What Makes a Bacterial Species Pathogenic?:Comparative Genomic Analysis of the Genus Leptospira.

ABSTRACT: Leptospirosis, caused by spirochetes of the genus Leptospira, is a globally widespread, neglected and emerging zoonotic disease. While whole genome analysis of individual pathogenic, intermediately pathogenic and saprophytic Leptospira species has been reported, comprehensive cross-species genomic comparison of all known species of infectious and non-infectious Leptospira, with the goal of identifying genes related to pathogenesis and mammalian host adaptation, remains a key gap in the field. Infectious Leptospira, comprised of pathogenic and intermediately pathogenic Leptospira, evolutionarily diverged from non-infectious, saprophytic Leptospira, as demonstrated by the following computational biology analyses: 1) the definitive taxonomy and evolutionary relatedness among all known Leptosp

SUBMITTER: Fouts DE 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4758666 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature