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. The determination of the coding properties and the primary nucleotide sequence of pSN2 suggested 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 hitchhiking transposon.