Isolation and characterization of Hfr strains of Erwinia amylovora

Hfr strains (Hfr 159 and its derivatives, Hfr 160 and Hfr 161) were constructed from Erwinia amylovora ICPB EA178 by introducing an Escherichia coli F'his+ plasmid and then selecting for integration of F'his+ after treatment with acridine orange. The Hfr strains were relatively stable upon repeated transfers on nonselective media. Interrupted mating experiments and analyses of inheritance of unselected markers showed that his+ is transferred by Hfr 159 as the proximal marker at a relatively high frequency (about 5 x 10(-4) recombinants per input donor cell), followed by ilv+, orn+, arg+, pro+, rbs+, met+, trp+, leu+, ser+, and thr+ (not necessarily in that precise order). The donor strains, previously constructed in E. amylovora by integration of F'lac+ from E. coli transfer cys+ as the proximal marker followed by ser+. Further analysis of one of those earlier donor strains, Hfr99, showed that ser+ is followed by arg+, orn+, met+, pro+, leu+, ilv+, rbs+, his+, trp+, and thr+ (not necessarily in that precise order). Thus, the Hfr strains constructed by integration of F'his+ are different, in terms of origin and direction of transfer, from those derived from integration of F'lac+. The applicability of these Hfr strains to mapping the genes on the E. amylovora chromosome is indicated.