μmol/g polymer). The amount of pDNA adsorbed onto the PHEMA-Cibacron Blue F3GA cryogel discs first increased and then reached a plateau value (i.e., 32.5mg/g cryogel) at 3.0mg/mL pDNA concentration. Compared with the PHEMA cryogel (0.11mg/g cryogel), the pDNA adsorption capacity of the PHEMA-Cibacron Blue F3GA cryogel (32.4mg/g polymer) was improved significantly due to the Cibacron Blue 3GA immobilization onto the polymeric matrix. pDNA adsorption amount decreased from 11.7mg/g to 1.1mg/g with the increasing of NaCl concentration. The maximum pDNA adsorption was achieved at 4°C. The overall recovery of pDNA was calculated as 90%. The PHEMA-Cibacron Blue F3GA cryogel discs could be used five times without decreasing the pDNA adsorption capacity significantly. The results show that the PHEMA-Cibacron Blue F3GA cryogel discs promise high selectivity for pDNA., (Copyright © 2015. Published by Elsevier B.V.)

A cryptic 10.0-kb plasmid pG6303 from a multiplasmid-containing Lactobacillus plantarum G63 was studied. The analysis of replicon was facilitated by the construction of shuttle vectors and electrotransformation into L. plantarum. The pG6303 replicon included (i) an open reading frame encoding the putative Rep replication initiation protein; and (ii) the putative origin of replication. The Rep protein was expressed as a fusion with the hexa-histidine (His) at its C-terminal end and purified by Ni-affinity chromatography. The electrophoretic mobility shift assays in pG6303 showed that the purified Rep protein specifically bound from 5582 to 5945 bp, differing from the putative origin of replication of pG6303. We speculate that pG6303 replication is a new mode of plasmid replication.

Background: Acinetobacter species are recognised as important nosocomial pathogens that have become a major cause of invasive opportunistic infections in hospitalised patients. Their clinical significance is largely due to the rapid development of antimicrobial resistance among strains. The development of antibiotic resistance among bacterial strains occurs frequently by the acquisition of resistance genes by gene transfer systems such as bacterial plasmids., Method: Multi-antibiotic resistant Acinetobacter nosocomialis strain 178 was isolated from a hospital in Melbourne, Australia. This strain was screened for the presence of plasmids. The two plasmids isolated were sequenced and annotated., Results: Two plasmids isolated from a single clinical Acinetobacter nosocomialis strain were sequenced. One plasmid, designated pRAY*-v3, appears to have evolved via the same lineage as the pRAY plasmid isolated from an Acinetobacter baumannii in South Africa. The other plasmid, designated pAB49-v1, appears to be an evolutionary descendent from a cryptic plasmid isolated from an A. baumannii almost 20 years ago. Both of the plasmid sequences here share a high level of sequence similarity with their ancestors, however differences are noted., Conclusion: The isolation of these plasmid-lineages across different decades and continents suggests their global dissemination.

Rolling circle-replicating plasmids constitute a vast family that is particularly abundant in, but not exclusive of, Gram-positive bacteria. These plasmids are constructed as cassettes that harbor genes involved in replication and its control, mobilization, resistance determinants and one or two origins of lagging strand synthesis. Any given plasmid may contain all, some, or just only the replication cassette. We discuss here the family of the promiscuous streptococcal plasmid pMV158, with emphasis on its mobilization functions: the product of the mobM gene, prototype of the MOBV relaxase family, and its cognate origin of transfer, oriT. Amongst the subfamily of MOBV1 plasmids, three groups of oriT sequences, represented by plasmids pMV158, pT181, and p1414 were identified. In the same subfamily, we found four types of single-strand origins, namely ssoA, ssoU, ssoW, and ssoT. We found that plasmids of the rolling-circle Rep&#95;2 family (to which pMV158 belongs) are more frequently found in Lactobacillales than in any other bacterial order, whereas Rep&#95;1 initiators seemed to prefer hosts included in the Bacillales order. In parallel, MOBV1 relaxases associated with Rep&#95;2 initiators tended to cluster separately from those linked to Rep&#95;1 plasmids. The updated inventory of MOBV1 plasmids still contains exclusively mobilizable elements, since no genes associated with conjugative transfer (other than the relaxase) were detected. These plasmids proved to have a great plasticity at using a wide variety of conjugative apparatuses. The promiscuous recognition of non-cognate oriT sequences and the role of replication origins for lagging-strand origin in the host range of these plasmids are also discussed., (Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Efficient loading on a chromatographic column is the dilemma of the process development faced by engineers in plasmid DNA purification. In this research, novel arginine-affinity chromatographic beads were prepared to investigate the effect of spacer arm and ligand density to their chromatographic performance for the purification of plasmid. The result indicated that dynamic binding capacity for plasmid increased with an increasing ligand density and carbon number of spacer arm, and the highest binding capacity for plasmid of 6.32 mg/mL bead was observed in the column of arginine bead with a ligand density of 47 mmol/L and 10-atom carbon spacer. Furthermore, this arginine bead exhibited better selectivity to supercoiled (sc) plasmid. The evidence of a linear gradient elution suggested further that the binding of plasmid on arginine beads was driven by electrostatic interaction and hydrogen bonding. Hence, sc plasmid could successfully be purified from clarified lysate by two-stepwise elution of salt concentration. By the refinement of the elution scheme and loading volume of clarified lysate, the column of arginine bead with a ligand density of 47 mmol/L exhibited the highest recovery yield and a much higher productivity among arginine-affinity columns. Therefore, reshaped arginine beads provided more feasible and practical application in the preparation of sc plasmid from clarified lysate., (© 2014 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.)

The present study describes the integration of membrane technology with monolithic chromatography to obtain plasmid DNA with high quality. Isolation and clarification of plasmid DNA lysate were first conducted by a microfiltration step, by using a hydrophilic nylon microfiltration membrane, avoiding the need of centrifugation. For the total elimination of the remaining impurities, a suitable purification step is required. Monolithic stationary phases have been successfully applied as an alternative to conventional supports. Thus, the sample recovered from the membrane process was applied into a nongrafted CarbonylDiImidazole disk. Throughout the global procedure, a reduced level of impurities such as proteins and RNA was obtained, and no genomic DNA was detectable in the plasmid DNA sample. The chromatographic process demonstrated an efficient performance on supercoiled plasmid DNA purity and recovery (100 and 84.44%, respectively). Thereby, combining the membrane technology to eliminate some impurities from lysate sample with an efficient chromatographic strategy to purify the supercoiled plasmid DNA arises as a powerful approach for industrial-scale systems aiming at plasmid DNA purification., (© 2014 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.)

DNA reference materials of certified value have a critical function in many analytical processes of DNA measurement. Quantification of amoA genes in ammonia oxidizing bacteria (AOB) and archaea (AOA), and of nirS and nosZ genes in the denitrifiers is very important for determining their distribution and abundance in the natural environment. A plasmid reference material containing nirS, nosZ, amoA-AOB, and amoA-AOA is developed to provide a DNA standard with copy number concentration for ensuring comparability and reliability of quantification of these genes. Droplet digital PCR (ddPCR) was evaluated for characterization of the plasmid reference material. The result revealed that restriction endonuclease digestion of plasmids can improve amplification efficiency and minimize the measurement bias of ddPCR. Compared with the conformation of the plasmid, the size of the DNA fragment containing the target sequence and the location of the restriction site relative to the target sequence are not significant factors affecting plasmid quantification by ddPCR. Liquid chromatography-isotope dilution mass spectrometry (LC-IDMS) was used to provide independent data for quantifying the plasmid reference material. The copy number concentration of the digested plasmid determined by ddPCR agreed well with that determined by LC-IDMS, improving both the accuracy and reliability of the plasmid reference material. The reference value, with its expanded uncertainty (k = 2), of the plasmid reference material was determined to be (5.19 ± 0.41) × 10(9) copies μL(-1) by averaging the results of two independent measurements. Consideration of the factors revealed in this study can improve the reliability and accuracy of ddPCR; thus, this method has the potential to accurately quantify DNA reference materials.

The following describes noncommercial methods for the purification of genomic and plasmid DNA from S. epidermidis. These include both large-scale, high molecular weight and quick, small-scale chromosomal DNA extractions, and also a standard alkaline lysis method of plasmid preparation.

We describe two cryptic low molecular weight plasmids, pGTD7 (3279bp) and pGTG5 (1540bp), isolated from Geobacillus sp. 610 and 1121 strains, respectively. Homology analysis of the replication protein (Rep) sequences and detection of ssDNA indicate that both of them replicate via rolling circle mechanism. As revealed by sequence similarities of dso region and Rep protein, plasmid pGTD7 belongs to pC194/pUB110 plasmid family. The replicon of pGTD7 was proved to be functional in another Geobacillus host. For this purpose, a construct pUCK7, containing a replicon of the analyzed plasmid, was created and transferred to G. stearothermophilus NUB3621R strain by electroporation. Plasmid pGTG5, based on Rep protein sequence similarity, was found to be related mostly to some poorly characterized bacterial plasmids. Rep proteins encoded by these plasmids contain conservative motifs that are most similar to those of Microviridae phages. This feature suggests that pGTG5, together with other plasmids containing the same motifs, could constitute a new family of bacterial plasmids. To date, pGTG5 is the smallest plasmid identified in bacteria belonging to the genus Geobacillus. The two plasmids described in this study can be used for the construction of new vectors suitable for biotechnologically important bacteria of the genus Geobacillus., (Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background: Drug resistance genes and their mobile genetic elements are frequently identified from environmental saprophytic organisms. It is widely accepted that the use of antibiotics in animal husbandry selects for drug resistant microorganisms, which are then spread from the farm environment to humans through the consumption of contaminated food products. We wished to identify novel drug resistance genes from microbial communities on retail food products. Here, we chose to study the microbial communities on retail spinach because it is commonly eaten raw and has previously been associated with outbreaks of bacterial infections., Results: We created metagenomic plasmid libraries from microbiota isolated from retail spinach samples. We identified five unique plasmids that increased resistance to antimicrobial drugs in the E. coli host. These plasmids were identified in E. coli that grew on plates that contained ampicillin (pAMP), aztreonam (pAZT), ciprofloxacin (pCIP), trimethoprim (pTRM), and trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole (pSXT). We identified open reading frames with similarity to known classes of drug resistance genes in the DNA inserts of all 5 plasmids. These drug resistance genes conferred resistance to fluoroquinolones, cephalosporins, and trimethoprim, which are classes of antimicrobial drugs frequently used to treat human Gram negative bacterial infections. These results show that novel drug resistance genes are found in microbiota on retail produce items., Conclusions: Here we show that microbiota of retail spinach contains DNA sequences previously unidentified as conferring antibiotic resistance. Many of these novel sequences show similarity to genes found in species of bacteria, which have previously been identified as commensal or saprophytic bacteria found on plants. We showed that these resistance genes are capable of conferring clinically relevant levels of resistance to antimicrobial agents. Food saprophytes may serve as an important reservoir for new drug-resistance determinants in human pathogens.

Deep sequencing techniques used in metagenomic approaches have greatly advanced the study of microbial communities in various environments. However, one microbial segment that has remained largely unexplored is the natural plasmids residing within microbial environments. Plasmids are perceived as mobile genetic elements that exist extra-chromosomally and occasionally carry accessory genes that confer an advantage to their host in its ecological niche. They are thus thought to play an important evolutionary role in microbial communities by laterally introducing genes and traits into microbial genomes. Despite their importance, technical obstacles still limit the metagenomic study of natural plasmids using deep sequencing techniques. These include low copy number of the plasmids and heterogeneity of microbes in environmental samples, reflected in the low abundance of each individual plasmid. Furthermore, the extracted plasmids usually contain remnants of chromosomal DNA that can potentially interfere with the analysis of unique plasmid traits. We have recently studied the rumen metagenomic plasmid population using a newly developed procedure that successfully overcomes these obstacles. This procedure enables extraction of pure plasmid DNA suited for deep sequencing studies. Here we present a detailed description and characterization of this procedure which could potentially allow the study of plasmids in other environmental niches., (© 2013.)

Objectives: To characterize a 5.9 kb aac(6')-Ib-cr-harbouring plasmid that was detected in a clinical Salmonella Typhimurium DT104B strain., Methods: Extraction and purification of plasmid DNA and electrotransformation assays were carried out in order to obtain kanamycin-resistant transformants. MICs of several fluoroquinolones and aminoglycosides were determined. DNA sequencing was performed by primer walking on purified plasmid preparations. The new plasmid nucleotide sequence was analysed and compared with available sequences using bioinformatic tools., Results: pMdT1 is a 5.9 kb mobilizable ColE1-like plasmid that harbours aac(6')-Ib-cr4, a gene encoding a new variant of the AAC(6')-Ib-cr protein (225 amino acids). This active protein conferred resistance to tobramycin and kanamycin, and also decreased susceptibility to ciprofloxacin and norfloxacin in the transformant strain, as MICs demonstrated. The mobilization region, necessary for horizontal transfer and composed of the mobA, mobB, mobC and mobD genes, displayed a high degree of identity with those from representative ColE1-like plasmids. The basis of mobility (bom), oriT and origin of replication regions were also detected. Apart from the acetylase-encoding gene, three other open reading frames (ORFs) were determined. No similarities were found when the ORF1 sequence was compared with the sequences included in GenBank. The deduced ORF2 protein predicted a CopG-like structure characteristic of transcriptional regulators, and the deduced ORF3 protein was identical to macrophage stimulating factors., Conclusions: The pMdT1 is the smallest mobilizable ColE1-like plasmid containing an aac(6')-Ib-cr gene that has been described so far.

Veterinary antibiotics entering agricultural land with manure pose the risk of spreading antibiotic resistance. The fate of sulfadiazine (SDZ) introduced via manure and its effect on resistance gene levels in the rhizosphere were compared with that in bulk soil. Maize plants were grown for 9 weeks in soil fertilized with manure either from SDZ-treated pigs (SDZ treatment) or from untreated pigs (control). CaCl(2) -extractable concentrations of SDZ dissipated faster in the rhizosphere than in bulk soil, but SDZ remained detectable over the whole time. For bulk soil, the abundance of sul1 and sul2 relative to 16S rRNA gene copies was higher in the SDZ treatment than in the control, as revealed by quantitative PCR on days 14 and 63. In the rhizosphere, sampled on day 63, the relative sul gene abundances were also significantly increased in the SDZ treatment. The accumulated SDZ exposure (until day 63) of the bacteria significantly correlated with the log relative abundance of sul1 and sul2, so that these resistance genes were less abundant in the rhizosphere than in bulk soil. Plasmids conferring SDZ resistance, which were exogenously captured in Escherichia coli, mainly belonged to the LowGC group and carried a heterogeneous load of resistances to different classes of antibiotics., (© 2012 Federation of European Microbiological Societies. Published by Blackwell Publishing Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Phytoplasma plasmids have generally been detected from DNA extracted from plants and insects using methods designed for the purification of total phytoplasma DNA. Methods include extraction from tissues that are high in phytoplasma titre, such as the phloem of plants, with the use of CsCl-bisbenzimide gradients that exploit the low G+C content of phytoplasma DNA. Many of the methods employed for phytoplasma purification have been described elsewhere in this book. Here we describe in detail two methods that are specifically aimed at isolating plasmid DNA.

The purpose of this protocol is the isolation of plasmid DNA from bacteria. The boiling method for isolating plasmids by Holmes and Quigley (1981) is presented here. This method is rapid and simple and it allows for a large number of samples to be processed simultaneously (up to 40 samples). Thus, it is appropriate for the preparation of bacterial plasmids in order to screen a large number of colonies or small cultures for the presence of recombinant DNA inserts. The protocol can be effectively scaled up for the preparation of plasmids from liter cultures., (Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

To isolate plasmid DNA from bacteria using a commercial plasmid miniprep kit (if interested, compare this protocol with Isolation of plasmid DNA from bacteria)., (Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

This study addresses the feasibility of scaling-up the removal of host cell impurities from plasmid DNA (pDNA)-containing Escherichia coli lysates by phenyl-boronic (PB) acid chromatography using columns packed with 7.6 and 15.2 cm(3) of controlled porous glass beads (CPG) derivatized with PB ligands. Equilibration was performed with water at 10 cm(3) /min and no conditioning of the lysate feed was required. At a ratio of lysate feed to adsorbent volume of 1.3, 93-96% of pDNA was recovered in the flow through while 66-71% of impurities remained bound (~2.5-fold purification). The entire sequence of loading, washing, elution, and re-equilibration was completed in 20 min. Run-to-run consistency was observed in terms of chromatogram features and performance (yield, purification factor, agarose electrophoresis) across the different amounts of adsorbent (0.75-15.2 cm(3) ) by performing successive injections of lysates prepared independently and containing 3.7 or 6.1 kbp plasmids. The column productivity at large scale was 4 dm(3) of alkaline lysate per hour per dm(3) of PB-CPG resin. The method is rapid, reproducible, simple, and straightforward to scale-up. Furthermore, it is capable of handling heavily contaminated samples, constituting a good alternative to purification techniques such as isopropanol precipitation, aqueous two-phase systems, and tangential flow filtration., (© 2012 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.)

Autonomous-replicating plasmid pFP4 of Streptomyces sp. FR1 isolated from a heavy metal-contaminated land was cloned and sequenced. Surprisingly, the 40,949-bp pFP4 contains a cluster of 20 genes, resembling these chromosome-integrated prophages of Streptomyces sp. SPB78 and Streptomyces scabiei 87.22. Plasmid pFP4 could transfer by conjugation and a replication locus, iteron/repA/repB, was identified. The filtered FR1 culture could infect both FR1 and FR1 cured of pFP4 to form plaques, and also six out of 13 strains from the same land, but failed to form plaques on other seven strains from same source and all ten Streptomyces species from different sources. pFP4 phage particles were observed by transmission electron microscopy. Major structural proteins (capsid, portal and tail, etc.) of pFP4 virions were encoded by twelve pFP4 genes. pFP4 phage DNA contained 3' protruding cohesive ends of 9-nt. Streptomyces pFP4 represents a novel plasmid-phage., (Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Plasmid-mediated quinolone resistance (PMQR) determinants were widely distributed among Enterobacteriaceae. The objectives of the present study were to analyze PMQR-positive Escherichia coli isolates from pigs, and to investigate the association between these determinants and other resistant genes. A total of 129 porcine E. coli isolates were included in this study. The presence of PMQR, floR, bla(CTX-M-14), and bla(TEM-1) genes were detected by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) amplification and confirmed by subsequent sequencing. The PMQR-positive isolates were subjected to plasmid profiling, and transformation experiments were conducted to identify the quinolone resistance plasmids. The qnrS1 region of a quinolone resistance plasmid was cloned and sequenced. Among the 129 E. coli isolates, the positive rate for PMQR determinants was 42.6%, and the prevalence of qnr genes, aa(6')-Ib-cr, and qepA were 23.3%, 18.6%, and 0.8%, respectively. A qnrS1-carrying plasmid of 81 kb, named plasmid T078 (pT078), was detected from one multidrug-resistant isolate. Hybridization and PCR analysis confirmed that floR, bla(CTX-M-14), and bla(TEM-1) genes were also located on this plasmid. Sequence analysis identified the qnrS1 gene flanked by a truncated transposase gene. Moreover, complete tetracycline resistance genes tet(A) and tet(R) were found upstream of the qnrS1 gene, and floR gene was found downstream of the qnrS1 gene on the plasmid pT078. To our knowledge, this is the first study demonstrating the occurrence of qnrS1, floR, bla(CTX-M-14), bla(TEM-1), and tet(A) on one plasmid in E. coli isolated from food animals.

The rising costs of bioprocess research and development emphasize the need for high-throughput, low-cost alternatives to bench-scale bioreactors for process development. In particular, there is a need for platforms that can go beyond simple batch growth of the organism of interest to include more advanced monitoring, control, and operation schemes such as fed-batch or continuous. We have developed a 1-mL microbioreactor capable of monitoring and control of dissolved oxygen, pH, and temperature. Optical density can also be measured online for continuous monitoring of cell growth. To test our microbioreactor platform, we used production of a plasmid DNA vaccine vector (pVAX1-GFP) in Escherichia coli via a fed-batch temperature-inducible process as a model system. We demonstrated that our platform can accurately predict growth, glycerol and acetate concentrations, as well as plasmid copy number and quality obtained in a bench-scale bioreactor. The predictive abilities of the micro-scale system were robust over a range of feed rates as long as key process parameters, such as dissolved oxygen, were kept constant across scales. We have highlighted plasmid DNA production as a potential application for our microbioreactor, but the device has broad utility for microbial process development in other industries as well., (Copyright © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.)

Two-dimensional (2D) agarose gel electrophoresis is one of the most powerful methods to analyze the mass and shape of replication intermediates. It is often use to map replication origins but it is also useful to characterize termination of replication, replication fork barriers and even replication fork reversal. Here, we present protocols, figures and movies with a thorough description of different modes of replication for linear DNA fragments and the corresponding patterns they generate in 2D gels., (Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

The complete nucleotide sequence of the 53,560-bp plasmid pST-III from Lactobacillus plantarum ST-III has been determined. The plasmid contains 42 predicted protein-coding sequences, and the functions of 34 coding sequences could be assigned. Homology analysis for the replication protein and the typical features of the origin of replication suggested that pST-III replicates via the theta-type mechanism. Among the predicted genes, we identified a kdp gene cluster (a high-affinity K(+)-transport system) for the first time in the Lactobacillus genus and a system for osmolyte transport. Analysis of the plasmid-encoded functions and the plasmid-cured experiment showed that the genes of pST-III could serve for the niche adaptations of L. plantarum ST-III and make significant contributions to its viability under hyperosmotic conditions. Furthermore, the relative copy number of pST-III was determined to be 6.79±1.55 copies per cell., (Crown Copyright © 2011. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

In this study we assessed the occurrence, diversity and conjugative potential of plasmids in integron-carrying Aeromonas and Enterobacteriaceae from wastewaters. Sixty-six strains were included as donors in mating assays using rifampicin-resistant Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas putida recipient strains. The diversity of plasmids from donors and transconjugants (resistant to tetracycline or streptomycin) was evaluated by restriction analysis and replicon typing targeting 19 incompatibility groups. Restriction patterns revealed a diverse plasmid pool present in these strains. Plasmids were assigned to FrepB (Aeromonas salmonicida, Aeromonas veronii, Aeromonas sp., E. coli, Enterobacter sp.), FIC (A. salmonicida, Aeromonas sp.), FIA (Shigella sp.), I1 (A. veronii, Aeromonas sp., E. coli), HI1 (E. coli) and U (Aeromonas media) replicons. Nevertheless, 50% of the plasmids could not be assigned to any replicon type. Among integron-positive transconjugants, FrepB, I1 and HI1 replicons were detected. Results showed that wastewaters enclose a rich plasmid pool associated with integron-carrying bacteria, capable of conjugating to different bacterial hosts. Moreover, replicons detected in this study in Aeromonas strains expand our current knowledge of plasmid diversity in this genus., (© 2012 Federation of European Microbiological Societies. Published by Blackwell Publishing Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Limited studies have been performed on the characterization of small size plasmids of Enterococcus faecium with the intention of evaluating the strength of their promoters in Escherichia coli. The complete nucleotide sequence (3.825 Kb) and structural organization of E. faecium DJ1 cryptic plasmid pNJAKD is presented. Seven promoter sequences from the pNJAKD plasmid of E. faecium have been identified. The regions coding for the putative promoters were either amplified using PCR based techniques or chemically synthesized as oligonucleotides of different sizes. These were subsequently cloned in the pEGFP vector at the Pvu II site. The efficiency of putative promoter fragments were measured using the intensity of eGFP fluorescence in E. coli JM101, DH5α and BL21(DE3), among which AKD3 exhibited moderate to strongest promoter activity at temperatures of 30, 37, and 42°C., (Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

The connection between farm-generated animal waste and the dissemination of antibiotic resistance in soil microbial communities, via mobile genetic elements, remains obscure. In this study, electromagnetic induction (EMI) surveying of a broiler chicken farm assisted soil sampling from a chicken-waste-impacted site and a marginally affected site. Consistent with the EMI survey, a disparity existed between the two sites with regard to soil pH, tetracycline resistance (Tc(r)) levels among culturable soil bacteria, and the incidence and prevalence of several tet and erm genes in the soils. No significant difference was observed in these aspects between the marginally affected site and several sites in a relatively pristine regional forest. When the farm was in operation, tet(L), tet(M), tet(O), erm(A), erm(B), and erm(C) genes were detected in the waste-affected soil. Two years after all waste was removed from the farm, tet(L), tet(M), tet(O), and erm(C) genes were still detected. The abundances of tet(L), tet(O), and erm(B) were measured using quantitative PCR, and the copy numbers of each were normalized to eubacterial 16S rRNA gene copy numbers. tet(L) was the most prevalent gene, whereas tet(O) was the most persistent, although all declined over the 2-year period. A mobilizable plasmid carrying tet(L) was identified in seven of 14 Tc(r) soil isolates. The plasmid's hosts were identified as species of Bhargavaea, Sporosarcina, and Bacillus. The plasmid's mobilization (mob) gene was quantified to estimate its prevalence in the soil, and the ratio of tet(L) to mob was shown to have changed from 34:1 to 1:1 over the 2-year sampling period.

Phase diagrams of poly(ethylene glycol)/polyacrylate/Na(2)SO(4) systems have been investigated with respect to polymer size and pH. Plasmid DNA from Escherichia coli can depending on pH and polymer molecular weight be directed to a poly(ethylene glycol) or to a polyacrylate-rich phase in an aqueous two-phase system formed by these polymers. Bovine serum albumin (BSA) and E. coli homogenate proteins can be directed opposite to the plasmid partitioning in these systems. Two bioseparation processes have been developed where in the final step the pDNA is partitioned to a salt-rich phase giving a total process yield of 60-70%. In one of them the pDNA is partitioned between the polyacrylate and PEG-phases in order to remove proteins. In a more simplified process the plasmid is partitioned to a PEG-phase and back-extracted into a Na(2)SO(4)-rich phase. The novel polyacrylate/PEG system allows a strong change of the partitioning between the phases with relatively small changes in composition or pH., (Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

In response to global concerns over the spread of the New Delhi metallo-β-lactamase gene 1, bla(NDM-1), a monthly surveillance program was initiated in September 2010. All carbapenem-resistant Gram-negative strains forwarded to our facility are screened for this gene. To date, 321 carbapenem-resistant isolates, encompassing 11 bacterial species, have been tested. In February 2011, two strains of Providencia stuartii, submitted from a military hospital in Afghanistan, tested positive for bla(NDM-1). Both strains were identical by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE). bla(NDM-1) was carried on a large plasmid, pMR0211, which was sequenced by emulsion PCR and pyrosequencing. pMR0211 is 178,277 bp in size and belongs to incompatibility group A/C. The plasmid consists of a backbone with considerable homology to pAR060302 from Escherichia coli, and it retains many of the antibiotic resistance genes associated with it. The plasmid also shares common elements with the pNDM-HK plasmid, including bla(NDM-1), armA, and sul1. However, gene orientation is reversed, and a 3-kb fragment from this region is absent from pMR0211. pMR0211 also contains additional genes, including the aminoglycoside-modifying enzyme loci aadA and aac(6'), the quinolone resistance gene qnrA, a gene with highest homology to a U32 family peptidase from Shewanella amazonensis, and the bla(OXA-10) gene. The finding of this gene in an intrinsically colistin-resistant species such as Providencia stuartii is especially worrisome, as it renders the organism resistant to nearly every available antibiotic. The presence of multiple insertion sequences and transposons flanking the region containing the bla(NDM-1) gene further highlights the potential mobility associated with this gene.

Broad-host-range plasmids can facilitate dissemination of antibiotic resistance determinants among diverse bacterial populations. We evaluated hollow-fiber ultrafiltration for increases in detection efficiency of broad-host-range plasmids and Escherichia coli DNA in wastewater. Ultrafiltration followed by PCR showed limited increases in DNA detection and quantification in effluent compared with membrane filtration alone., (Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Supercoiled state corresponds to the active form for plasmid applications. The relaxed circular form of plasmids is often inactive or poorly active. To obtain significant amounts of almost fully supercoiled DNA, we modified the standard protocol of a commercially available Qiagen plasmid purification kit. Our changes led to isolation of almost 100% of the plasmids in the supercoiled state. The modified protocol was used to purify different plasmids with consistent results. The purified plasmids maintain supercoiled state for about two months. The modified protocol is very advantageous because it allows easy DNA production with high degree of supercoiled form at low cost.

Plasmid DNA is one of the indispensable components in molecular biology research and a potential biomaterial for gene therapy and DNA vaccination. Both quality and quantity of extracted plasmid DNA are of the great interests in cloning and subsequent expression of genes in vitro and in vivo for basic research and therapeutic interventions. Bacteria with extremely short generation times are the valuable source of plasmid DNA that can be isolated through a number of existing techniques. However, the current methods have some limitations in isolating high quality plasmid DNA since the multimeric plasmid which is believed to be more efficiently transcribed by RNA polymerase than the monomeric form, is almost lost during the extraction process. Recently, we developed a rapid isolation technique for multimeric plasmid based on generation of a 'protein aggregate' using a zwitterionic detergent and alkali. Here we have investigated the roles of different parameters in the whole extraction process to optimise the production of high quality multimeric plasmid DNA. Moreover, we have showed the advantageous effects of nanoparticles to effectively sediment the 'protein aggregate' for smooth elution of multimeric plasmid DNA from it. Finally, quality assessment study has revealed that the isolated multimeric DNA is at least 10 times more transcriptionally active than the monomeric form isolated by the commercially available Qiaget kit., (Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Since the discovery of plasmid, various methods have been developed to isolate plasmid DNA. All the methods have one common and important target of isolating plasmid DNA of high quality and quantity in less time. These methods are not completely safe because of use of toxic chemicals compounds. The developed protocol for plasmid extraction is based on the alkaline lysis method of plasmid preparation (extraction atpH 8.0) with slight modifications. Cell lysis reagent sodium dodecyl sulfate is replaced by lipase enzyme present in laundry detergent. A good plasmid preparation can be made, which is well suited for subsequent molecular biology applications. By taking safety measures on count, contaminants like, RNA and protein can be completely avoided with maximized plasmid yield. The resultant plasmid quality and quantity can be well comparable to other prevalent methods.

Typhoid fever, caused by Salmonella enterica serovar Typhi (S. Typhi), remains a serious global health concern. Since their emergence in the mid-1970s multi-drug resistant (MDR) S. Typhi now dominate drug sensitive equivalents in many regions. MDR in S. Typhi is almost exclusively conferred by self-transmissible IncHI1 plasmids carrying a suite of antimicrobial resistance genes. We identified over 300 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) within conserved regions of the IncHI1 plasmid, and genotyped both plasmid and chromosomal SNPs in over 450 S. Typhi dating back to 1958. Prior to 1995, a variety of IncHI1 plasmid types were detected in distinct S. Typhi haplotypes. Highly similar plasmids were detected in co-circulating S. Typhi haplotypes, indicative of plasmid transfer. In contrast, from 1995 onwards, 98% of MDR S. Typhi were plasmid sequence type 6 (PST6) and S. Typhi haplotype H58, indicating recent global spread of a dominant MDR clone. To investigate whether PST6 conferred a selective advantage compared to other IncHI1 plasmids, we used a phenotyping array to compare the impact of IncHI1 PST6 and PST1 plasmids in a common S. Typhi host. The PST6 plasmid conferred the ability to grow in high salt medium (4.7% NaCl), which we demonstrate is due to the presence in PST6 of the Tn6062 transposon encoding BetU.

The aim of this study is to prepare supermacroporous pseudospecific cryogel which can be used for the purification of plasmid DNA (pDNA) from bacterial lysate. N-methacryloyl-(l)-histidine methyl ester (MAH) was chosen as the pseudospecific ligand and/or comonomer. Poly(hydroxyethyl methacrylate-N-methacryloyl-(l)-histidine methyl ester) [PHEMAH] cryogel was produced by free radical polymerization initiated by N,N,N',N'-tetramethylene diamine (TEMED) and ammonium persulfate (APS) pair in an ice bath. Compared with the PHEMA cryogel (50 μg/g polymer), the pDNA adsorption capacity of the PHEMAH cryogel (13,350 μg/g polymer) was improved significantly due to the MAH incorporation into the polymeric matrix. The amount of pDNA bound onto the PHEMAH cryogel disks first increased and then reached a saturation value (i.e., 13,350μg/g) at around 300 μg/ml pDNA concentration. pDNA adsorption amount decreased from 1137 μg/g to 160 μg/g with the increasing NaCl concentration. The maximum pDNA adsorption was achieved at 25 °C. The overall recovery of pDNA was calculated as 90%. The PHEMAH cryogel could be used 3 times without decreasing the pDNA adsorption capacity significantly. The results indicate that the PHEMAH cryogel disks promise high selectivity for pDNA., (Copyright © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

A novel downstream bioprocess was developed to obtain purified plasmid DNA (pDNA) from Escherichia coli ferments. The intermediate recovery and purification of the pDNA in cell lysate was conducted using hollow-fiber tangential filtration and frontal anion-exchange membrane and elution hydrophobic chromatographies. The purity of the solutions of pDNA obtained during each process stage was investigated. The results show that the pDNA solution purity increased 30-fold and more than 99% of RNA in the lysate was removed during the process operations. The combination of membrane operations and hydrophobic interaction chromatography resulted in an efficient way to recover pDNA from cell lysates. A better understanding of membrane-based technology for the purification of pDNA from clarified E. coli lysate was developed in this research., (Copyright © 2011 International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Inc.)