High impact information on mutS

• Inactivation of the mismatch repair gene mutS is often implicated in the mutator phenotype; the reported effect of mutS inactivation on mutation frequency varies widely between species, from under 10-fold to nearly 1000-fold, but also varies among different reports on the same species [1].
• By using mutated versions of a tetracycline resistance gene, the mutS mutant showed a 70-fold increase in the reversion frequency of a +1 frameshift mutation with respect to its parental wild-type strain, allowing the suggestion that the phenotypical diversity generated in the mutS population could be produced in part by frameshift mutations [2].

Analytical, diagnostic and therapeutic context of mutS

• Antibiotic susceptibility profiles and mutation frequencies were determined, and complementation assays using the cloned wild-type mutS gene and molecular epidemiology studies (pulsed-field electrophoresis, [PFGE]) were performed with these strains [3].

References