C-Terminal Part of Glutamate-Ammonia-Ligase Adenyltransferase Gene Identified by RAPD-HRM with 3H Primer for E. Coli Screening

Folia Biol (Praha). 2019;65(2):88-100.

Abstract

A single random oligonucleotide 3H primer has been previously applied in random-amplified- polymorphic-DNA (RAPD)-PCR to distinguish stocked bacteria E. coli within a cocktail mixture also containing Enterococcus faecalis, Bifidobacterium longum and Ruminococcus gnavus. In this study, we demonstrate that a 702 base pair (bp) gene fragment can be amplified as a unique pattern by RAPD-PCR using a 3H primer in human faeces containing E. coli. This unique 702 bp amplicon contained a 687 bp gene fragment identified as the C-terminal region of the glutamate-ammonia-ligase adenyltransferase (glnE) gene of E. coli. By high-resolution melt (HRM) analysis, a mean melt-curve temperature of this 702 bp amplicon was determined to be approximately 88.1 ± 0.22 degrees Celsius (°C). A combination of RAPD with HRM in one single reaction based on this amplicon can achieve semi-quantitative detection of up to 102 CFU/ml of E. coli. To increase the signal intensity of HRM, a primer pair capable of screening E. coli directly from fresh human faeces was re-designed from the 687 bp gene segment, giving a mean peak melt-curve temperature at 88.35 ± 0.11 °C. Finally, single-nucleotide polymorphisms of this 687 bp gene segment were analysed for pathogenic E. coli strains, including UMN026, O83:H1, O104:H4, O157:H7 and O169:H41. We conclude that this 687 bp segment of the glnE gene has a high potential for screening of human faecal E. coli, including pathogenic strains, in contaminated food and water.

MeSH terms

  • Amino Acid Sequence
  • Base Pairing / genetics
  • Base Sequence
  • DNA Primers / metabolism*
  • Escherichia coli / enzymology*
  • Escherichia coli / genetics*
  • Escherichia coli / isolation & purification
  • Feces / microbiology
  • Genes, Bacterial*
  • Glutamate-Ammonia Ligase / chemistry*
  • Glutamate-Ammonia Ligase / genetics*
  • Glutamate-Ammonia Ligase / metabolism
  • Humans
  • Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide / genetics
  • Random Amplified Polymorphic DNA Technique*

Substances

  • DNA Primers
  • Glutamate-Ammonia Ligase