11 Study on the β-lactamase gene of Prevotella intermedia isolated from the oral cavity

Abstract

I examined the β-lactamase gene of Prevotella intermedia (P. intermedia) in order to better understand the β-lactam-resistance mechanism. The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) performed on β-lactam-resistant P. intermedia gave a product the same size as one previously reported, as well as another product not previously observed. The PCR products of the CfxA 2 and CfxA 3 β-lactamase gene primers were amplified into products that had high homogeneity with the CfxA 2 and CfxA 3 β-lactamase genes. These results suggest that β-lactam-resistant β-lactamase producers have genes that resemble the CfxA 2 and CfxA 3 genes, and that these genes are seen throughout the strain. However, Escherichia. coli transformed by the PCR product did not show resistance to β-lactams. This may be the result of inactivation by mutation of a sequence, or the existence of a specific phenotype.