Cloning of Mycobacterium smegmatis Exochelin MS genes fxbA, fxbC and exiT in Escherichia coli

Abstract

Siderophores are low molecular weight compounds with a strong affinity for iron. For instance, exochelin MS is a siderophore produced by M. smegmatis. In the present study, we have cloned exochelin MS biosynthesis genes of Mycobacterium smegmatis, namely, fxbA, fxbC and exiT in E. coli DH5α. These genes were amplified by PCR and cloned in plasmid vector pUC19. The clones harbouring the recombinant plasmids were isolated, purified and sequenced. The sequencing and the BLAST results using NCBI database confirmed the success of cloning fxbA, fxbC and exiT genes.