Transposon Mutagenesis of Bacteroides fragilis

Bacteroides fragilis is Gram-negative obligatory anaerobe which usually resides in the gut of humans and animals. As an important member of the human gut microbiota it plays a vital role in digestion and absorption of nutrients as well as shaping of host immune system. B. fragilis is also infamous for causing serious infections. Treatment of B. fragilis infections caused emergence of multidrug-resistant strains. Molecular biology tools such as transposon mutagenesis help to decipher and understand commensal and pathogenic faces of B. fragilis. Using two mariner transposon vectors we describe the detailed methodology for the transposon mutagenesis of B. fragilis. We also describe two methods for the identification of transposon integration site (TIS) in transposon mutants. Transposon mutagenesis methods described in this chapter serve as a great tool for studying B. fragilis.