S-fimbria-encoding determinant sfa(I) is located on pathogenicity island III536 of uropathogenic Escherichia coli strain 536

The sfa(I) determinant encoding the S-fimbrial adhesin of uropathogenic Esc herichia coli strains was found to be located on a pathogenicity island of uropathogenic E, coli strain 536, This pathogenicity island, designated PAI III536, is located at 5.6 min of the E, coli chromosome and covers a regio n of at least 37 kb between the tRNA locus thrW and yagU. As far as it has been determined, PAI III536 also contains genes which code for components o f a putative enterochelin siderophore system of E, coli and Salmonella spp, as well as for colicin V immunity. Several intact or nonfunctional mobilit y genes of bacteriophages and insertion sequence elements such as transposa ses and integrases are present on PAI III536. The presence of known PAI III 536 sequences has been investigated in several wild-type E, coli isolates. The results demonstrate that the determinants of the members of the S-famil y of fimbrial adhesins may be located on a common pathogenicity island whic h, in E, coli strain 536, replaces a 40-kb DNA region which represents an E , coli K-12-specific genomic island.