A randomly amplified polymorphic DNA marker specific for the Bacillus cereus group is diagnostic for Bacillus anthracis

Aiming to develop a DNA marker specific for Bacillus anthracis and able to discriminate this species from Bacillus cereus, Bacillus thuringiensis, and Bacillus mycoides, we applied the randomly amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD ) fingerprinting technique to a collection of 101 strains of the genus Baci llus, including 61 strains of the B. cereus group, An 838-bp RAPD marker (S G-850) specific for B. cereus, B. thuringiensis,li. anthracis, and B, mycoi des was identified. This fragment included a putative (366-nucleotide) open reading frame highly homologous to the ypuA gene of Bacillus subtilis. The restriction analysis of the SG-850 fragment with AluI distinguished B. ant hracis from the other species of the B. cereus group.