Identification and Characterization of a Cryptic Plasmid Isolated from the Deep Subsurface Bacterium Pseudomonas spp. B0623.

摘要

Pseudomonas spp.B0623 had been isolated from the deep terrestrial subsurface of the Savannah River Site, which is a site that has been impacted by subsurface contamination with combination of radionuclides, heavy metals, anions, and different organic solvents, and chelating agents. This study investigates a cryptic plasmid (B0623B) using bioinformatics approaches and molecular biology techniques. The aim of this study was to confirm previous microarray data through DNA sequencing to find out if (B0623B) contains genes that encode resistance to heavy metals. This research also has implications for the role of horizontal gene transfer in the dissemination of heavy metal resistance by cryptic subsurface plasmids. By using restriction enzyme digestions we were able to partially characterize some features of the cryptic plasmid B0623B. However, further investigation is needed to move forward with confirmation of the existence of heavy metal resistance genes on this plasmid, and evaluation of the organism's utility in the bioremediation of heavy metal contaminated areas.