Efficient construction of Streptococcus anginosus mutants in strains of clinical origin

Abstract

Streptococcus anginosus group (SAG) is Gram-positive bacteria responsible for a number of purulent human infections such as brain and liver abscesses, which have been on the rise for last few decades. Although some virulence factors of SAG are described, they are mostly undefined and there are almost no methods for genetic manipulations of clinical SAG. Therefore, we presented various approaches to produce engineered strains of this poorly known group of streptococci. We developed a procedure of transformation characterized by transformation efficiency at the level of 104 per 1 μg DNA for certain strains. Moreover, mutagenesis for many SAG strain is possible based on the process of natural transformation. However, the usefulness of methods and their effectiveness are strain dependent.