Structural analysis of plasmid pSN2 in Staphylococcus aureus: No involvement in enterotoxin B production

Abstract

Earlier studies have suggested the involvement of a small 1.3-kilobase plasmid, pSN2, in the production of enterotoxin B by certain S. aureus strains. On the basis of extensive biochemical studies on pSN2, including the determination of its coding properties and its primary nucleotide sequence, we conclude that this plasmid is not in fact involved in enterotoxin B production in S. aureus: although the toxin genes are apparently chromosomal, it is probable that they are part of a special genetic system such as a hitchhiking transposon.