薬剤耐性因子

その発見の歴史と遺伝学的意義

抄録

One of the most important discoveries in bacteriology since the introduction of antibiotic substances for treating bacterial infections has been the occurrence and spread of the resistance (R) factors. The R factors were discovered from the epidemiological studies of multiple resistance in Shigella strains in Japan, where the incidence of Shigella infections had not decreased remarkably by the mid- 1960 s with the situation remaining much the same as it is in developing countries in the tropics.
The nonconjugative resistance (r) plasmids were also discovered from the epidemiological studies of multiple resistance in Staphylococcus aureus. The R and r plasmids have been found to be the most important factors responsible for the spread of multiple resistance in bacteria.
The histological background of R plasmid discovery, genetics and molecular biology of R plasmids are described in this review. Biochemical mechanisms of plasmid- mediated resistance are also included. The discovery of transposon resulting from the R plasmid research is the intriguing findings in genetics and will be one of the most important fields for gene evolution.