Dataset Information

Directly Sequenced Genomes of Contemporary Strains of Syphilis Reveal Recombination-Driven Diversity in Genes Encoding Predicted Surface-Exposed Antigens.

ABSTRACT: Syphilis, caused by Treponema pallidum subsp. pallidum (TPA), remains an important public health problem with an increasing worldwide prevalence. Despite recent advances in in vitro cultivation, genetic variability of this pathogen during infection is poorly understood. Here, we present contemporary and geographically diverse complete treponemal genome sequences isolated directly from patients using a methyl-directed enrichment prior to sequencing. This approach reveals that approximately 50% of the genetic diversity found in TPA is driven by inter- and/or intra-strain recombination events, particularly in strains belonging to one of the defined genetic groups of syphilis treponemes: Nichols-like strains. Recombinant loci were found to encode putative outer-membrane proteins and the recombination variability was almost exclusively found in regions predicted to be at the host-pathogen interface. Genetic recombination has been considered to be a rare event in treponemes, yet our study unexpectedly showed that it occurs at a significant level and may have important impacts in the biology of this pathogen, especially as these events occur primarily in the outer membrane proteins. This study reveals the existence of strains with different repertoires of surface-exposed antigens circulating in the current human population, which should be taken into account during syphilis vaccine development.

SUBMITTER: Grillova L

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6685089 | biostudies-literature | 2019

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Directly Sequenced Genomes of Contemporary Strains of Syphilis Reveal Recombination-Driven Diversity in Genes Encoding Predicted Surface-Exposed Antigens.

Grillová Linda L Oppelt Jan J Mikalová Lenka L Nováková Markéta M Giacani Lorenzo L Niesnerová Anežka A Noda Angel A AA Mechaly Ariel E AE Pospíšilová Petra P Čejková Darina D Grange Philippe A PA Dupin Nicolas N Strnadel Radim R Chen Marcus M Denham Ian I Arora Natasha N Picardeau Mathieu M Weston Christopher C Forsyth R Allyn RA Šmajs David D

Frontiers in microbiology 20190731

Syphilis, caused by Treponema pallidum subsp. pallidum (TPA), remains an important public health problem with an increasing worldwide prevalence. Despite recent advances in in vitro cultivation, genetic variability of this pathogen during infection is poorly understood. Here, we present contemporary and geographically diverse complete treponemal genome sequences isolated directly from patients using a methyl-directed enrichment prior to sequencing. This approach reveals that ...[more]

PMID: 31417509

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Project description:BackgroundSynaptotagmins exist as a large gene family in mammals. There is much interest in the function of certain family members which act crucially in the regulated synaptic vesicle exocytosis required for efficient neurotransmission. Knowledge of the functions of other family members is relatively poor and the presence of Synaptotagmin genes in plants indicates a role for the family as a whole which is wider than neurotransmission. Identification of the Synaptotagmin genes within completely sequenced genomes can provide the entire Synaptotagmin gene complement of each sequenced organism. Defining the detailed structures of all the Synaptotagmin genes and their encoded products can provide a useful resource for functional studies and a deeper understanding of the evolution of the gene family. The current rapid increase in the number of sequenced genomes from different branches of the tree of life, together with the public deposition of evolutionarily diverse transcript sequences make such studies worthwhile.ResultsI have compiled a detailed list of the Synaptotagmin genes of Caenorhabditis, Anopheles, Drosophila, Ciona, Danio, Fugu, Mus, Homo, Arabidopsis and Oryza by examining genomic and transcript sequences from public sequence databases together with some transcript sequences obtained by cDNA library screening and RT-PCR. I have compared all of the genes and investigated the relationship between plant Synaptotagmins and their non-Synaptotagmin counterparts.ConclusionsI have identified and compared 98 Synaptotagmin genes from 10 sequenced genomes. Detailed comparison of transcript sequences reveals abundant and complex variation in Synaptotagmin gene expression and indicates the presence of Synaptotagmin genes in all animals and land plants. Amino acid sequence comparisons indicate patterns of conservation and diversity in function. Phylogenetic analysis shows the origin of Synaptotagmins in multicellular eukaryotes and their great diversification in animals. Synaptotagmins occur in land plants and animals in combinations of 4-16 in different species. The detailed delineation of the Synaptotagmin genes presented here, will allow easier identification of Synaptotagmins in future. Since the functional roles of many of these genes are unknown, this gene collection provides a useful resource for future studies.

Dataset Information

Directly Sequenced Genomes of Contemporary Strains of Syphilis Reveal Recombination-Driven Diversity in Genes Encoding Predicted Surface-Exposed Antigens.

Publications

Directly Sequenced Genomes of Contemporary Strains of Syphilis Reveal Recombination-Driven Diversity in Genes Encoding Predicted Surface-Exposed Antigens.

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