Neither reduced uptake nor increased efflux is encoded by tellurite resistance determinants expressed inEscherichia coli

Abstract

Rates of uptake of the TeO32−oxyanion were investigated in Escherichia coli cells containing tellurite resistance determinants from both plasmid (RK2Ter, R478, pMER610, MIP233, pHH1508a, pMUR) and chromosomal (tehAB) sources. The uptake was investigated to determine whether or not reduced uptake or increased efflux is involved in the tellurite resistance mechanism. Reduced TeO32−uptake generated by cultures harboring arsABC from the plasmid R773, which has been previously shown to be an oxyanion efflux transporter, was used as the standard. Uptake curves were found to be essentially identical among E. coli cultures harboring the tellurite resistance plasmids RK2Ter, pMER610, pHH1508a, and pMUR and cultures harboring tellurite-sensitive control plasmids. Cultures harboring clones of the tehAB operon from E. coli showed no change in the TeO32−accumulation. Cultures harboring R478 demonstrated reduced uptake. However, a subclone containing only the tellurite resistance determinant displayed no reduced uptake. This suggests that there may be another determinant on R478 other than the primary tellurite resistance determinant that gives rise to TeO32−efflux. These results demonstrate that neither reduced uptake nor increased efflux is responsible for the tellurite resistance in the resistance determinants investigated here.Key words: tellurite resistance, uptake, metal resistance, resistance.