Methylation of 16S ribosomal RNA and resistance to the aminoglycoside antibiotics gentamicin and kanamycin determined by DNA from the gentamicin-producer, Micromonospora purpurea.

When DNA fragments from Micromonospora purpurea (the producer of gentamicin) were cloned in Streptomyces lividans, a gentamicin-resistant strain was obtained in which the ribosomes were highly resistant both to gentamicin and to kanamycin. Reconstitution analysis revealed that such resistance resulted from some property of their 16S RNA. Extracts from the clone contained methylase activity which acted on 16S RNA within E. coli 30S ribosomal subunits and rendered them resistant to gentamicin and kanamycin.