Mobile Genetic Elements in Streptococci
Miao Lu, Tao Gong, Anqi Zhang, Boyu Tang, Jiamin Chen, Zhong Zhang, Yuqing Li and Xuedong Zhou
from: Pathogenic Streptococci: From Genomics to Systems Biology and Control (Edited by: Yuqing Li and Xuedong Zhou). Caister Academic Press, U.K. (2019) Pages: 123-166.
Abstract
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 read more ...
