Identification of the product of tetP gene: a possible mechanistic basis for tetracycline resistance in Clostridium perfringens.

Using cloning and in vitro protein synthesis we identified the polypeptide product of the tetP gene of Clostridium perfringens which is responsible for conferring resistance to tetracycline. Two EcoRI fragments invariably share the resistance determinant in all of the Clostridium perfringens isolates that we studied. Likewise, two proteins of 10 and 20 kDa were found to be conserved in all of the recombinant clones. The 10 kDa protein appears to be responsible for the constitution of the expression of tetP gene in C. perfringens.