Gene blr1516 is predicted to encode a protein of 1050 aa, with 11 predicted transmembrane helices and significant sequence similarity to the RND-type transporters MexD of P. aeruginosa (54%) and AcrB of E. coli (44%), for example. Based on these structural features and the functional data described below, genes blr1515 and blr1516 were termed bdeA and bdeB, respectively, acronyms of the Bradyrhizobium drug exporter. Database searches

revealed that, in addition to BdeAB, the B. japonicum genome encodes 23 further putative RND-type efflux pumps, which are potentially involved in multidrug export. We determined the phylogenetic relationship between these paralogous transporters in B. Selleckchem Selumetinib japonicum, and compared them with prototypic RND-type transporters of known substrates (deposited in the Transport Classification Database at http://www.tcdb.org/; Saier et al., 2006, or described in the literature as being present in phytopathogenic bacteria). Phylogenetic analysis revealed that the BdeB membrane transporter is more closely related to orthologs from Cyclopamine purchase other Gram-negative bacteria than to any of its 23 paralogs (see Supporting Information, Fig. S1). BdeB

clustered with MexD and MexY of P. aeruginosa, AmrB of Burkholderia pseudomallei and MtrD of Neisseria gonorrhoeae. MexD and MexY have a common basic substrate profile [quinolones, macrolides (e.g. erythromycin), tetracycline, chloramphenicol, and certain β-lactams] that is extended by novobiocin (MexD) and aminoglycosides (MexY) (Masuda et al., 2000; Jeannot et al., 2005). Aminoglycosides and erythromycin are also exported by AmrB (Moore et al., 1999), whereas MtrD was reported to export mainly fatty acids

and bile salts (Hagman et al., 1997). Colonies formed by the ΔbdeAB mutant (strain 9589) on plates were more mucous as compared with those formed by the wild type. Cultures used for all assays Fludarabine performed in this work were inoculated from second-generation precultures in order to minimize the potential risk of exopolysaccharide interference with OD measurements. Heterotrophic growth of the ΔbdeAB mutant cultivated under oxic and micro-oxic conditions in a complex medium was indistinguishable from that of the wild type, and so was growth in minimal medium under oxic conditions (data not shown). The potential susceptibility of the ΔbdeAB strain 9589 to various antimicrobial compounds was tested qualitatively in gradient plate assays (not shown) or, more quantitatively, using agar plate diffusion assays. The deletion of bdeAB resulted in a marked and significant increase of sensitivity to the aminoglycosides kanamycin and gentamicin as compared with the wild type (1.7- and 5.5-fold difference, respectively, based on the size of the inhibition zone; Fig. 2). The complemented strain 9589-38 showed wild-type resistance levels and a largely normal colony morphology.