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Science 22 May 2009:
Vol. 324. no. 5930, p. 1034
DOI: 10.1126/science.1172914
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The SOS Response Controls Integron Recombination

Émilie Guerin,1,* Guillaume Cambray,2,* Neus Sanchez-Alberola,3,* Susana Campoy,3 Ivan Erill,4 Sandra Da Re,1 Bruno Gonzalez-Zorn,5 Jordi Barbé,3 Marie-Cécile Ploy,1 Didier Mazel2,{dagger}

Integrons are found in the genome of hundreds of environmental bacteria but are mainly known for their role in the capture and spread of antibiotic resistance determinants among Gram-negative pathogens. We report a direct link between this system and the ubiquitous SOS response. We found that LexA controlled expression of most integron integrases and consequently regulated cassette recombination. This regulatory coupling enhanced the potential for cassette swapping and capture in cells under stress, while minimizing cassette rearrangements or loss in constant environments. This finding exposes integrons as integrated adaptive systems and has implications for antibiotic treatment policies.

1 Université de Limoges, Faculté de Médecine, EA3175; INSERM, Equipe Avenir, 87000 Limoges, France.
2 Institut Pasteur, Plasticité du Génome Bactérien, CNRS URA 2171, 75015 Paris, France.
3 Departament de Genètica i Microbiologia, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, 08193 Barcelona, Spain.
4 Biomedical Applications Group, Centro Nacional de Microelectrónica–Instituto de Microelectrónica, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Cientificas (CNM-IMB, CSIC), 08193 Barcelona, Spain.
5 Departamento de Sanidad Animal and VISAVET (Centro de Vigilancia Sanitaria Veterinaria), Universitat Complutense de Madrid, 28040 Madrid, Spain.

* These authors contributed equally to this work.

{dagger} To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: mazel{at}pasteur.fr

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THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES:
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C. Frumerie, M. Ducos-Galand, D. N. Gopaul, and D. Mazel (2009)
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Science. ISSN 0036-8075 (print), 1095-9203 (online)