Genetic environment and expression of the extended-spectrum β-lactamase blaPER-1 gene in gram-negative bacteria

The genetic location of the gene coding for the expanded-spectrum beta-lactamase PER-1 was analyzed in a series of gram-negative isolates. It was identified as part of a composite transposon bracketed by two novel insertion elements, ISPa12 and ISPa13, belonging to the IS4 family that possess transposases that share 63% amino acid identity and that are chromosomally located in Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Providencia stuartii, and Acinetobacter baumannii. On the contrary, the bla(PER-1) gene was identified just downstream of an ISPa12 element but not within a composite transposon when it was located on a plasmid in Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium and A. baumannii isolates. In both cases, expression of the bla(PER-1) gene was driven by promoter sequences located in ISPa12.