Relatedness between the coagulase gene 3 '-end region and coagulase serotypes among Staphylococcus aureus strains

The 3'-end region of the coagulase gene from 22 strains of Staphylococcus a ureus including 10 standard serotype strains was sequenced, and five subgro ups with 4-8 tandem repeating units were distinguished among the tested str ains. Phylogenetic analysis of the 3'-end region of the coagulase gene indi cated that strains belonging to the same serotype were clustered in the sam e branch. A phylogenetic tree of the deduced amino acid sequences revealed that the C-terminal region might not be responsible for the epitope of the coagulase protein.