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. 1989 Aug;55(8):1860–1864. doi: 10.1128/aem.55.8.1860-1864.1989

Plasmid expression and maintenance during long-term starvation-survival of bacteria in well water.

B A Caldwell 1, C Ye 1, R P Griffiths 1, C L Moyer 1, R Y Morita 1
PMCID: PMC202970  PMID: 2782868

Abstract

Strains of enteric bacteria and pseudomonads containing plasmid R388::Tnl721 (Tpr, Tcr) or pRO101 (Hgr, Tcr) were starved for over 250 days in sterile well water to evaluate effects of starvation-survival on plasmid expression and maintenance. Viable populations dropped to between approximately 0.1 and 1% of the initial populations. Escherichia coli(pRO101) and Pseudomonas cepacia(pRO101) lost both viability and plasmid expression at a lower rate than strains containing R388::Tnl721. Three patterns of host-plasmid interaction were detected: (i) no apparent loss of plasmid expression, (ii) loss of plasmid expression on initial recovery with subsequent expression upon resuscitation, and (iii) loss of capability to produce functional plasmid resistance.

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Selected References

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