The cloning and characterization of DNA gyrase genes from Mycobacterium smegmatis is described. The DNA sequence of 5119 bp encoding both gyrB and gyrA genes was determined. The gene gyrB precedes gyrA with a short intergenic region of 29 nucleotides. The proteins encoded, GyrB and GyrA, exhibit 45-80% identity to gyrase polypeptides from other bacteria. The genes were further engineered for ov...

We examined the antimicrobial susceptibilities of 85 Neisseria gonorrhoeae isolates, classified according to the presence of amino acid substitutions in the GyrA and ParC proteins, to 12 fluoroquinolones and 7 other antibiotics. Sitafloxacin and HSR-903 showed excellent activity against N. gonorrhoeae, including strains with both GyrA and ParC substitutions. Among the strains with various GyrA ...

Increasing numbers of fluoroquinolone-resistant Campylobacter coli isolates received at the Minnesota State Public Health Laboratory and at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have been a cause for concern. The gyrA quinolone resistance-determining regions of several fluoroquinolone-resistant isolates were sequenced to examine the mechanism of resistance. Ciprofloxacin-resistant C. c...

Escherichia coli DNA gyrase contains a 1:1 ratio of protomers coded by the genes gyrA and gyrB. This along with previous results shows that the enzyme has two copies of each protomer and thus a molecular weight of 400,000. Abortion of the gyrase reaction results in double-strand breakage of the DNA and covalent attachment of both gyrA protomers to the 5'-cut ends. We conclude that the gyrA prot...

gyrA and parC mutations have been identified inn Streptococcus pneumoniae mutants stepwise selected for resistance to sparfloxacin, an antipneumococcal fluoroquinolone. GyrA mutations (at the position equivalent to resistance hot spot Ser-83 in Escherichia coli GyrA) were found in all 17 first-step mutants examined and preceded DNA topoisomerase IV parC mutations (at Ser-79 or Glu-83), which ap...

OBJECTIVES To investigate mutations in the type II topoisomerase genes in quinolone-resistant mutants selected from bacteria harbouring plasmid-borne qnr genes. METHODS Mutants were selected by nalidixic acid, ciprofloxacin and moxifloxacin from two Escherichia coli reference strains and corresponding transconjugants harbouring qnrA1, qnrA3, qnrB2 or qnrS1 genes. RESULTS The proportion of r...

Mycobacterium tuberculosis is a significant source of global morbidity and mortality. Moxifloxacin and other fluoroquinolones are important therapeutic agents for the treatment of tuberculosis, particularly multidrug-resistant infections. To guide the development of new quinolone-based agents, it is critical to understand the basis of drug action against M. tuberculosis gyrase and how mutations...

The in-vitro antimicrobial activity of HSR-903, a new fluoroquinolone, was tested against 51 clinical Neisseria gonorrhoeae isolates in comparison with ciprofloxacin, levofloxacin and sparfloxacin. The MICs of HSR-903 for 11 isolates with alterations in both GyrA and ParC, for 19 isolates with alterations only in GyrA and for 21 isolates without alterations in either GyrA or ParC ranged from 0....