Efficient gene inactivation in Bacillus anthracis

A procedure for high-efficiency gene inactivation in Bacillus anthracis has been developed. It is based on a highly temperature-sensitive plasmid vector carrying kanamycin resistance cassette surrounded by DNA fragments flanking the desired insertion site. The approach was tested by constructing glutamate racemase E1 (racE1), glutamate racemase E2 (racE2) and comEC knock-out mutants of B. anthracis strain ΔANR. Allelic replacements were observed at high frequencies, ranging from ∼0.5% for racE2 up to 50% for racE1 and comEC. The system can be used for genetic validation of potential drug targets.